How To Take HDR Photos

Learn How To Take HDR Photos
Do you know how to take hdr photos? Have you ever wondered how professional photographers manage to get those dynamic high dynamic range (hdr) photos? Till some years ago hdr was a work only of professionals but due to the advent in technology even amateur photographer or photo enthusiasts can manage to take a decent hdr image. High dynamic range photos are basically pictures where there is a higher range between the lightest and darkest colors of the image which makes it appear very vivid. Like every lesson of photography hdr photos aren’t a Childs play and only a proper understanding of this will get you the perfect shot. Below we will discuss how the mythologies are, techniques by which you can capture a hdr rich picture and answer various question of how to take photos. There are many ways by which you can achieve hdr images. First is using various images to form one hdr image and next is a professional hdr photo editing tool and lastly new aged cameras come by default with a hdr mode. This all methods will give you the answer to how to take hdr photos by your camera.

How To Take HDR Photos

The first method for how to take hdr photos is by clicking 3 successive images of different exposures setting of a landscape or whatever subject you’re trying to get into your hdr photo. This process is really simple if your camera has a setting called as auto bracketing. This setting basically takes 3 different shots automatically of the same subject with variable exposure setting so that you have to not manually change the exposure and finally you can either join the 3 pictures or the camera will do it for you. But there is a catch in this method as bracketing is mostly found in only DSLR’s and not point & shoot cameras so all simple P&S camera folks this method will not be of much help. This is the best solution to how to take hdr photos if you own a DSLR.

For all those who are not having a professional dslr and thinking how to take hdr photos, this method is the best for you all. This method can be tried on any digital camera from a low end to a high end compact camera. Basically you have to click three successive images of the subject with different exposure setting. Important things to remember is either use a tripod or hold your camera very firm so that the pictures do not vary from each other. To start go to the exposure setting which is called as EV setting in your digital camera here you will find the range of exposure from -2 EV TO +2 depending on your camera model. For the first photo select -2 EV and click the picture. The second image should be clicked with a 0 EV exposure and finally the third image should be clicked with +2 EV setting. But be careful that when you click these 3 images you need to hold the camera very firmly or else the pictures you have taken will vary from each other.

Once you’re done with the above method successfully then upload your images to your computer where you can join these 3 images into one hdr image. For creating an hdr image from these 3 images you need an hdr software. One of the best one currently in the market is Photomatix Pro as it is cheap also. This software will join the three images and create a high dynamic range picture for you. These is the most effective solution to your question of how to take hdr photos as this method can be used in almost all the digital cameras available in the market. The third and final method is an hdr mode in your camera. Some cameras released in 2011 have this mode whereby by selecting this option from the menu the camera will automatically click an image which is compliant with hdr standards. Different camera manufacturer uses different proprietary software algorithm to achieve the hdr picture. Some may click 3 images automatically with different exposure setting whereas some may click only one which then creates an hdr photos. This method is most beneficial to novice photographers and to people who don’t want to get into the hectic process of creating one. As this method is really simple and the camera does everything for you, the hdr image is really not comparable to the one created by the traditional method. Currently the Sony HX9V is the best compact camera to get a hdr photo without any hassle. This is the simplest solution to how to take hdr photos.

The above methods may sound easy but there are some implications and you need to consider while clicking a hdr photo. Firstly if ever possible use a tripod because all the 3 images will be equal to each other and will not vary. If your camera supports manual modes click the image in aperture priority because you don’t want the images blurred or different form each other. And always remember to keep the ISO setting at 100 because your images should be noise free. If the images contain any noise then while creating the hdr image from the 3 basic pictures the noise will amplify and spoil the whole image. If your camera supports auto bracketing then don’t hesitate to use it as it will make the process simpler. You need to carefully follow the various processes properly to get the perfect shot or else the end picture will be a blurred one. The question on your mind which is how to take hdr photos sounds a bit tricky but if followed the methods properly you can get the best shot.

How To Take HDR Photos – The Conclusion

Another thing to note about how to take hdr photos is that the basic images you click should be in RAW format compared to JPEG. RAW images contain way more detail then a JPEG counterpart and can be really helpful in post processing. You can adjust the exposure etc in a RAW image better then any other format. hdr images are very vibrant as these images contain way more color variation then a normal one so better go and try it. Every amateur user has the question “how to take hdr photos”; but it’s not that hard to create one if clicked properly.