![]() You can work with HDR Express as a stand-alone application or as an Adobe Lightroom or Apple Aperture plug-in. There are other, more subtle differences as well. The HDR rendition from Raw NEF files is more neutral, with the floodlights contributing that golden tone. Having said that, you can achieve some success using HDR Express to merge handheld images, but I would keep to a maximum of three frames to ensure alignment.Ĭreating a merge to HDR composite from TIFF files converted from Lightroom led to distorted colors, but some might actually prefer this more colorful rendition of contrasting cool and warm tones. The program will align images-up to a point, but this puts you on firmer footing from the get go. One more thing: use a tripod or other solid support, so frames remain consistently aligned. Also, as I’ve found out, bracketing TTL flash output as the only variable will not work for the same reason-you’ll also need to bracket shutter speeds. If you use even two frames with the identical shutter speed, HDR Express will return an error message. HDR EXPRESS 3 MANUALHence, shoot in Aperture Priority or Manual mode, keeping the aperture constant so as not to shift depth of field, at a constant ISO. HDR Express primarily examines the EXIF data and looks for incremental changes in shutter speed. You can see that, despite the similarities, the key difference is higher contrast in the non-HDR image. For comparison, I modified the camera exposure in Lightroom. I rendered the merge to HDR using the Smooth mode and Vivid style preset (modified), finally tweaking the image in Lightroom. Equally important, you can see tonal detail throughout the image (with only tiny pockets left clipped for depth) and the colors in this scene are much richer and more inviting than in the originals. Note that you can clearly read the No Parking sign while the leaves in the trees are largely blurred in an almost painterly wash of color that is not entirely objectionable. Of these, I selected three that appeared close enough to each other in terms of alignment, to minimize ghosting. I shot numerous exposures with the Nikon D300 in continuous high-speed mode, trying to keep as steady as possible. That said, sometimes I will shoot multiple sequences to ensure I can fill in the gaps where necessary. You can always drop frames before sending the images to HDR Express, when they’re not needed or suitable (say someone walks into the shot), but you can’t add exposures after the fact. Granted, shooting nine exposures consistently does eat up lots of space on a memory card and hard drive, but it also guarantees that you have the needed tonal range to work with. When using HDR Express as a stand-alone app, you have the option to open an existing BEF file or to select images to merge. Otherwise the program will convert Raw to TIFF and use the modified content to build tone maps. When exporting the images from Lightroom, make sure you select the HDR Express preset, and select the option to work with original images (do it the first time and it becomes the default action). This is the dialog box that greets you at launch. I chose to launch HDR Express from within Lightroom, after selecting the images to merge. ![]()
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