High Dynamic Range Done Naturally

Explore the basics of HDR to get details in shadows, highlights and everywhere in between

Text And Photography By Joseph Rossbach

Labels: Camera Technique, Digital Darkroom, How To

This Article Features Photo Zoom

Dream Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. This was a once-in-a-lifetime shot, and I knew I had only one chance to get it right. I was set up to record the reflection and play of light when this bull elk wandered into the scene. I quickly recomposed and set my exposure for the shadowed area along the shore of the lake. I used a three-stop (hard) grad ND filter to hold back the exposure on the sky and brightly illuminated mountain. I was able to pull off three shots before the elk wandered off. Nikon D300, Nikkor 12-24mm, RAW capture at ISO 200

Shays Run, Blackwater Falls State Park, West Virginia. In order to record a very long exposure for the swirling leaves without losing all the detail in the flowing water, I needed to shoot two images. The first was made with a Singh-Ray Vari-N-Duo to drag out a 15-second exposure for the swirls, and a second exposure, without the filter at one second to retain detail and texture in the waterfall. The two images were combined in Photoshop CS4 using layers and masks. Nikon D300, Nikkor 12-24mm, RAW capture at ISO 100

If you want to spark up a heated debate amongst a group of nature photographers these days, all you need to do is mention HDR. I guarantee you’ll hear every opinion under the sun, from those who feel it’s the only way to truly capture all the detail in a scene to those who place it right up there with getting a root canal. The truth of the matter is that HDR photography has been around a lot longer than most of us even realize.

Think about it! The use of grad ND filters has been a popular means of reducing the contrast in a scene for a very long time, and they’ve been widely used by almost all professional and amateur nature and landscape photographers. Even before that, the use of masking in the darkroom was an essential technique of the great masters like Adams, Weston and Cole for achieving a greater dynamic range in their exhibition and gallery prints. Things have changed quite a bit in the past 10 years with the advent of digital capture, but all we’re really dealing with here is a new set of tools and techniques that allows us as photographers and artists to achieve our final vision in the form of a well-crafted photograph.

As a professional nature and landscape photographer, I look at all of the techniques and methods as tools in my arsenal that allow me to fully realize and express my photographic vision. Whether it’s using a grad ND filter, fill-flash or bracketing exposures to combine later in the digital darkroom, I try to match each tool or technique to the scene in front of me to achieve the very best result.

HDR has come to be associated with a particular look in the past few years, a strange hyperrealistic look that’s the result of a process called tone mapping. Many nature photographers find that hyperrealistic look to be objectionable and “comic-bookish,” and because of that, you might have been turned off from the whole notion of creating an HDR image in the computer. In this article, however, we’ll explore much more subtle HDR processing, and the resulting images show detail that’s more along the lines of the range of tones our eyes can take in without looking freakish. Here are a few of my go-to techniques for taming the light.

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44 Comments

Sam Zaydel makes this comment

Thursday, 10 December 2009

Excellent article. I appreciate the fact that this was not a purely HDR discussion, but more of a lesson on how to tame contrast and how to capture as much detail as possible. It seems HDR photography is too frequently not about capturing detail in the highlights and shadows, but more about producing images that simply do not represent what the original scene looked like.
Bonnie Kirkpatrick makes this comment

Thursday, 10 December 2009

I agree, Sam. All too often I see pictures that are so HDRed that they don't even look real. I don't have a problem with HDR, per se... what I don't like are the pictures that don't look natural. Like they say, "less is more" and you can have too much of a good thing. What gets me is that people like me don't seem to stand a chance in any of these photo contests here on Outdoor Photographer, because most of the finalists are HDR experts... what about those of us that are out there "keepin' it real?" It shouldn't be about who is best at Photoshop... it should be about skill. Raw, skill... choosing the right ISO, shutter speed, f-stop, and utilizing filters in just the right way. Anyone can auto-bracket and go home and edit. It takes talent and skill to get it right the first time. Yes, sometimes HDR is necessary... but it should never *look* like HDR was used. Just my 2 cents.
Stan Znamierowski makes this comment

