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How Many Exposures to Use for HDR Photos

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how-many-exposures-to-use-for-hdr-images-in-high-dynamic-range-photography

The biggest confusion about shooting HDR is how many exposures to take. In this article I’m going to cover how many exposures to use, when you need more exposures and when you need less.

Before I start I just want to say I only use enough exposures but never more. The more exposures that I shoot creates a greater chance of ghosting, and I try to avoid ghosting at all cost. Also the more exposures that you shoot the longer it takes for your camera to process each photo. Especially when you are using RAW files, it can really slow down your shooting. And nothing is more frustrating than not being able to take a photo because your camera is busy processing the images. And then there is storage, every extra exposure you create takes up more space on the computer.

wpid17495-Portland-Maine-Lighthouse-at-Cape-Elizabeth-During-Sunrise.jpgNow with that said… my “goto setting” is 3 exposures taken at 2 stops apart. I use this setup for 90-95% of my shots. Sometimes I will shoot a fourth exposure to cover the highlights and sometimes I will shoot a fourth to cover the foreground. It really depends on what I want more.

HDR-Photography-Real-Estate-Interior-Dinning-Area-During-Sunrise-Phuket-ThailandBut then there are times when I will need five exposures to cover the highlights and shadows. I mainly shoot five exposures when I am photographing the interior of the house. This method also works well when photographing a large tree during sunset or sunrise because there is a wide range that needs to be covered. I only shoot five exposures when I know there is going to be little ghosting.

florida-starry-night-under-the-milkywayThere are times when shooting at night that I will take up to 9 exposures and I do this to help reduce noise because when shooting at night you get a lot of noise from the low light. And the more exposures you take the less noise you will have.

wpid20628-Ocean-Reef-Park-Sunrise-at-Singer-Island-Florida.jpgAnd then there are times when I only shoot 2 exposures. This is when I am going for a more realistic shot or a photo that I know will result in some heavy ghosting. I do this alot when I’m at the beach trying to photograph a wave because all I really need is 2 exposures one for the foreground and one for the background. But this is only when I’m going for a more natural looking image. Most of the time I shoot three exposures so I can get the extra boost in color and detail.

Sony Nex 5 HDR Image from Juno Beach Pier During SunriseI always recommend shooting 3 exposures using RAW because this file format provides more information than a JPEG file. However if you notice that when you create your HDR image from RAW files and it doesn’t look right then it could be because the software you’re using to create your HDR images is unable to read the RAW files properly. In this case I recommend JPEG but a JPEG file has limited information which means you will need to shoot more exposures. Shooting 5 JPEG files should cover all the information you need.

American Bald Eagle Flying in Cloudy SkyI also process HDR images using only a single photo because a raw file has so much information that I am able to extract detail and color from just one exposure. Note that this does lead to a lot of noise, especially when shooting at a very high ISO. To avoid noise at high ISO I will shoot using JPEG format because I find that the cameras ability to reduce noise is way better than any software on the computer. Of course shooting JPEG will limit our information so this method is only used for wildlife like birds and animals because I don’t plan on extracting too much detail or color from these types of images.

I believe that covers all of the different scenarios when shooting an HDR image and calculating how many exposures to use. I always recommend that you experiment for yourself and find out what works best for you. The above mentioned is just from my personal experience and how I go about deciding the numbers of exposures to use. I’ll be sure to update this post if anything new comes to mind.

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10 Comments

10 Responses

  1. Beneh says:
    November 14, 2013 at 8:04 pm

    Hello Mr. Captain! At first congratulations for great job! I have a question. Can I use HDR techinics in Black/white pictures?

  2. Captain Kimo says:
    August 24, 2013 at 6:44 pm

    Always 2 stops!

  3. Captain Kimo says:
    August 24, 2013 at 6:44 pm

    The Canon Rebel doesn’t handle 5 exposures to fast, especially in raw.

  4. Captain Kimo says:
    August 24, 2013 at 6:43 pm

    Shoot fast to stop the wave and use manual deghosting to select the wave you want.

  5. Captain Kimo says:
    August 24, 2013 at 6:41 pm

    I already did a video on watermarks which can be seen in the video section. I might do one on how I created my current watermark which is a little tricky.

  6. paul primeau says:
    August 24, 2013 at 6:20 pm

    Your opium re: Promotion system in use with my D600? I have limited number of shoots. Have you tried this equipment?
    Thanks for your wonderful articles. Look forward to your next one.

  7. Gordon Betsill says:
    August 23, 2013 at 9:52 am

    PS – Would you consider doing an article on watermarks?
    Many of us would find that so very useful.

    Again,
    G. Betsill

  8. Gordon Betsill says:
    August 23, 2013 at 9:50 am

    I LOVE your new watermark. It’s very unique and tells everything that should be communicated. Of course, I’ve always liked how you write your name. It’s instantly
    recognizable.
    In the photo of the pier, how did you get the sharp images of the waves while using more than one photo? It’s wonderful.
    I live on the Gulf coast of Fl., and you’re right about our sunsets. Of course I’ve seen fanastic ones from Hawaii, too.

    Regards,
    G. Betsill

  9. Gary Carlson says:
    August 23, 2013 at 9:24 am

    I may shoot five images and only use the middle three ! Sometinmes the low three or highest three !!! Lots to experiment with and compare.

  10. Mike Crosa says:
    August 23, 2013 at 8:39 am

    Thanks. Really informative article. One question though. When you shoot more than three photos, how many f stops apart do you use?

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