NoTakers.

[John 2]

Just a quiet day at the café.

[Shadowman]

Nice effect.

[Marie Hass]

Sorry, not an HDR fan. Would a simple B&W conversion have worked?

Marie

[IzzieK]

I don't think this is HDR Marie, but selective colouring and I like it for its simplicity in the execution, John...Good catch.

[xpatUSA]

I don't think this is HDR Marie, but selective colouring and I like it for its simplicity in the execution, John...Good catch.

Izzie, Marie,

I am wondering how a post-processed image can be determined to be HDR or not, without knowing the dynamic range of the original scene?

For example, if the original scene itself had 16 stops from darkest to brightest, then John's image is mostly certainly HDR. On the other hand, if the scene had only 8 stops then the image is probably not HDR (assuming a proper exposure).

Looking at all those specular reflections, the napkin holders and the rather flat appearance of the final image, what would be our guess as to the scene dynamic range?

I hate to force actual numbers on y'all . .

Well, so much for my simple criteria stated above

My own guess is that the scene dynamic range is high enough to qualify for an HDR attempt - but I think John was going for an effect rather than an HDR image.

Look'ee here . . .



Check out the histogram. At left, the shadows are all scrunched up - definitely not an HDR technique. At right, the brightness does not approach maximum. And the "missing levels" (arrowed) indicate some fairly severe mid-tone adjustments (levels, gamma?).

Nice monochrome image, an ethereal 'flat' look and the bright colors masked or layered back in is a cool touch, too.

[mknittle]

I like it though it really isn't my cup of tea. Nice work John.

[Shadowman]

Izzie, Marie,

I am wondering how a post-processed image can be determined to be HDR or not, without knowing the dynamic range of the original scene?

For example, if the original scene itself had 16 stops from darkest to brightest, then John's image is mostly certainly HDR. On the other hand, if the scene had only 8 stops then the image is probably not HDR (assuming a proper exposure).

Looking at all those specular reflections, the napkin holders and the rather flat appearance of the final image, what would be our guess as to the scene dynamic range?

I hate to force actual numbers on y'all . .

Well, so much for my simple criteria stated above

My own guess is that the scene dynamic range is high enough to qualify for an HDR attempt - but I think John was going for an effect rather than an HDR image.

Look'ee here . . .



Check out the histogram. At left, the shadows are all scrunched up - definitely not an HDR technique. At right, the brightness does not approach maximum. And the "missing levels" (arrowed) indicate some fairly severe mid-tone adjustments (levels, gamma?).

Nice monochrome image, an ethereal 'flat' look and the bright colors masked or layered back in is a cool touch, too.

I think he was going for a couple of effects, the selective coloring that Izzie mentioned and one of the art filters such as embossing or plastic wrap for the Terminator/metal look. Both effects are acquired tastes and I think the experimentation is something that may take a couple of tries but worth the effort.

[IzzieK]

Darn! I am ill at ease waiting for John (2) to respond to this, what he did actually ... come on John...get that smirky smile off your face and get in here to clarify, will you????!!!!!????

[John 2]

Sorry all. Life is and will be a bit busy until next week. Thanks for the comments. It's an old image that I'm afraid, is no more than a colour pop and a lot of processing in a poor attempt to bring contrast under control. The aluminium furniture under a sunny Spanish sky was not a good combination. If I were to redo it today, I might do a better job.