Thursday, 10 December 2009

Bonnie, I totally agree. The computer is no place to make a true photograph. Talent, vision and camera skills are what make a great photographer. Yes, Ansel Adams did a lot of darkromm wizardry, but his basic image was an excellent one- his "dodging and burning" just enhanced an already wonderful capture. A computer does not a good photographer make....
Carl makes this comment

Thursday, 10 December 2009

Nicely done article, and I agree with Bonnie that a good HDR should never look like HDR was used. That's always my goal.
Cam Keith makes this comment

Thursday, 10 December 2009

A process illustrated and articulated not from a like/dislike point of view but from a how-to from the photographer's point of view. There are few articles that offer such information from this perspective. A great article!
Ralph Berglund makes this comment

Friday, 11 December 2009

I (with respect) disagree with Bonnie and Carl as to where a good photograph should come from or how it should be arrived at. I understand the point of view. It makes me think of the disdain that "medium" artists (watercolor, oils, charcoal, silk screen....) have for photography. They seem to say that without the manual skill and time required to create a piece the result is Art 101. I suggest that it is the result and only the result that should be considered. If it's a beautiful or meaningful or exciting or insightful or .... image, I really don't care how it was arrived at. Fingerpainting, you say? Wonderful. Whatever. I, personally, certainly object to altering journalistic photographs but if the purpose is otherwise and the result is incsome way pleasing, more power to the artist.
Bob makes this comment

Saturday, 12 December 2009

I believe Ansel Adams would have totally embraced Photoshop, HDR, etc. Photography is art....HDR allows one to express themselves. I use HDR for both natural and unnatural effects. Whatever turns you on! See here... http://www.flickr.com/photos/70366873@N00/
Aurel Virlan makes this comment

Saturday, 12 December 2009

Well done! Very good shot and well used photographic opportunity with that bull elk! Also a very good description of how to use a ND filter combined with HDR technique. Without HDR technique I think you should give up the right side of the sun and the sky, keeping the mountains reflexes on water and beautiful specimen of bull elk. At the time of "64 Aperture" of Ansel Adams this photograph was not possible. Interestingly, you start from the same call conceptual landscape. Congratulations! Aurel
Steve Furlong makes this comment

Sunday, 13 December 2009

Congratulations, Joe, nice article! I agree with some of the other comments and what you write, that HDR is a tool that can be right in some instances. However, in the end it's still just one tool among many that can be used on the way from image capture to final print. Your HDR workshop that I attended earlier this year was an eye opener for me & I highly recommend it to others.
Andreas Resch makes this comment

Sunday, 13 December 2009

Excellent article, Joseph. I have to use bracketing quite often and I'm sure that a lot of people appreciate your infos about the techniques.
Michael Breitung makes this comment

Tuesday, 15 December 2009

You nailed it! Great article! Also my fav. technique for creating "hdr". Those techniques retain a natural look while bringing in more detail. Tonemapping to often looks the same and I think more and more people begin to realize it. cheers
Claus makes this comment

Tuesday, 15 December 2009

Great article... great shots!
Tmoore makes this comment

Tuesday, 15 December 2009

Correction! Josseph Rossbach fine photo above (swirling clouds at sunset)was shot in Smokey Mountain National park and not Rocky Mountain National Park. Nice shot! Tony
Rafy Ruiz makes this comment

Saturday, 19 December 2009

Thank you, Joe, for bringing your view and alternatives on the use of a tool. As photographers we are artists. We are presenting our view of something (portrait, still life, landscape, ad, etc.). The use of HDR, does not matter how intricated the final look, is a tool for the artists to express himself. Look at burning, dodging, etc. Yes, there are some of us who want the natural look of a landscape and that is great. However, as an artist, look back at Monet, VanGoh and even Dali. So, I express the aspect of presenting a view as to what is or not the norm in an artistic world as "colors were made for the liking". Let's all be artists.
Jeffrey Logesky makes this comment

