Hi HI Long time...some hdr pics...some help pls

[ClaudioG]

Hi all..been a while...i have some hdr images of a pub i went to..this place was built in 1892,.... they dont have the greatest of images and im SERIOUSLY not saying mine qualify either...but... i would like to send an image or 2....there bar is a seriously happening place so i thought with all that info...HDR might look cool...ontop of it all...it was my first attempt using a fish eye....could you give me some heads up...im uncomfortable with the angles of teh actual bar mostly..how can i rectify this.

Any other advice is appreciated...as i do want to send the establisment a phot or 2 and not look like a tart


Maybe i shouldnt send one?

#1


#2


#3

[ClaudioG]

omg..i just realised I didnt crop either... IGNORE THE WHITE!!!!

[Manfred M]

Claudio - none of these scenes look like they need the use of HDR; the dynamic range actually looks quite constrained. Why are you using HDR in a situation that doesn't appear to require its use?

If you are looking for a funky, tone-mapped image, okay then and want to give a fish-eye projection, fine too. The important thing is that you still need a well composed and processed image. Do these shots meet your quality criteria? If so, send one, if not, what is your question??

Compositionally, I like the third image the best (the surface of the bar doesn't overpower the shot, like the rest of the shots), but needs a bit of work. I would prefer to see the non-tone mapped image. I suspect it might be a better way of presenting the mood of the place.

[ClaudioG]

Hi Manfred..thank you for your comment..i just thought that with such a dark scene and so much happening in the image i might try HDR...my try at the time

I did seriously quick work and with very little elements knowledge on the exposures i found that were sort of central.


Could i get your opinion?
#1


#2

[Texas Dave]

My favorite is the #2 in the first set. I'm not a big fish eye fan but despite that and the softness of the things on the far wall, I find it most interesting. I'm not sure how I could help you but I appreciate your work and enjoy it. Thank!

[Rebel]

Claudio, I think the first 3 images are great.

Lovely colours and the woodgrain texture of the bar I like a lot!

Is the bar in South Africa?

[ClaudioG]

Anyone spot the Free beer tomorrow sign...Gotta love it....i'm still waiting

[ClaudioG]

Is the bar in South Africa?

Hi Matt.. yeh it is...Its in an area called Van Reenen...on the way between Johannesburg and Durban (coast). Its about 5 and half hour drive thorugh but this place is about half the distance. My wife and i stopped there for a day as we were bored and didnt want to go right through. Its a Bed and breakfast, Built 1892..and theres a church across road..smallest church in Southern hemisphere. Four benches... will prob post and hdr image of that i took 2 yrs ago.

Awesome place.

[Shadowman]

There's a lot of great single subjects within this environment, the fisheye capture is nice but would work better as a 360 degree rotating composition.

[ClaudioG]

There's a lot of great single subjects within this environment, the fisheye capture is nice but would work better as a 360 degree rotating composition.

Ive never tried that..sounds awesome...im still using a mates fish eye lens...how would i go about achieving a 360 degree rotation with Fish eye?

[Mike Buckley]

I like the last two images and I like the second versions of them better than the HDR treatments. Consider cropping the first of those two so the bottom of the frame cuts across the lower circle. Doing so gives me more of a feeling that I'm leaning on the end of the bar and am part of the scene rather than a distant observer. Also consider adding a bit more mid-tone contrast to both scenes to give them a little more punch; they look a little flat to me, especially considering the subject.

[Wavelength]

I really liked these images.... First set is more attractive

[Shadowman]

Ive never tried that..sounds awesome...im still using a mates fish eye lens...how would i go about achieving a 360 degree rotation with Fish eye?

There's a tool in Photoshop that will format your image with a wraparound. I'll see if I can find the tutorial link.

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/us...hotomerge.html

[Max von MeiselMaus]

That is a difficult subject to photograph. So much going on. But you have done a very decent job of it.

I prefer the non-HDR versions as the HDR ones enhance the textures, which is making the image look even more busy.

Of the three top ones, I like the last best, as it divides the room up into "zones" of colour and tone, and that organises all that chaos better. Also, that barrel gives the eye somewhere to rest. I would crop out a bit of the foreground on that one, but leave enough of those floor tiles to lead the eye in. I might also be tempted to burn the edges of the yellow area a little, to focus the image on that area with all the light behind the bar (although I am not sure what all that is, the lines do point to it). It might calm down some of the business and make it easier to digest.

Those are respectable photos of a very tricky subject. I am sure the bar owners would appreciate them (and you wouldn't look like a tart).

[Manfred M]

Claudio - I definitely like the second set better. The fisheye shot already a bit outside of the normal view, but adding the tone mapping on top of that stretches things past where I would feel comfortable.

I still prefer the last shot, just because the large wooden surface of the top of the bar takes over the image and the content to the left of it just does not balance things out enough for my taste. There is perhaps a bit more floor in it than I might like (something one always fights with when shooting with an ultrawide angle lens, but the overall balance is good.

[Mike Buckley]

The reasons I prefer the last image of the second set over the first image of that set: the first image is sort of divided into two halves -- the bar and everything to the right being one half and everything to the left of the bar being the other half. I really like the way the open foreground in the second image leads my eye to the rest of the image, making it seem as if I am walking into the room.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Claudio,

I suggest you obtain and use a hot shoe 3-axis spirit level, that will avoid the need for a lot of PP rotation - and forgetting to crop after

I prefer the second (non HDR) batch - of those, I actually prefer the first, as it appears to me a more natural 'customer perspective'.

I might change my mind to the second (i.e. last) IF the bar top were not curved, to achieve that I think you'd have to raise the camera slightly to get it exactly across the middle of the frame, but as I've never shot with a fisheye lens, I might be wrong, perhaps the fact it is receding would also cause a problem (e.g. you're not shooting the countertop 'square on' and bits of it are at significantly different distances from the lens.

All said, I'm sure that even these shots the bar owner/operator might appreciate.

[John 2]

I Like both of the second set Claudio except that although you have lost that eye catching bit of daylight on the LHS in the first, you have also lost the ceiling light. To my eye the ceiling light adds balance to the space on the LHS. The second is the better of the two (IMHO) but you should tone down the highlights top right. Two nice shots.