NEWBIE's QUESTION- SLR and HDRI

[onzki]

Hi guys, In new here as well as in photography.. i have a questions:

i saw the pictures on the link below and i am really amazed.. though i dont really understand what HDRI means... but my question is- are these pictures- "raw images"- or produced directly by the slr camera? no post processing,photoshop etc..? no added special lens stuff..?

The World's Best Photos of hdr and slr. Flickr Hive Mind Search

if so..
1. which SLR camera is capable of producing such qulaity in single shot?
2. if i will buy entry-level SLR, for beginners like me.. what camera comes close into producing these image quality?

thanks for the advice guys!

 

[Katier]

HDR is produced by special software combining a number ( 5 seems a good number ) of images together. Each image is a 'bracket' of the normal exposure for the shot.

i.e. you meter for the current light, take a shot then shoot 4 more ( preferably using tripod/remote trigger) bracketting 2 over and 2 under exposed.

When the software combines them it is able to bring out more detail, especially in shadows.

Done well it can produce excellent shots although, light night trails, to get people interested it really needs to be something special.

 

[dcclark]

HDR is in some sense the opposite of a "raw" (unprocessed) image -- it's ultra processed and requires a bit of skill to do well. I've been playing around with HDR, enfusion, and focus stacking lately (all ways to combine images to produce something your camera can't do alone), and it's tricky to get it just right.

 

[Battou]

Simple answer is none. HDR Imaging requires multiple exposures, it's not a suggestion. A lot of people fake them with single raw exposures but they are easy enough to pick out.

 

[boogschd]

meh.. u can make an HDR with a digital compact camera .
but of course, quality is different compared to an slr

and youd need a tripod cause as far as i know. digital compacts and entry level SLR's dont have the bracketing function

(i could be wrong tho)

 

[EhJsNe]

HDR stands for high synamics range, its nothing more than an overexposed, underexposed and a properly exposed image put together in an image ediitor. (ive heard photomatix is the best for HDR)

You can over expose and underexpose as many pictures as you want, 5 is good for most people. 3 works too.

To get the cartoon effect takes lots of editing, the point of an HDR in my opinion is to get a well exposed picture throughout the entire image, not to make it look like someone has too much time playing with sketchup.

You can make an HDR with an camera, even film and P&S cameras.

All an SLR does is give you more image quality (usually, all depends on the sensor size) and usually makes it easier to acess the setting to under and over expose.

With a P&S, if you dont have manual settings, the exposure compensation works to under and over expose the pictures.
Changing the shutter speed works.
Ive heard of changing the aperture, but that would affect DOF, resulting in a blurry image.

 

[onzki]

hi guys, just wanna thank you for all the info.. I learned a lot=) love this forum.. more power 2all! :thumbup:

 

[mcuccia]

Simple answer is none. HDR Imaging requires multiple exposures, it's not a suggestion. A lot of people fake them with single raw exposures but they are easy enough to pick out.

Battou, afaik there are cameras with built-in HDR-functionality. You're right when you say you need multiple exposures but as the camera takes care of that with one push of a button, I'd say it takes only one shot.

Mel

 

[Battou]

Battou, afaik there are cameras with built-in HDR-functionality. You're right when you say you need multiple exposures but as the camera takes care of that with one push of a button, I'd say it takes only one shot.

Mel

You are going to have to find and show me one before I can acknoledge it's existance.


A great many cameras SLR and P-Shooter alike have an auto braketing feature that would enable HDR imaging with one push of a button but it still has to be generated in HDR processing software. The braketing feature takes multiple exposures at different exposure settings, that is what braketing is. Never the less they can not produce the HDR with a single exposure, Just because you push the button once does not mean only one shot was taken.

 

[mcuccia]

Fuji S3

Fuji Super CCD's in-camera HDR sample - Luminous Landscape Forum

Mel

 

[Battou]

That is still not HDR, it's EDR. Extended Dynamic Range is not High Dynamic Range, they are different.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/beyond-basics/161805-edr-just-what.html

If I recall correctly basically what the S3 does is records two sets of information using a unique censor. It then takes the two sets of information and averages them. The S3 can not do anything close to what the OP was asking for, what it is best suited for is real estate and architectural photography for properly exposing both window and room areas simultaneously. It comes as no suprise that the example thread you provided just happens to fall under that category, it is a perfect example of an EDR scene.

It's a step in that direction, but until Fuji figures out how to cram five, seven or nine censors into one censor, it will not be one button HDR.