highdynamicrange

A fog rolls over fall foliage in a mountainous river valley.

What is HDR Photography?

HDR photography may seem complex, but it is a surprisingly simple tool that can open new photographic doors. Most people have encountered HDR photography without thinking about it since smartphones automatically produce HDR images.

Understanding Fujifilm High Dynamic Range

HDR stands for High Dynamic Range and is a setting available on several Fujifilm cameras, including the X-T4. HDR involves merging separate images together to create a single JPEG file in order to provide the maximum amount of dynamic range possible out of your image.

Dell mini-LED 4K HDR Monitor Review: Setting the Bar at $5,000

In the age of digital photography, your monitor is as important as the camera you shoot with or the lenses you use. But as more high-end options hit the market every year, the line between "worth it" and "overkill" is starting to blur. Dell's new 32-inch 4K HDR PremierColor mini-LED monitor, an elite display by any standard, is helping to draw that line a little bit clearer.

Lomography Unveils New High Dynamic Range Black and White Film

Lomography continues to expand its "Kino" lineup of black and white film. Less than a month after announcing the dramatic high-contrast "Kino Fantôme " film, the brand has released a new, high dynamic range entry to the lineup: Babylon Kino B&W ISO 13.

Video: How to Effectively Capture Realistic-Looking HDR Images

There are many of us who sigh at hearing the dreaded acronym, HDR. Oftentimes we associate it with oversaturated, cartoon-like compositions put together from half a dozen worth of frames. But that’s not the only way to approach HDR. As with everything, it’s a variable, not definitive.

In the above video, Washington DC-based photographer Tim Cooper shows off how to effectively capture an HDR image. And he does so in such a manner that it replicates what the human eye sees, without over-processing as we all too often see.

HDR Explained in Quick, Informative Video

Obviously this video and post isn't for the advanced HDR photographer, but even if you have a good understanding of what High Dynamic Range is or how to capture it, you'll probably find one or two tidbits of very interesting information in this short video by Techquickie.

Brinno Announces the World’s First HDR Time-Lapse Video Camera

When it comes to creating quality time-lapse videos, many photographers relish having a serious amount of control over their result. But if you're the kind of person who isn't into intervalometers or messing with rail systems, and you're looking for something that's more of a "set it and forget it" system, Brinno's new TLC200 Pro may fit the bill just right.

Rambus’ ‘Binary Pixel’ Technology Seeks to Bring Single-Shot HDR to Smartphones

Tech company Rambus just announced "Binary Pixels," a new sensor technology that intends to bring ultra-high dynamic range to small sensors like those found in smartphones and P&S cameras. By allowing pixels to "reset" and saturate more than once, the pixel tech promises to expand the dynamic range of these sensors to "single-shot HDR" levels.

Apple Patents Method of Generating HDR Photos from Single Exposures

High dynamic range (HDR) mode is becoming a standard feature in newer digital cameras and smartphones. By snapping multiple photographs at different exposure levels, the camera can automatically generate an image that captures a greater range of light and dark areas than a standard photograph. However, the technique does have its weaknesses. Artifacts appear if any changes occur in the scene between the different shots, which limits the scenarios in which the technique can be used.

Apple wants to overcome this issue by implementing an HDR mode that only requires a single exposure. A recently published patent shows that Apple is well on its way to doing so.

Wearable Cameras May One Day Give Us Ultra-HDR Vision

When doing certain types of welding, special helmets with dark lens shades should be used to protect the eyes from the extremely bright welding arc and sparks. The masks help filter out light, protecting your eyes, but at the same time make it hard to see the details in what you're doing. In other words, the dynamic range is too high, and wearers are unable to see both the arc and the objects they're welding.

A group of researchers in the EyeTap Personal Imaging Lab at the University of Toronto have a solution, and it involves cameras. They've created a "quantigraphic camera" that can give people enhanced vision. Instead of being tuned to one particular brightness, it attempts to make everything in front of the wearer visible by using ultra high dynamic range imaging.

AMP Camera Captures HDR Video in Real Time with One Lens and Three Sensors

Late last year we showed you an interesting demonstration of HDR video filmed using two Canon 5D Mark IIs. The cameras captured the exact same scene at different exposure values using a beam-splitter. Now, a new camera called AMP has been developed that captures real-time HDR video using a single lens. The trick is that there are two beam-splitters in the camera that take the light and direct it onto three different sensors, giving the system a dynamic range of 17 stops. Check out some sample clips in the video above -- they might be pretty ugly, but the technology here is pretty interesting.

HDR Photo of Endeavour Liftoff by NASA

Here's a good example of when HDR photography is useful: NASA created this image of the Space Shuttle Endeavour lifting off for the final time by combining six separate photographs.

Each image was taken at a different exposure setting, then composited to balance the brightness of the rocket engine output with the regular daylight levels at which the orbiter can be seen. The processing software digitally removes pure black or pure white pixels from one image and replaces them with the most detailed pixel option from the five other images. This technique can help visualize debris falling during a launch or support research involving intense light sources like rocket engines, plasma experiments and hypersonic vehicle engines. [#]

Combine Multiple Photos Using HDR Software for Surreal Results

Flickr user Paul Little creates surreal images he calls "HDR Mixes" by combining different photographs with the help of HDR software. While you're normally supposed to feed the program multiple versions of the same photo (which are bracketed), with HDR Mixes you use two photos of the same scene and a third that's completely unrelated.

Double Rainbow All the Way in HDR

The Internet viral sensation "Double Rainbow" video was captured on January 8th, 2010. About two weeks later on the 23rd (and long before that video went viral), I saw a double rainbow myself when looking out my window. I quickly grabbed my camera (a Canon 40D at the time) with my 16-35mm lens (I wanted the widest shot possible) and ran out to shoot the rainbow.

Black and White HDR Time Lapse Shot with a Sony A700

Andrew Rees shot this beautiful black and white time lapse in Cardiff, Wales using a Sony A700 DSLR. He shot 700 pairs of photos (a total of 1400 shots) with 2.5 seconds in between pairs, and combined the resulting HDR photographs into a 12fps time lapse video.

HDR Video Demonstration Made with Two Canon 5D Mark IIs

You've most likely seen HDR photographs before, but how about HDR video? The above is a demonstration of HDR video by Soviet Montage, created using two Canon 5D Mark II DSLR cameras. Both cameras recorded identical scenes using a beam splitter, and captured the footage at different exposure values (over and under exposed).

Easy HDR Editing with Oloneo PhotoEngine

French company Oloneo has just released a free beta for their product, PhotoEngine. The software is a straightforward HDR creator and non-destructive editor that allows you to quickly merge HDR photos. Additionally, it has features that can adjust specific light sources in the photo, to change the white balance or the exposure. This could come in handy when shooting HDR frames that have a variety of different light sources with different temperatures.