Friday, 25 December 2009

Thanks for the great article Joseph! I've been doing HDR for over a year now, and after experimenting with the artsy aspects of it, decided to use it in a more natural way. I love the detail that it gives me as well the obvious dynamic range. Most people can't tell that my images are done HDR. A look at my pbase site proves it! Thanks again Jeff
Ken Atkinson makes this comment

Sunday, 27 December 2009

Just read your article in the print version which arrived yesterday. I haven't tried HDR yet, but your article will certainly help when I do.
Nancy Hubbard makes this comment

Monday, 28 December 2009

Like others who commented, I really liked the article, especially the emphasis on all of the tools which capture dynamic range. I have been doing HDR for about 6 months and find that my best results come from "fusing images" rather than using the actual HDR feature. I prefer the natural look, but really like to see artistic license asa well. Great article. Thank you.
Jim Knoy makes this comment

Tuesday, 29 December 2009

I liked this article because it was balanced and believable. Sometimes writers seem too biased toward a particluar product line or seem to be writing to get published. This one had some very good thought put into it.
John Harrison makes this comment

Tuesday, 05 January 2010

Nice job on the article! Lots of great info all in one post. I get questions on the filters to use all the time - now I know where to point them to. Would love to see some additional examples and how you put the images together. Keep Shooting! John
Manfred Meilinger makes this comment

Saturday, 09 January 2010

Like many others here, I too have to confirm that tone mapping can be hopelessly overdone. I have tried your bracketing method many times with great results. Out of curiosity I have tried to produce the same result using just a single RAW file. Performing the bracketing in the development stage with ACR, using the same bracketing setting as I would with the in camera method. In my experience there is virtually no difference at all between the two methods. The benefit is I only need to shot one RAW file instead of 3, saving memory space and avoiding possible image missalingment. Manfred
Joe Rossbach makes this comment

Monday, 11 January 2010

Manfred, While it is true that you can process the same raw file for shadow and highlight definition for a blend in Photoshop, it is still preferred to bracket the images at the time of capture for one reason. When you open up the shadows in post (especially if you are compensating by 2 or more stops of light), it will also have the adverse effect of introducing digital noise or grain. If you bracket that image in camera you avoid that problem all together. Thanks for your comments! Joe
Manfred Meilinger makes this comment

Saturday, 16 January 2010

Thanks Joe, Yes I can see your point, this has happened to me too. Cheers Manfred
howard makes this comment

Tuesday, 19 January 2010

I have always exposed for the shadows and compensate later. I've been doing this for a long time so I am wondering if that is a holdover from the days of B&W film. In this article it speaks of exposing to the right (toward highlights)which sounds like the opposite of the rule I learned a very long time ago. Any thoughts?
Joe Ogrodnik makes this comment

Wednesday, 03 February 2010

HDR is a choice and how strongly it shows is another choice. That said, I also believe photography falls into two distinct catagories. One being original capture... the most unmodified photo taken or modified only to correct it to be as it appeared. Anything other then this should be considdered creative art photography. When you make a photo that is not as it appeared, that is creative art. Photographers have a profesional resposibility to the viewers to disclose what the photo realy is. If I were to shoot a photo of a red squirl in an area that only red squirls exist and change its color to black, this could leed the viewer to believe that black squirls had not left the area or have returned. Same could be said if I took a landscape photo where the sky was filled with smog and replaced it with a clear blue sky. That photo would lead some to believe that the area photographed had no adverse effect due to polution. Disclouser
Richard makes this comment

Thursday, 04 February 2010

I agree that normal photos look more like what the image actually appears to the human eye as to the comment that you can make them not look HDR than what is the point.They are starting to build this into cameras hope you can turn it off or at least adjust it.
Frank Ritenour makes this comment

