HDR Photography Photo Workshop

Chapter 8. PEOPLE AND HDR

PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE

WORKING WITH AND WITHOUT FLASH

BLENDING HDR WITH NORMAL EXPOSURES

Most people imagine sweeping landscapes, stunning sunsets, or impressive architecture when they think of HDR — that and the sometimes peculiar way HDR can be processed to create an unusual, often unrealistic appearance.

This chapter tries to break that stereotype by showing you that it is entirely possible — in fact, beneficial — to take photographs of people and use HDR to accentuate details, overcome lighting problems, and rescue otherwise drab photos.

This chapter relies heavily on the single-exposure HDR technique because it is virtually impossible to get good bracketed photos of people with no movement — especially children — outside of a studio. Thankfully, the dynamic range inherent in raw photos allows us to save brackets with different exposures and use HDR to get at the entire range of the photo during tone mapping. It is not as effective as true bracketing, but is a valuable part of HDR photography as a whole.

PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE

If you are a portrait photographer or take good casual shots of everyday life, you won't find it hard to begin experimenting with people and HDR, as with the casual self-portrait in 8-1. The original photo had a range of dark areas in the reflection while the highlights on the garage door were very light. The final result is a testament to how effective HDR can be at rescuing photos while at the same time keeping people recogniza-ble. Although ...