Car pics

[Thannatos]

Try turning up the highlights smoothing, and saturation highlights setting in order to get the sky to look brighter

[Thannatos]

oh and when you first load up the images, set it to align by features for this picture, and also set it to reduce ghosting artifacts in the background

[Thannatos]

You can find my newest pics at the following link at their full resolution,http://picasaweb.google.com/ar...ders# And you guys are absolutely free to edit any of these pictures in any way you want as long as you let me see the end result, If you want the source HDR file just ask (you need this to modify the tone mapping in photomatix)
Modified by Thannatos at 5:33 PM 9/9/2008

[coreansurfer]

dude, awesome pics. any tutorials or tips you can share with us non savvy people?

[Thannatos]

I used these two site in order to learn how to use the program and take the pictures, just remember a week ago I did not know that HDR washttp://www.vanilladays.com/hdr-guide/http://ab ... ea...orial

[ThatGuyRoger]

yeah i was toying with the ghost effect, since i dont have a tripod to keep the camera steady, and it made a cool effectbut im getting the hang of it, trying different combinations

[Thannatos]

yea no tripod kinda sux i dont have one either and if i see a good shot I usually get very close to straining a muscle. On a side note, try increasing the white point and the highlights smoothing because the sky looks very off in the picture.

[Tommy:]]

You can create HDR photos from a normal image also. Maybe not as good but it still has that HDR effect if done correctly

[Thannatos]

yea but you need a RAW image file and my camera just doesn't have the ability to output RAW files

[Infantry1327]

just so you guys know, if you know how to use torrents then you can download photomatix 3 for free off of piratebay. I don't condone downloading programs for free, but I do promote art. lol If you have questions on how to do this, just email me.

[Thannatos]

yea I got it like that i just didnt feel like explaining torrents to them so I was emailing them gifts instead

[AppleBonker]

dude, awesome pics. any tutorials or tips you can share with us non savvy people?

Well, the software is relatively straight forward and easy to use. The hard part is manipulating it to generate the desired effect. Taking shots that can be fairly easily created with acceptable lighting is not going to do much in terms of generating interesting results. Ideally, HDR rendering is done on sources with a large dynamic range (referring to the range between the max and the min, such as level of light), hence the name - HDR stands for High Dynamic Range if this hasn't been previously established.

The range I am referring to here is from the darkest portion of the shot to the brightest. Shots that have VERY dark sections near VERY bright sections will benefit the most. Some of these include sunsets and shots of light sources (IE street lights/city lighting at night). When the camera takes the shot, it exposes based on the light input. If there are bright sections of the photo, they will come out correctly exposed. The dark sections will be severely underexposed. If you correctly expose the darker sections, the brights will be completely overexposed or "blown out". These are the types of shots you should try to take to get remarkable results.

Having said all of that, having a nice camera and a tripod are HIGHLY beneficial. While good shots can be made with a point and shoot, a digital SLR will be able to take the more difficult shots. It is a lot harder to get shots that are under and over exposed on a point and shoot. Also, the ISO generally tends to be significantly higher on PAS cameras. On my DSLR, I can set the ISO and keep it at that level for all shots. Going to high in ISO will create a great deal of grain in the finished shots (HDR rendering makes grainy/noisy shots look significantly more noisy).

Take a look at this person's gallery

They use the same software that Thannatos is recommending. The only difference is probably their level of familiarity with the software, and the choice of location and lighting for their shots. The other thing to remember is that HDR shots should generally be looked at as art, not photography. I know photography is art, but HDR rendering is a completely different sort of art. If the shot can be taken well with good lighting, that will make a better looking picture. If the lighting makes the shot difficult, HDR can be used to generate a remarkable looking photo.

[Thannatos]

wow those are amazing, I wish I had a DSLR, damn you car payments

[AppleBonker]

wow those are amazing, I wish I had a DSLR, damn you car payments

I have a DSLR, but I wish I could take/process shots like that.

[Thannatos]

wait like mine or like the ones on the website

[AppleBonker]

wait like mine or like the ones on the website

Nah, like the ones in that individual's gallery. Those shots are amazing (if you look at them from the art perspective and not as a true photographic representation of the scene). I've toyed around with the program and can get some good shots, but nothing that amazing. However, I've never really had the right lighting (or my tripod for that matter), so I'm not sure how much better I can do. Once I get the tripod, I'll be working on taking some more pics that I think will turn out well. We'll see if I have any luck.

[NJCaprile1188]

crazy *** pics man looks cool

[sanroman]

You have a club in Chicago? I'm from the area and would be interested to hook up sometime. Let me know.

[Thannatos]

yea we are having a meet at woodfield on the 4th

[Thannatos]

Well guys its been a long time coming but here are some new pics

[AppleBonker]

Lookin good. But, please don't tell me you rested your camera on your car for this pic.

[Thannatos]

yes i did. I dont have a tripod and i thought it would come out pretty good

[Thannatos]

the pics would be much better if I had an actual dslr and I could mess with the depth of field of the picsOh here is another one

And here is the link to the high quality pics if you want anyhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ar...nders#
Modified by Thannatos at 11:10 AM 9/20/2008

[Janstah]

Wow...amazing pics! I've always wondered how this type of effect was created and now I know. I have previously tried to attempt it on photoshop but came no where near the desired effect I was looking for. So, photomatix 3? Is it easy? I reallllyyyyy want to learn

[uh-oh_8_coupe]

yea those pics are badas$, going off topic but how useful is your mini side mirrors?

also do you need a nice camera to do that effect

[Thannatos]

the are pretty usefull, during the day, not so much at night, and no you don't need a very expensive camera, i am using a point and shoot

[edonissan13]

Too bad that photomatix aint freeeeeeeeeeeeeee lol

[Janstah]

Yeah I know...it sucks

[kuhan]

yes, it is free if you want it to be free.

btw, thanks to thannatos for HDR idea.

Now I'm reading more about Photomatix.