High Dynamic Range Tutorial (HDR) Page 3

On to page 3. Now that we have captured our photos and processed them in Photomatix, now we will shape it up into a respectable image. Now You should load the tonemapped file and the three source files into photoshop.

 
Once all the files are in photoshop, copy and paste them on top of the tonemapped image. I won't be going over layers or masking in this tutorial, it is a whole tutorial in itself. If you do not know how to use layers or masks, I suggest reading up on them and skipping ahead a few steps to where we talk about processing the image. (Although then you'd be skipping the whole point of this section, so go read up on it.)

 
Now we will line up the layers in photoshop so they are perfectly in line. They must be this way so when we mask parts out they line up. Photoshop has an auto align function but I like doing it manually. Just make the layer you are aligning is a "difference" (use the drop down box that says "normal" in the layers window. click on it and there will be a ton of options, just scroll 2/3s of the way down and you will see difference.) layer and you can see when you have them lined up. once every layer is lined up, switch all the layers back to "normal". Hey, look at the bottom left, you can see what I'm listening to. Told you I like to keep it real.

 
Once the layers are aligned, we will start to mask source images into the tonemapped image. Just make a mask on each layer, fill the mask with black (Edit...-Fill...-with black) so you can see the tonemapped image again, then paint with white to add the source image to it in increments. Make sure the layers above the one you are working on have their visibility turned off. I do it in 20% increments usually to start. I'm going to mask the original sky back in if it looks too black. Or, maybe the areas near the horizon got too dark. Make sure at this point to mask all the people back in from source images. By the end of this step on most of my images, the tonemapped image is mostly covered with source images and doesn't resemble the original tonemap, which is a good thing.

 
Once I'm happy with the image, I make a history snapshot and then flatten the image. Now we just apply normal edits to the image, like color, dodge/burn, noise reduction and sharpening. Noise reduction is very important in HDR because the processing creates a lot of noise and grain. This is another reason I mask source image back into the tonemapped image, sometimes the grain is too much on the HDR and it hurts the image. I use Imagenomic's Noiseware for noise reduction, but you can use normal photoshop noise reduction. I have just very basic edits highlighted here, but they bring the image farther than what you can do in just photomatix.

 
So this is the final image. Not the greatest HDR ever made, but it shows the process of taking the images, processing them in photomatix, and then finishing in photoshop. Some images won't need much work in photoshop, some will be two hour torture sessions. Remember, HDR is just another tool in your arsenal. It takes a long time to get the hang of it and your first few will be really bad. I'm not kidding. They will be terrible. Look at some of my first ones when I just started learning how to do it in college-

Terrible huh?

Well now you know how to do it, so go out and make some awesome ones for yourself! For some more examples, check out my HDR Gallery here: HDR Gallery

If you liked this tutorial, make sure you stop by my facebook page Mike Sperlak Photography and "Like" it for more tutorials, news, and sweet images.

Thanks a lot for your time, and I hope I've helped in your quest for knowledge. I wouldn't be where I am today without a lot of help from a lot of great people.

Mike Sperlak