High Dynamic Range (HDR) is an effect in photography whereby two or more images are combined, each with differing exposure settings. This allows for a wider range from the darkest black (from one image) to the lightest white (of another), and of course the “grey” areas in between.
HDR features are built into many of todays cameras, even smartphones, however for the photographer that wants more discreet control over how the ranges are combined, and of course final control over the output, these systems aren’t good enough.
In order to take control over your HDR, you’ll need a cameras that is either a DSLR or has an interchangeable lens.
A camera that allows for Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB), which essentially takes multiple shots at different exposure levels automatically without the need for manual changes, will get you the frames you need to process via HDR software and attain the desired results.
So now that we’ve covered that background, let’s dive into the HDR Software that is the best choice for you:
1. Aurora HDR
Aurora HDR is another very widely used HDR software. Made in conjunction with Skylum and Trey Ratcliff, Aurora HDR claims to be the “world’s most advanced HDR photo editor”, It also claims to be the ‘most powerful, simple and fast’ HDR software.
The release of Aurora HDR 2019 includes some significant upgrades, including leverage an AI powered “Quantum HDR Engine”, several new plugins and integrations (such as Photoshop and Photolemur) and many additional improvements upon 2018 and previous versions.
Furthermore, the software has warranted props from some significant figures in the photography industry, such as Jerry Ghionis and Joel Grimes.
Let’s take a quick dive in to the features/functions of Aurora HDR!
Key Features to Aurora HDR 2019
“Quantum HDR” – Upgraded HDR Algorithm
In previous versions you may have had to do manual cleanup of initial photos, such as removing noise, halo effects, etc. With the new Quantum HDR Engine, it does all this automatically, with a “mild” effect that can be further enhanced in later stages.
It claims to handle RAW files much better than previous versions. Tony claims that about 75% of his HDR projects are handled with a single RAW file.
Lots of Presets
It comes with at least 10 presets, which are now referred to as “Looks” in the 2019 version (not to be confused with Lookup Tables or LUTs, which are covered below). These “looks” come with very quirky and creative names like “Four in the Pink” and “Nether Try That Again”.
With these presets you can further tinker with them, as their are tons of sliders for over a dozen different aspects.
Speaking of sliders:
Easily Adjustable Levels via Sliders
To name just a few of the adjustable levels:
- Contrast
- Smart Tone
- Highlights
- Shadows
- Whites
- Blacks
- Saturation
- Vibrance
- Color Contrast
- HDR Clarity
- HDR Smart Structure
- HDR Microstructure
- HDR Denoise
The most remarkable of these are the “HDR Enhance” versions, which can be utilized to tinker with the presets, or make your own HDR effect from scratch.
Combine these with the brush tool and you can affect a specific portion of the image, so it’s not “all or nothing”.
Lookup Tables – LUTs
Lookup Tables, or LUTs, are essentially a series of numbers which are referenced in order for the software to change colors of an image. These can work to give a “signature” or “personality” to an image that can be specific to an individual photographer. There are many cameras that have built in LUT capability but this allows for more controlled post production.
RAW Files + Lightroom
One big advantage that Aurora has over other options like Photomatix is its handling of RAW files. With Photomatix you cannot import RAW files through plugins like Lightroom, you would instead need to import directly from the files on your hard drive. However with Aurora you can go directly through your favorite integrations and handle RAW files.
Bottom Line – Pricing
Pricing for Aurora HDR is a one-time fee (no monthly subscription). However you don’t get major version upgrades for free, but they do offer significant discounts for previous customers. The current price is $99.
[su_button url=”https://macphun.evyy.net/c/2076975/309505/3255″ target=”blank” background=”#ef402d” size=”8″ center=”yes” radius=”0″ rel=”nofollow”]Visit AuroraHDR![/su_button]
2. EasyHDR
Next on the list is EasyHDR, a product that has been around for quite some time. It always seems to make its way to top of many of these “Best HDR Software” lists, and for good reason.
While it may not have all the bells and whistles of programs like Aurora, people are always blown away by the final quality of the images.
At the end of the day, isn’t the quality of the images what it’s all about?
The other thing to keep in mind is the price. It’s less than $40 for a home license. As someone who is serious about the photography craft, I’d pick up a license just for comparison purposes.
Oh, and it’s got a free demo version, even better!
[su_button url=”https://order.shareit.com/product?vendorid=200067999&productid=300575400&affiliateid=200286436″ target=”blank” background=”#ef402d” size=”8″ center=”yes” radius=”0″ rel=”nofollow”]View EasyHDR![/su_button]
4. Photomatix Pro
Photomatix Pro is likely the oldest HDR software on the market. Many OG’s in the digital photography game may recognize Photomatix as the very first HDR software they used. They’ve recently released version 6.0, and it includes a few significant improvements to add on to already robust software offering enjoyed by thousands of photography professionals.
Key Features to Photomatix 6 Pro
Tone Balancer
If you aren’t careful with HDR processes, it can end up with a result that doesn’t look realistic at all. If your purpose is to enhance a realistic landscape and better convey the full beauty of it, you should be careful not to over-do it. The end result could look like a hyper-real, almost video game style graphic, not necessarily what we want. (To be fair, if that is what you want, there’s nothing wrong with that).
Ultimately the effect of the HDR with depend on personal preference and purpose of the project, so use accordingly!
One of the best ways to personalize the HDR effects is to go for the “Tone Balancer” feature of Photomatix Pro 6.
“Remove Ghosts”
When dealing with multiple images at different exposures, it’s possible you may have captured some moving elements like people walking or birds flying. With the built in “Remove Ghosts” feature you can help reduce the noise/blur associated with the moving elements. This is crucial, as the real world often doesn’t stand still for us for very long!
Perspective Correction
When using handheld cameras there will always be some slight movement. Of course you can always use a tripod to help avoid this, but Photomatix has built-in “perspective correction” to help eliminate this and align all the shots.
Presets
Like many editing tools, Photomatix offers presets to allow you to save time and effort when working on projects. It offers 4 categories of effect-style presets and 5 categories of HDR-style presets, these include:
- Black & White (effect)
- Artistic (effect)
- Realistic (effect)
- Architecture (effect)
- Details Enhancer (HDR style)
- Contrast Optimizer (HDR style)
- Tone Balancer (HDR style)
- Tone Compressor (HDR style)
- Fusion (HDR style)
The software also allows for custom presets that you can set as you work through your projects. This is great if you find a balance of levels that is personalized for you and not available elsewhere, and you’d like to re-use on multiple projects.
3. Adobe HDR Photo Merge (Lightroom)
If you don’t want to go all out with a dedicated HDR software, there are some options you can try within your version of Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom. They have a built in HDR feature called “Photo Merge”.
As the name implies, you can combine multiple images to create an High Dynamic Range image.
It’s not quite as robustly functioned as other software, but it does have some handy options, including:
Auto Tone Feature
Auto-tone is the main function of the merging, and produces a serviceable HDR image without needed to manual adjust the tones. As mentioned before, it’s somewhat of a beginners approach, but good for those just getting started.
Auto Align Feature
Good for straightening photos that aren’t perfectly aligned, the auto align feature does a decent job. This is similar to other align functions in other software, and necessary to properly combine multiple images into one HDR.
De-ghosting Feature
Just like other software, getting rid of ghosts is important in product High Dynamic Range images. Adobe Photo Merge has a built in feature for this, with adjustable settings (High, Medium, Low, and None).
Leave a Reply