I think a lot of us have spent time with HDR. When a trend pops up it’s seductive, because there’s a chance you could miss out on something legitimately useful if you ignore it. I try to stay aware of trends, but be slow to employ them:-)
Would you consider writing a piece on soft proofing? I searched through your archive but couldn’t find any writing on it. I do my own printing, but I would like to refine my skill with soft proofing. Thank you for all the valuable information you’ve shared so far!
Grab a copy of our free print ebook. I wrote the sections regarding soft-proofing. A kind of difficult read but we're always here to answer specific questions or provide clarification.
Amazing, thank you so much for this. I had a quick look this morning but I'll be going through the entire PDF over the next little while. I appreciate the help!
I’ve never been a fan of the “HDR look” myself, and I love some good dramatic shadows! I do think the tools of HDR can be used to positive effect, but a light touch goes a long way in most photo processing, IMHO.
I came into photography about 7 years ago, during which I think HDR editing must have recently hit its zenith because every Youtube photographer was teaching you to pull down the Highlights and push up the Shadows, in effect flattening the image before any more editing was to be undertaken. Yes, you got a high dynamic range, but the image lost any character before moving on. As my experience has grown, I've stepped away from this practice realizing a "balanced" image often lacks the character we found so appealing in the original scene.
Where I do love HDR is in the new display technologies and techniques for on-screen image presentation. Especially for sunsets and neon scenes. Editing for HDR monitors like those on the M series MacBooks or XDR display is awesome. But that's not a print.
fyi - Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump baffles & is the bane of most re correct spelling of a Photo Location.. also wish folks might ease off re ‘towing the line’ of ‘camera tech & image ‘perfection’ - Yes its ‘toe the line’.. & yes that’s truly a spectacular image of Sand Dunes.. amen
Now let’s get down to business.. Anyone here shot 4x5 of 200 sleepy Prep School Seniors outdoors in March ? Explosives being wired deeper under the earth’s surface than Titanic rests below the surface of the Atlantic ? Non ? Shot 2,500 images, constantly moving indoor 65f & outdoor 110f Dubai + TimeLapse & Broadcast Video & in choppers, boats ie salt sands & sanitary kitchens .. No ? And at 6 AM next day - present Selects at Breakfast with end Client & Agency - then repeat with different locations etc etc etc.. HDR ? How about getting that equipment through Special Services & Customs and clearing out the Departure Security Zone when a size large Tarantula abandons your carry on full of LaCie Rugged Drives ? Or talking your way out of why you set off Explosives Alarms in Atlanta due to residue your diddybag picked up when you put it down on the dirt outside a giant Chemical ‘Cracker’ tower being scaled with micro explosives ? How’s your HDR doing ?
My ‘point’ ? Sometimes mebbe be grateful ‘for what you have - not what you wish you had’ - some fleeting nuance or ‘previsioneering’ a la grey scale . You think there’s a grey scale when you’re the shooter in the mosh & Red Hot Chili Peppers come out with only tube socks on their dicks .. and your chest cavity & body organs are turning to mush ?
Yesterday I posted two images via Notes - clues to an astonishing body of work by Moises Levy at moiseslevy.com & those clues received a Grand Total of 3 Likes & 1 Restack.. After 1/2 century of shooting, printing.. etc etc.. got to say I’m blown away dispirited - is this simply a ‘structural or dysfunctional issue here’ - a failure of ‘algorithmics’ ?
In summary... a failure in many things, the least of which is algorithmics. Ponder that people willing submit themselves to significant portions of their day to tik-tok or however it's spelled. In "A clockwork orange" weren't restraints required to subject the test subject to the same sort of mindless random media?
.. way overdue for revisiting Clockwork Orange.. as well as re-read of Animal Farm & 1984 not to mention Fahrenheit (haha 2024’ & Brave New World & also The Manchurian Candidate.. Am less & less inclined these dayz to ‘cut people some slack’ for ‘Binary Thinking’ as if there’s any actual ‘thinking’ involved
you're too kind, i'd use much stronger language when it comes to gimmicks like HDR : ) been a commercial and art photographer for 40 years, never touched it once. I'm with what you said.
Overworked HDR looks fake and garish but, in the right circumstances, it can take us deep in to an image. The skill is in knowing when and how much to use.
Thank you for your thoughts. They are always insightful.
My opinion is that HDR isn’t evil in itself. The way it is applied is where the problems come. Like whisky isn’t evil, but the things people do when they have had too much often are.
Here is a blog I wrote almost a year ago. It is something of an apologetic for HDR. I’m not promoting it, just making the point that there are times to use it. You made a similar point.
While I agree that most HDR images are rather silly, stacking multiple images and applying the HDR algorithm is not how I use it. A RAW file has much more information than we can usually see. Affinity Photo allows me to develop raw files to ROMM 32 bit which can be tone mapped. There are sliders to adjust how much of the invisible information is mapped to what we can see plus all of the standard adjustments. Yes, almost every time I cancel the operation (or skip it entirely) and go with just the visible portion, but sometimes interesting things happen. Just one more reason not to join the establishment of post processing.
Stunning photograph and I so agree with you!
Good stuff here. Thoughts:
I will double-down on “decide what your story is”. This is fundamental to every processing decision.
Trey Radcliffe did us no favors with respect to HDR.
(Warning: grammar cop ahead.)
It’s “Great Sand Dunes National Park”. 😉
And it’s “bane”. Bain is french for bath.
The caption is probably my bad as I posted the newletter and put the top caption in.
