I belong to an informal group of photographers here on Vancouver Island, and a question of HDR was discussed on our forum several times in recent weeks. Seems like there is lots of interest in HDR technique, and people look for other solutions than new in-camera HDR processing, (like one offered in new Sony, and often not quite satisfactory).
I used HDR technique many times, and it helped me creating some good images for both of my Caribbean coffee table books. However, they gave me lots of grief too.
I experimented with different HDR software, but while results were quite different in quality – one side effect was constant and unwanted. Some of colours were always hyped and changed, giving the final image quite artificial, over-sweetened look.
With each new software on the market my hopes went high again and again, but I always found that colour problem to be quite an obstacle in creating images the way I wanted. I always edit my photos quite a bit, and such HDR-ed images were always somewhat difficult as a starting point for my work.
Some of HDR software offer lots of manual settings, some are more automatic, another yet offers several different presets like “eye catching”, “human eye” etc.. But the problem of sweetened and hyped colours seemed to be always there for me. (Dynamic Photo HDR was the closest to my liking from three HDR progs presented here.)
Another quite decent tool called Photomatix offers an extra option called Fusion, and explains quickly that a different algorithm processing images in a more direct way is used for that. I actually quite liked it. So, I dug deeper.
I found two simple programs for fusion processing, and I love them. I am happy to say they give me exactly what I wanted – more detail in highlights and shadows - but without any twists in color. What else I love is, they both are FREE and they are very simple to work with. They operate in DOS (sorry Mac users!), and you simply drag and drop your images over the program icon. So, it is quick and easy, and the quality I wanted is there.
I used HDR technique many times, and it helped me creating some good images for both of my Caribbean coffee table books. However, they gave me lots of grief too.
I experimented with different HDR software, but while results were quite different in quality – one side effect was constant and unwanted. Some of colours were always hyped and changed, giving the final image quite artificial, over-sweetened look.
With each new software on the market my hopes went high again and again, but I always found that colour problem to be quite an obstacle in creating images the way I wanted. I always edit my photos quite a bit, and such HDR-ed images were always somewhat difficult as a starting point for my work.
Some of HDR software offer lots of manual settings, some are more automatic, another yet offers several different presets like “eye catching”, “human eye” etc.. But the problem of sweetened and hyped colours seemed to be always there for me. (Dynamic Photo HDR was the closest to my liking from three HDR progs presented here.)
Another quite decent tool called Photomatix offers an extra option called Fusion, and explains quickly that a different algorithm processing images in a more direct way is used for that. I actually quite liked it. So, I dug deeper.
I found two simple programs for fusion processing, and I love them. I am happy to say they give me exactly what I wanted – more detail in highlights and shadows - but without any twists in color. What else I love is, they both are FREE and they are very simple to work with. They operate in DOS (sorry Mac users!), and you simply drag and drop your images over the program icon. So, it is quick and easy, and the quality I wanted is there.
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| Dynamic Photo HDR in Eye-Catching preset |
I believe that relatively not so many people are aware of these tiny DOS programs, perhaps because these are free, therefore not advertisied aggressively to gain best sales.
They are called TuFuse, and SNS HDR-lite. (Yes, it says hdr in the name, yet it is a fusion application.)
There are some vital differences between them; TuFuse is very quick, but does not perform any image alignments, therefore you really need to shoot on tripod.
SNS on the other hand aligns images perfectly, fixing even photos I shoot free-hand.
They are called TuFuse, and SNS HDR-lite. (Yes, it says hdr in the name, yet it is a fusion application.)
There are some vital differences between them; TuFuse is very quick, but does not perform any image alignments, therefore you really need to shoot on tripod.
SNS on the other hand aligns images perfectly, fixing even photos I shoot free-hand.
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| Photomatix |
TuFuse creates softer photos without strong contrast. It is nice for interiors, where you don't want to see every single crack on walls, stains or discolorations.
SNS is razor-crisp, giving amazing detail in rather strong contrast, and I love using it for landscape and nature shots.
For this post I used 5 images I took using Nikon's bracketing: one correct, two under and two over exposed. All images are totally unedited, except for the final one.
You can see the image sequence, as well as results created using default settings of three different HDR programs: Dynamic Photo HDR, Photomatix, and HDR Expose (I skipped here some other programs). And then – you can see these images created by TuFuse, and SNS.
As said – my favourite for nature and landscape is SNS, therefore I also edited that image to my liking (at the end).
SNS is razor-crisp, giving amazing detail in rather strong contrast, and I love using it for landscape and nature shots.
For this post I used 5 images I took using Nikon's bracketing: one correct, two under and two over exposed. All images are totally unedited, except for the final one.
You can see the image sequence, as well as results created using default settings of three different HDR programs: Dynamic Photo HDR, Photomatix, and HDR Expose (I skipped here some other programs). And then – you can see these images created by TuFuse, and SNS.
As said – my favourite for nature and landscape is SNS, therefore I also edited that image to my liking (at the end).
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| HDR Expose |
I don't intend here to convince anyone what is best, I merely share my experience and conclude that for my needs these small Fusion progs are the best, as they give me perfect starting point for my edits, and they also complement each other nicely.
Possibly you will like more results created with one of other mentioned HDR programs. There are many choices to explore.
At one point one can also ask – is it all worth doing? Is the HDR or Fusion worth the time spent on it?
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| TuFuse |
I can only answer for myself: Yes, fusion adds so much detail that I just love it. To compare it – creating photos with Fusion or HDR is like wearing fine prescribed eyeglasses. Yes, you can see around pretty well without them because you are used to it – but with your glasses everything gains crisp, sharp detail. You simply see more.
It is my hope that showing you quite different results of my experiments can help you find what is closest to your heart, and save you long search for your perfect tools.
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| SNS |
If you wish to try these free progs, here are links:
TuFuse
http://www.tawbaware.com/tufuse.htm
And SNS – this is a direct-download link, as the site is in Polish and you may have problem understanding it (I speak Polish, it is my native tongue).
http://www.sns-hdr.com/files/SNS-HDR_Lite.exe
http://www.tawbaware.com/tufuse.htm
And SNS – this is a direct-download link, as the site is in Polish and you may have problem understanding it (I speak Polish, it is my native tongue).
http://www.sns-hdr.com/files/SNS-HDR_Lite.exe
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| SNS after my edit. |
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Thank you! Until next time! Derek.
