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The HDRI Handbook High Dynamic Range Imaging for Photographers and CG Artists

By Christian Bloch
First Edition November 2007
Publisher: Rocky Nook
Pages: 300
ISBN 10: 1-933952-05-9 | ISBN 13: 9781933952055
(Average of 1 Customer Reviews)

Book description

HDRI emerged from the movie industry, and was once Hollywood's best kept secret. Now a mature technology, HDRI is available to everyone. The only problem was that it was poorly documented until now.

The HDRI Handbook is the manual that was missing. In it is everything you need to build a comprehensive knowledge base that will enable you to become really creative with HDRI. This book is packed with practical hints and tips, software tests, workshops, and hands-on tutorials. Whether you are a photographer, 3D artist, compositor, or cinematographer, this book is sure to enlighten you.
Full Description

The HDRI Handbook reveals the secrets behind High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDRI). This cutting-edge imaging technology is a method to digitally capture and edit all light in a scene. It represents a quantum leap in imaging technology, as revolutionary as the leap from Black & White to Color imaging. If you are serious about photography, you will find that HDRI is the final step that places digital ahead of analog. The old problem of over- and underexposure in analog photography, which was never fully solved, is elegantly bypassed here. A huge variety of subjects can now be photographed for the first time ever.

HDRI emerged from the movie industry, and was once Hollywood's best kept secret. It is now a mature technology available to everyone. The only problem was that it was poorly documented until now. The HDRI Handbook is the manual that was missing.

Many questions remain open even for the computer graphics gurus that have been using HDRI for years. This is where The HDRI Handbook comes in. Included here is everything you need to build a comprehensive knowledge base that will enable you to become really creative with HDRI. This book is packed with practical hints and tips, software evaluations, workshops, and hands-on tutorials. Whether you are a photographer, 3D artist, compositor, or cinematographer, this book is sure to enlighten you.

Topics include:

Understanding the foundation of HDRI
Tools for a High Dynamic Range Workflow
How to capture HDR images: now and tomorrow
Tone mapping for creating superior prints
Image processing and compositing
All 4 ways to shoot panoramic HDRIs
Image based lighting and CG rendering
World premiere of the Smart Dynamic Range toolkit
Creative uses and unconventional applications

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Featured customer reviews

fascinating, comprehensive resource for HDR photography, January 03 2008

Rating:

Submitted by dave graham [Respond | View]

The book kicks off with a couple of very technical chapters looking at the background to HDRI, a comparison of the various image formats together with a very comprehensive look at a wide range of HDRI software currently available, from freeware up to the top of the line packages, comparing features of each. This takes up the first third of the book, and I did feel a bit like I was being overloaded with technical info.

However, then the book does it get onto the interesting bit - how to take HDRI images, and what to do with them when you've got them. Suddenly all the dry tech stuff up front makes sense, and you can see where all the bits go, and why. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 look at taking HDRI images, tone mapping and HDR image processing, and cover the subject extremely well, with huge amounts of useful information and clear step-by-step instructions.

The last two chapters cover panoramic HDR images and an interesting (but again quite technical) chapter on HDR in computer-generated imaging.

So, the first couple of chapters could put off a novice photographer, but dig a little further and there is a wealth of information here. If you're interested in HDR images and what you can do with them, then this is a fantastic resource. And it comes with an accompanying DVD packed with software, sample HDR images and tutorial files.

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Media reviews
"For me it's the most exciting book about digital photography I've read in a long time. Why? Because it points into to the future , and isn't not a sidelong or backwards glance at workflows based on last year's state of technology."
-- Ellis Vener

"The HDRI Handbook is truly an amazing source of information on creating HDR images. There is something for photographers, graphic designers, and artists of all types. It does a great job of describing the current state of HDRI as well as the potential for the future of the art. The author, in detail, covers both the history and the science behind High Dynamic Range Imaging and does it in a methodical and detailed manner. He covers the software, shooting techniques and about everything else that is needed to make you more proficient at creating HDR images. If you are serious about photography, serious about creating a new vision in imaging then The HDRI Handbook is a must own."
-- T. Michael Testi, Blogcritics Magazine

"This beautifully designed and printed full-color book matches the quality of its contents with the quality of its appearance. The author skillfully and clearly presents the world of High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDRI), a technology that enables the digital capture and editing of all light in a scene. The reader is presented with a full description of the technology, how it can be integrated into a digital workflow, how to capture HDRI images and process and composite them, and much more."
-- Michael Kleper, The Kleper Report

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"For me it's the most exciting book about digital photography I've read in a long time. Why? Because it points into to the future , and isn't not a sidelong or backwards glance at workflows based on last year's state of technology."
--Ellis Vener