3. Load the images. Find the images you want
to work with, select them, and click OK to get them loaded into Photomatix.
note
If there is a problem and Photomatix can’t figure out the EV spacing of the images, a dialog box appears asking you to sort things out. For example, if you’ve accidentally selected duplicate exposures (this can sometimes happen with lots of photos), cancel and start again. Alternatively, you can set the EV spacing yourself or manually change it if you must. Otherwise, things should go smoothly.
4. Select the options you want to use. After
the images load, you see the Options dialog box, as in 3-11. You have to make several decisions here. The options are: > Align source images. This is almost always a good choice, even if you use a tripod. It is also wise to keep the image uncropped, as you can always crop later in the process. This is not necessary if you are using brackets created from single raw exposure, as they are already aligned.
CHAPTER
HDR PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTO WORKSHOP / The Art of HDR
3
> Attempt to reduce ghosting artifacts. Ghosting occurs when leaves move or if someone is walking around while you take your photos. Photomatix can try and reduce this but the results are not miraculous. Ideally, you want to keep in-frame movements at a minimum on-scene. This is not necessary if you are using brackets created from single raw exposure, as there will be no movement between frames. > Tone curve. Leave this option as is if your photos have a color profile associated with them. This should be the case with TIFFs and JPEGs, whether they are taken directly out of most cameras or processed through a raw editor. For raw images, this option should be grayed out, because raw images do not have tone curves.
> Reduce chromatic aberrations. Select this option if you notice purple fringing or other evidence of chromatic aberrations. These areas most often appear along the borders between contrasting areas. > Reduce noise. This is optional. You can use your processing application’s noisededuction features or try this one. There are very good third-party noise reduction filters such as Noiseware which you can purchase and use instead. 3-11 ABOUT THIS FIGURE This is the Photomatix first option screen. © Pete Carr
67