I think a lot of us have spent time with HDR. When a trend pops up it’s seductive, because there’s a chance you could miss out on something legitimately useful if you ignore it. I try to stay aware of trends, but be slow to employ them:-)
Would you consider writing a piece on soft proofing? I searched through your archive but couldn’t find any writing on it. I do my own printing, but I would like to refine my skill with soft proofing. Thank you for all the valuable information you’ve shared so far!
Grab a copy of our free print ebook. I wrote the sections regarding soft-proofing. A kind of difficult read but we're always here to answer specific questions or provide clarification.
https://fineartprintebook.com
Amazing, thank you so much for this. I had a quick look this morning but I'll be going through the entire PDF over the next little while. I appreciate the help!
You're most welcome. Please share your thoughts when you've had an opportunity to digest it.
I’ve never been a fan of the “HDR look” myself, and I love some good dramatic shadows! I do think the tools of HDR can be used to positive effect, but a light touch goes a long way in most photo processing, IMHO.
I came into photography about 7 years ago, during which I think HDR editing must have recently hit its zenith because every Youtube photographer was teaching you to pull down the Highlights and push up the Shadows, in effect flattening the image before any more editing was to be undertaken. Yes, you got a high dynamic range, but the image lost any character before moving on. As my experience has grown, I've stepped away from this practice realizing a "balanced" image often lacks the character we found so appealing in the original scene.
Where I do love HDR is in the new display technologies and techniques for on-screen image presentation. Especially for sunsets and neon scenes. Editing for HDR monitors like those on the M series MacBooks or XDR display is awesome. But that's not a print.
"you to pull down the Highlights and push up the Shadows"
I could not stand when this was something portrait photographers started doing for a spell
Oh boy... this one I could rant on for days.
Thanks for sharing, Chris. You make some good points.
fyi - Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump baffles & is the bane of most re correct spelling of a Photo Location.. also wish folks might ease off re ‘towing the line’ of ‘camera tech & image ‘perfection’ - Yes its ‘toe the line’.. & yes that’s truly a spectacular image of Sand Dunes.. amen
Now let’s get down to business.. Anyone here shot 4x5 of 200 sleepy Prep School Seniors outdoors in March ? Explosives being wired deeper under the earth’s surface than Titanic rests below the surface of the Atlantic ? Non ? Shot 2,500 images, constantly moving indoor 65f & outdoor 110f Dubai + TimeLapse & Broadcast Video & in choppers, boats ie salt sands & sanitary kitchens .. No ? And at 6 AM next day - present Selects at Breakfast with end Client & Agency - then repeat with different locations etc etc etc.. HDR ? How about getting that equipment through Special Services & Customs and clearing out the Departure Security Zone when a size large Tarantula abandons your carry on full of LaCie Rugged Drives ? Or talking your way out of why you set off Explosives Alarms in Atlanta due to residue your diddybag picked up when you put it down on the dirt outside a giant Chemical ‘Cracker’ tower being scaled with micro explosives ? How’s your HDR doing ?
My ‘point’ ? Sometimes mebbe be grateful ‘for what you have - not what you wish you had’ - some fleeting nuance or ‘previsioneering’ a la grey scale . You think there’s a grey scale when you’re the shooter in the mosh & Red Hot Chili Peppers come out with only tube socks on their dicks .. and your chest cavity & body organs are turning to mush ?
Yesterday I posted two images via Notes - clues to an astonishing body of work by Moises Levy at moiseslevy.com & those clues received a Grand Total of 3 Likes & 1 Restack.. After 1/2 century of shooting, printing.. etc etc.. got to say I’m blown away dispirited - is this simply a ‘structural or dysfunctional issue here’ - a failure of ‘algorithmics’ ?
In summary... a failure in many things, the least of which is algorithmics. Ponder that people willing submit themselves to significant portions of their day to tik-tok or however it's spelled. In "A clockwork orange" weren't restraints required to subject the test subject to the same sort of mindless random media?
.. way overdue for revisiting Clockwork Orange.. as well as re-read of Animal Farm & 1984 not to mention Fahrenheit (haha 2024’ & Brave New World & also The Manchurian Candidate.. Am less & less inclined these dayz to ‘cut people some slack’ for ‘Binary Thinking’ as if there’s any actual ‘thinking’ involved
"abomination" would have been an excellent choice ...... the other gimmick was painting with light ..... unless you're Paolo Roversi ; )
you're too kind, i'd use much stronger language when it comes to gimmicks like HDR : ) been a commercial and art photographer for 40 years, never touched it once. I'm with what you said.
I was advocating for the use of the word "abomination" in the title... I have been really thinking that term should be used FAR more in today's world.
Overworked HDR looks fake and garish but, in the right circumstances, it can take us deep in to an image. The skill is in knowing when and how much to use.
Thank you for your thoughts. They are always insightful.
My opinion is that HDR isn’t evil in itself. The way it is applied is where the problems come. Like whisky isn’t evil, but the things people do when they have had too much often are.
Here is a blog I wrote almost a year ago. It is something of an apologetic for HDR. I’m not promoting it, just making the point that there are times to use it. You made a similar point.
https://blog.schlotz.net/hdr/
For fear of overselling it, I actually felt compelled to follow it up the next week with reasons to not use HDR. 😊
https://blog.schlotz.net/not-hdr/
haha - guilt tripping ! 🏴☠️🦎
While I agree that most HDR images are rather silly, stacking multiple images and applying the HDR algorithm is not how I use it. A RAW file has much more information than we can usually see. Affinity Photo allows me to develop raw files to ROMM 32 bit which can be tone mapped. There are sliders to adjust how much of the invisible information is mapped to what we can see plus all of the standard adjustments. Yes, almost every time I cancel the operation (or skip it entirely) and go with just the visible portion, but sometimes interesting things happen. Just one more reason not to join the establishment of post processing.
Spot on Lester …