I’ve fiddled a bit with HDR (High Dynamic Range) imaging[1] in the past, and I occasionally consider having another go. I was reminded that it might be a fun project by the latest promotional bundle from MacUpdate Promo. These bundles are a moderately regular feature of the Mac software scene, and I’ve bought a few before, both from MacUpdate and MacHeist. Generally, they offer a pile of software at a price less than the individual price of the more expensive items, so if there’s at least one item of interest they can be a real bargain.
Anyway, the current one offers Parallels (virtualisation software, full price $79), which I don’t need as I have VMWare Fusion already; several bits that might be useful, and Hydra, a neat HDR package that works as a standalone application or as a plugin for Aperture or Lightroom, which should cover most Mac photographers needs. I’ll be giving it a proper try out over the next few weeks, but here’s one I did for fun.
Still Not Amused
I followed up the HDR stuff with a mono conversion, just for added amusement. Not that Victoria looks very happy…
[1] For the less photographic readers: this is a technique of combining multiple images of the same subject in an attempt to capture the full range of light and shade human eyes perceive. This can either be done the subtle way, where it produces quite lovely and very real looking images, or can be deliberately overdone to produce images with a strange appearance that some people love and others hate. If you want to know more, there’s an introduction, some examples and loads of links on the Wikipeidia article on high dynamic range imaging.
