Comparing HDR software for the Mac
HDR (High Dynamic Range) imaging is a technique for producing photographs with a much greater range between the lightest and darkest areas than normal digital photographs. The usual method involves combining several shots of the same scene with different exposure levels, which often results in very striking effects.
I’ve been experimenting with HDR photography with my Nikon D40x, although I haven’t produced any outstanding images yet.
For best results, you should shoot in raw mode, since camera raw files have much more exposure data than JPGs. You need to be able to adjust the exposure for each shot, and for best results you should use a tripod (although I didn’t use a tripod for these shots).
For this test, I took 3 shots using normal exposure and exposure compensations of +2 and -2. With most cameras, including the D40x, you need to use the program auto or one of the manual modes rather than full automatic to use exposure compensation.
First I tried Hydra, which touts the ability to work with pictures taken without a tripod by warping & adjusting the images. I found that it actually did the worst job of matching images, resulting in a lot of ghosting around the outlines, although the HDR effect was the most extreme.
Next I tried Photomatix, which did a better job of matching the images. It produced the darkest image in which the HDR effect isn’t as strong.
Finally, I tried Photoshop CS3, which did an excellent job of matching the images, with the HDR effect most noticeable in the clouds. I used the Merge to HDR workflow with the default settings, so I probably could have created a much stronger effect.
You can also create some interesting effects from a single raw file, by manipulating the white balance, saturation, and exposure, although it isn’t true HDR.
My conclusion is if you already own Photoshop, you probably don’t need any other HDR software. The Merge to HDR feature is almost as easy to use as the dedicated HDR software and it gives you a lot of control.
Hydra is the lowest cost solution, although it requires a lot of manual adjustment to match images and it doesn’t do well with movement, such as the clouds & leaves in this shot.
