HDR Projects 4 Professional is being offered on SOS currently, and will likely [hopefully] make the rounds, winding up on GOTD in the not too far off future. Up till now giveaways have been limited to the standard rather than pro version, though it’s still several versions behind what Franzis is now selling. HDR projects is a good app, though it’s too focused on FX, and not nearly focused enough on getting the work done – for practicality, getting stuff done, Lightroom leads HDR Projects by a wide margin.
Downloaded from SOS, HDR Proj. 4 Pro comes in a Franzis wrapper, that copies the actual setup file to the C:\Users\ [UserName]\ AppData\ Local\ Temp\ folder once you enter the user ID & key you get in an email from Franzis. It’s not a bad idea to save that file. During installation the setup routine will look for image editing apps, e.g. P/Shop, and add the plugin in the proper folder, and it’ll also install an older version of the C/C++ runtimes from Microsoft. Personally, I installed the app, like most all Franzis software, in a VM, then copied the program’s folder where I wanted it in my regular copy of Windows. That lets me skip the modest bit of garbage the install routine adds, along with the C/C++ runtimes, and when run, will register and add the needed files & folders in the User folders. That skips the plugins – I used Universal Extractor for those – but I don’t think hardly anyone will miss them, since they don’t work like regular plugins, just giving you the option to export from P/Shop for example.
Why HDR, & what is it?...
It takes just the right amount of light to expose film, or to register with a digital camera’s sensor with maximum detail. Too much light, and you lose detail as things start to turn white. Too little light, and you lose detail as things start to turn black. In either case missing detail really is missing – it’s not somehow hidden, waiting for you to bring it back using whatever software. The amount of light is controlled by the size of the lens opening, together with the amount of time that the shutter remains open. Today’s cameras, including those in cell phones, are really pretty good at making sure the right amount of light hits the camera’s sensor, though they can be fooled sometimes, but you still have the same problem that’s existed since the first photograph was taken…
Often different parts of the scene you’d like to photograph require different exposure settings. Shots in a room showing a window that’s not blocked by heavy drapes; landscape photos taken during the middle of the day; pictures of people at the beach or surrounded by snow are just a few examples. The most traditional cure is to avoid those kinds of photos entirely – landscape photographers still take great pains to take their photos during the magic hours in early morning or evening, when the sky’s not at its brightest. Some photographers block part of the lens – an old-time trick. Or you can add your own light, at its simplest using a fill flash for example, though people have built careers just on lighting. Software image editors offered a new possibility – take separate photos exposed for different parts of the scene, then cut & paste what you want & need, which can still be the most efficient method. HDR is easier…
With or for HDR you take the same photo more than once, but at the different exposure settings you need for each part of the scene. And when I say the “same” photo, I mean as close to identical as you can manage. Software then combines the data from each of the photos into one, [sometimes much] larger file. As-is, the photo doesn’t look all that different than your 1st or reference shot, but now where you had detail missing, that data is there waiting, maybe hidden, but waiting for you to work your magic, lightening & darkening & otherwise processing as needed. One advantage of doing this with RAW files in Lightroom, is that the results will be saved as a RAW file that you can work with now and forever. Most software lets you create an HDR photo, but if you want to change something, you start over.
That said, an HDR photo is at least initially, maybe boring, waiting for you to turn it into a great image. Not everyone will want to. And for those folks, I think HDR Projects 4 Professional might be the best match, even if they don’t want to bother taking, or maybe can’t take more than one shot. And this Franzis app might be ideal for making your photos, well, different. It’s up to you whether they look better or not, but there’s no question that they can stand out.