Question time...

Sinister_kid · Oct 27, 2009

Alright so i've really been wanting to try to capture come picture to make into an HDR image lately, but i've had one question sitting around in my mind.

Is there anyway to program the camera to take the same picture 3 times, and then change the exposure itself?

For example, Hit the button once then the camera auto adjusts the exposure on two of them, one +1/2 and one -1/2.

The reason i ask is because everytime i go to take pictures for an HDR image, while changing the settings to compensate to different exposures something in the image will move.

Any help?? Thanks!

Rekd · Oct 27, 2009

Some DSLRs have "bracketed" shooting where it can do 1 above and 1 below. I believe some other's can do more than 3 total. Should be in the manual, if not you can find it on line. I've never done it, just read about it.

Provo · Oct 27, 2009

On my camera nikon d5000 bracketing does take 3 pictures but you have to press the shutter manually for each picture but if you also turn on continious shutter release then you just press the shutter once and it will take all 3 pictures at the same time.

I also wrote a newbie guide which covers this and
if you look at the post below this one I posted my 1st hdr

Nikon D5000 HDR setup

Sinister_kid · Oct 27, 2009

Well I have the D80 and i'm guessing if the D5000 has this option then so should the D80. But my train of thought there might be wrong?

Thanks for the input though guys!

ann · Oct 27, 2009

check your manual for bracketing. just remember to deactive it after your done or it will continue to make those changes

nrois02 · Oct 28, 2009

i have a d80 and done this. excuse me cause i dont know the correct terminology for all the buttons etc. try and follow. where the button right by the pop up flash on the left side is the button to make the flash pop up. under it is the button that if you hold it youll see on the screen that itll say "0" then if you use your shutter speed button you can move it to -2, 2, and 3(i believe thats correct but not 100%) and then if you look at the screen there are a couple buttons close to the shutter button well the one that looks like it has a circle with four box objects around it if you hold that and move the shutter speed dial it will go up to +5 or -5. using those two you can create hdr's in manual mode. it takes three photos so you dont need to worry about anything else. just be sure you get the metering right before you set it up. hope this helps and its not just a jumbled mess. lol good luck

Sinister_kid · Oct 28, 2009

Thanks! I will definitely have to grab my camera after I get my lens back and try that out.

nrois02 · Nov 2, 2009

your welcome. hope it goes well!

Buckster · Nov 2, 2009

It's still going to take three separate photos, and if anything moves from photo to photo, you're in the same boat as when you wrote the opening post.

So, no - to answer your actual question directly, you cannot press the button once and have the camera take three pictures simultaneously with one shot.

The good news is that with auto bracketing, you'll be able to shoot those frames much faster.

BTW, this "things moving" problem doesn't have to do with trying to shoot these shots hand-held, is it? You're talking about cars or people or leaves or animals moving, while everything that's stationary all lines up fine, right? Because if you're going to do multiple exposure HDR shooting, you really need a tripod or some other way to steady the camera between frames.

As a last resort, you can make a faux HDR, which is actually a tone mapping of a single shot that's been output as though it's three separate shots, and in that method, nothing obviously moved cause it's just one shot.

To do that, you shoot in RAW, then produce three versions of the RAW to TIF or JPG; One underexposed to show as much detail as you can in the highlights, one 'normal', and one overexposed to show as much detail as you can in the shadows. The you bring those three versions into your HDR program and go to town with it.

Sinister_kid · Nov 2, 2009

Buckster, Yes the objects moving are actual things moving, not due to hand shake.

I tried doing it with the JPGs like you said, and just merged it in photoshop's HDR program, but the image came out super overexposed. Like wayyyyy blown out, any help with this?

Inst!nct · Nov 2, 2009

humm, tyvm for informing me of this, i had not messed around with HDR photos before so i was either doing it with lightroom or taking a picture, manually changing settings, and taking a picture and so on, the pictures were not at ALL the same

Buckster · Nov 2, 2009

Sinister_kid said:
Buckster, Yes the objects moving are actual things moving, not due to hand shake.

I tried doing it with the JPGs like you said, and just merged it in photoshop's HDR program, but the image came out super overexposed. Like wayyyyy blown out, any help with this?

Be sure to start with a RAW file.

One photo output from the RAW will be very underexposed and only the middle tone and brightest parts of it will have details. It's important that the highlights have details, or you've not adjusted enough to underexpose it.

One photo output from the RAW will be 'normal' looking, which gives the best mid-tone details.

One photo output from the RAW will be overexposed and only the middle tones and darkest parts will have details

Bring them together in an HDR program and you should have a reasonable faux HDR.

Photoshop doesn't do a very good job with HDR yet. I would suggest Photomatix or Dynamic HDR. You can test drive either of them for free.

nrois02 · Nov 2, 2009

i use photomatix and it works really well! i kinda skimmed what was said last but i know if you dont do the bracketing and just start changing the exposures it wont come out right and youll get spots that are messed up with the images and and a lot of noise

chip · Nov 2, 2009

make sure you put the camera on a tripod.

sam_rowlands · Nov 3, 2009

Sinister_kid said:
Buckster, Yes the objects moving are actual things moving, not due to hand shake.

I tried doing it with the JPGs like you said, and just merged it in photoshop's HDR program, but the image came out super overexposed. Like wayyyyy blown out, any help with this?

Yeah Photoshop'll do that with HDR, when you change the depth from 32-bit to 16-bit make sure you set method to Local Adaption, then click the triangle button to reveal the curve, now you'll need to drag the curve into the shadows the highlights down. Each image'll be different, but once you've done it a couple of times you'll get the hang of it.