The HDR Photography MasterClass

HDR Photography  •  Photography Tips

Though some photographers turn their noses up at the very idea of high dynamic range (HDR) photography, the technique can create remarkable images when used appropriately. But how do you learn the best techniques? Fortunately, Serge Ramelli’s HDR MasterClass is designed to take you through shooting and processing HDR photos from start to finish.

The class covers Ramelli’s full HDR shooting and retouching workflow.

He first shows you how to set up your camera for HDR, then you’ll see a full HDR photo shoot, which shows you framing, setup, and shooting three exposures. Ramelli then teaches you the detailed workflow to retouch HDR in Lightroom, Photomatix and Photoshop (including digital blending).

The course’s 14 lessons cover 9 full photo shoots and include 3 free Photomatix presets.

Topics and Lessons Covered:

HDR Setup

• how to set up your camera for HDR
• live HDR shoot in downtown Los Angeles

HDR Lightroom Preparation

• how to take a great HDR photo of downtown Los Angeles
• preparation for each photo in Lightroom before sending them to Photomatix

Photomatix HDR Introduction

• a first look at Photomatix 5.0 and all of the new options to create better HDR
• blending the exposure of that Los Angeles scene.

Photoshop HDR Blending

• Photoshop blending of the tone mapped HDR photo—fresh out of Photomatix—with the original RAW file,
• giving the photo a more natural feeling
• solving different issues with tone mapping

HDR Digital Blending

• digital blending using Photoshop
• using layers to blend the different exposures

HDR Workflow – The Blue Hour

• a brand new project with the same workflow: Lightroom, Photoshop and Photomatix but this time with a blue hour shot from the same scene in Los Angeles

HDR Final Touches

• second part of the blue hour,
• making corrections on the tone mapped image so that it really pops

Interior Design HDR

• creating an HDR photo of a beautiful interior design location to make the photo really pop and to bring out the snow outside

• comparing the different presets and methods in Photomatix to get a more natural result or a more detailed photograph

Black & White HDR – Part 1

• Creating HDR in black and white to achieve a strong, dramatic effect that will take your black and white photos to the next level

Black & White HDR – Part 2

• another example of how to use HDR to make superb, dramatic black and white photos

HDR De-ghosting

• how to make vintage locations look amazing
• how to use the new de-ghosting effect in Photomatix 5.0

Seine De-ghosting

• how to make a boring photo into a photo that pop
• more options with the de-ghosting effect

HDR using a Single RAW file

• how to make HDR with a single RAW file

Eiffel Tower HDR

• a beautiful HDR shot of a nice sunset in Paris at the most powerful view in the world

Source Files

• 25 RAW photos (8 projects, most with 3 exposures each) and 3 Photomatix presets to follow along with these projects

Software Discussed in the Course:

• Photomatix
• Photoshop
• Lightroom