Sunday, 28 February 2010

We hear all the talk about HDR. Some like it and some hate it. There is nothing wrong with HDR except that most people don't know how to properly process their images. We are repeating the same mistakes we made when we first got our hands on Photoshop. You know, over saturation and over sharpening. Once people learn how to properly use the tool then things will settle down. I teach HDR workshops and always tell my students to make it look natural, not like a "Harry Potter" movie. Once they do, the pictures come out natural, but much better than they were before HDR. The blacks are not blocked up and there is detail in the sky where there was none before. So, listen to articles like this and you will become a fan of HDR. It's just another tool that we have to learn how to use.
widhibek makes this comment

Saturday, 13 March 2010

thx for this great article about HDR first i use bracketing 3 file to capture the picture. but because i'm still just use the photo for myself so now i usually just take 1 raw file. i just think is it possible we can get the result as hdr with just GND filter ?
Joshua makes this comment

Thursday, 18 March 2010

Oh, my! The image "HDR In Yosemite" looks so good yet doesn't look like a cliche shot. Thanks for that. I'm about to do trips to popular spots and your example is one thing to add to my checklist.
Gary Lengyel makes this comment

Saturday, 03 April 2010

Really good article. I agree that HDR can be over done and personally don't like it for landscapes. Some images can be pretty creative and dramatic with it. But I try to be subtle about it. And to capture a bull elk there by Dream Lake is great! I've never seen one on the shore and I'm there a lot!
Edward Johnson makes this comment

Thursday, 15 April 2010

I too could not agree more. This has been a Peeve of mine for quite awhile. I've even seen good PhotograPhers get caught u in the hyPer-realistic look.Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally against that, I just think that it is so over used that it depreciates the look of it.I Place it in the class with fish eye lenses,just think how you would be looking at fish eye PhotograPhs any time the words "wide angle " mentioned . I feel that HDR can easily be overdone. One big rule or guideline in PhotograPy is "less is more" exude the case on the "P" my lower "P" on my keyboard is not working.
Edward Johnson makes this comment

Thursday, 15 April 2010

I too could not agree more. This has been a Peeve of mine for quite awhile. I've even seen good Photograhers get caught u in the hyPer-realistic look.Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally against that, I just think that it is so over used that it depreciates the look of it.I Place it in the class with fish eye lenses,just think how you would be looking at fish eye Photograhs any time the words "wide angle " mentioned . I feel that HDR can easily be overdone. One big rule or guideline in PhotograPy is "less is more" exude the case on the "P" my lower "P" on my keyboard is not working.
Edward Johnson makes this comment

Thursday, 15 April 2010

I too could not agree more. This has been a Peeve of mine for quite awhile. I've even seen good Photograhers get caught u in the hyPer-realistic look.Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally against that, I just think that it is so over used that it depreciates the look of it.I Place it in the class with fish eye lenses,just think how you would be looking at fish eye Photograhs any time the words "wide angle " mentioned . I feel that HDR can easily be overdone. One big rule or guideline in PhotograPy is "less is more" exude the case on the "P" my lower "P" on my keyboard is not working.
Edward Johnson makes this comment

Thursday, 15 April 2010

I too could not agree more. This has been a Peeve of mine for quite awhile. I've even seen good Photograhers get caught u in the hyPer-realistic look.Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally against that, I just think that it is so over used that it depreciates the look of it.I Place it in the class with fish eye lenses,just think how you would be looking at fish eye Photograhs any time the words "wide angle " mentioned . I feel that HDR can easily be overdone. One big rule or guideline in PhotograPy is "less is more" exude the case on the "P" my lower "P" on my keyboard is not working.
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Thursday, 13 May 2010

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Louis Dallara makes this comment

Thursday, 27 May 2010

I guess you don't use the Singh-Ray's Vari-ND Variable Neutral Density Filter like Tony Sweet?
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