Why do you need HDR for this? The histogram shows a very limited tonal range, far less than your camera should handle without HDR. HDR--high dynamic range--is generally used when the dynamic (tonal) range is too great for the sensor to handle.
There is nothing in this image to suggest that it has been processed with HDR. (This is meant as a complement.) What did the original images look like?
John
Brian - the image has the low contrast HDR look. Try playing with C1's contrast controls to see what that does to it. I find that is something that virtually every HDR image requires.
I agree with Dan, I see no reason why you would even consider using that in-camera functionality in a scene that clearly does not have a high dynamic range. If you get clipping on both ends of the histogram, that's when you should consider using it.
Brian...
I agree with the above. Additionally, it seems that there might have been slight movement in the flower (petal at image right)...
When I am shooting a three image HDR sequence, I will most often have the camera in Aperture Priority (so the f/stop stays the same and only the shutter speed varies) and also have the camera in high speed burst. That way there is the least time between exposures and the chances of subject movement can be lessened.
I tend to select "Attempt to Automatically Align Source Images" in Photoshop which "MAY" prevent problems from subject or camera movement...
It might not be what we usually think of as HDR processing. Documentation for the A6000 says HDR Painting is a Picture Effect that creates the look of a painting, enhancing colour and detail. Seems to me that it is processing just one image.
Philip
I don't use the in-camera HDR capability of my Canon 6D2, primarily because I am restricted to shooting JPEG if I would want the in-camera HDR to function.
The camera does offer a lot of different ways to control the HDR, including the number of stops variance between the individual exposures - from one stop to three stops. The 6D2 also offers several processing methods for different HDR "looks".
The problem for me (in addition to only shooting HDR in JPEG) is the fact that if I chose HDR, the camera saves only the processed HDR image, not the three images shot to make up the HDR composite. This takes much of the control away from me. However, I can see how it might be of benefit to some photographers...
The camera also includes a capability to auto align the images if the camera was moved slightly in shooting the HDR series...
Testing out the functionality of the camera does make a lot of sense to me. I remember taking a few shots in HDRI mode when I first got the D800, just to see what it did. After that test, I never used it again and I have not used the functionality on the D810. I still use HDRI occasionally, but I use software that gives me the level of control that the camera does not.
That being said, using HDRI made a lot more sense when camera sensors were only getting 10 or 11 stops of dynamic range, but with modern cameras that can get to over 14 stops, the usefulness of that functionality is questionable. If your check your camera's specs on DxO Mark, it gets a very respectable 13.5 stop rating at base ISO.
https://www.dxomark.com/Cameras/Sony/SLT-Alpha-68
The other issue with in camera HDRI is the lack of control in the recipe that manages the tone mapping. I suspect that the name give to it "Painting" suggests they chosen a recipe that accomplishes a painterly look, rather than using a recipe that gives a natural look.
I do not have the option of in camera HDR, but quite often shoot multiple exposures with the intent of using 'hdr' blending as an alternative to blending with masks.
I prefer my HDR processing to be 'light touch' and as near natural as possible, so mostly use it to reduce processing effort when 'blending' an interesting/moody sky in landscape. I use Photomatix since it gives quite a lot of control over the blending process.
More recently I have been 'experimenting' with the Adobe Camera Raw, HDR blending option in CC. In this case, with my stained glass imaging.
Dan, I have a CC subscription, but never downloaded Lightroom. It would be worth doing so to try this out. ... especially since it is included in the subscriptionIf you like the light touch and simply want to extend dynamic range while avoiding the distortions of HDR, you might want to try exposure fusion. You can do it with a plugin within Lightroom. Search "Lightroom enfuse"
Thanks for the tip!
Brian, Just updated my old thread. If there is ageneral interest I'll post morelooking forward to seeing some of your stained glass work.
A Different Genre from those 'usually' posted
James,
Since the HDR merge function was added to LR and HDR, I haven't done all that much work where excessive dynamic range has been a problem. However, I have sometimes done both the LR HDR and exposure fusion to compare the two. LR HDR seems relatively low-touch; it doesn't create those awful painted-on-velvet unnatural colors that HDR often creates. However, the two sometimes differ, and I haven't entirely sorted out the differences yet. Some of it seems to be simply differences in the tonal adjustments made to cram the wider range into one photo. For now, I think I will continue do do both some of the time until I have a better understanding of their differences.
The LR merge produces a DNG; Enfuse produces a TIFF.