Photo of the Week 170 & 171 – Royal Canal HDR

I spent so much energy writing my big HDR article last weekend that I didn’t get around to posting my Photo of the Week, so another double post this week to catch up. I thought I’d stick to the theme of HDR, and also pick two shots of the same subject, the Royal Canal. This canal is very special to me as it’s where I get most of my exercise, and the vast majority of my nature photos, as well as many of my railway shots too! I do a lot of pseudo-HDR shots where I tonemap single RAW images, but I hardly ever take the time to create ‘true’ HDRs by combining multiple separate exposures. Last month, for the first time in ages, I spent some time shooting some ‘real’ HDRs, and these two are my favourites.

The first is a very low-key naturalistic HDR showing two boats moored above the 14th lock on the Royal Canal at Jackson’s Bridge near Maynooth as a spring sun sets. This HDR was generated from four brackets.

on Flickr – Full-Size

Camera: Nikon D40

Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)

Exposure:

Bracket 1: 1/100

Bracket 2: 1/200

Bracket 3: 1/400

Bracket 4: 1/800

Focal Length: 22mm

Focal Ratio: f/11

ISO: 400

Camera Mode: Full Manual

Processing: created by combining four RAW images into a single tonemap in Photomatix Pro, then running that tonemap through Topaz Adjust before importing into Aperture 3 for a few final tweaks

The second shot I’ve chosen was processed to capture the feeling and atmosphere of the scene, rather than to capture it exactly as it looked to the eye. This is a much more extravagant HDR, and perhaps a little hyper-real. It was the absolute sea of Dandelion seed heads and the reflection of the setting sun in the water that caught my eye and inspired me to stop and set up my the tripod for a full HDR. This beautiful stretch of the canal is located between Maynooth village and Jackson’s Bridge, and the wall running along the canal here is the boundary wall for St. Patrick’s College (SPCM). This shot was also generated from 4 brackets.

on Flickr – Full-Size

Camera: Nikon D40

Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)

Exposure:

Bracket 1: 1/50

Bracket 2: 1/100

Bracket 3: 1/200

Bracket 4: 1/400

Focal Length: 42mm

Focal Ratio: f/8

ISO: 200

Camera Mode: Full Manual

Processing: created by combining four RAW images into a single tonemap in Photomatix Pro, then running that tonemap through Topaz Adjust before importing into Aperture 3 for a few final tweaks