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| Click on the photo to view it in large size on black background. |
a31 March 2012
Boca do Inferno
a30 March 2012
Photomatix Pro 4.2 beta goes public
Today at HDRsoft we released first public beta of Photomatix Pro 4.2.
The new version includes many changes and improvements over 4.1 and here are just a few of them with a short description from me:
- Many changes related to preset thumbnails
- Addition of several new built-in preset thumbnails (eg. 3 more black & white presets, a few realistic and artistic ones)
- Ability to toggle between normal (as in 4.1 and earlier versions) and large thumbnails size. This makes it much easier to decide between the presets
- Ability to display preset thumbnails in two columns so more thumbnails appear on one page
- Ability to import presets with just one click. In the "My Presets" tab just click "Import Presets..." select files and you're done :) No more need to manually copy the presets into the Presets directory. So if you had problems importing my presets for instance you can now do it easily.
- Ability to group presets into categories, eg. I now have categories like Winter, Warm, etc. It makes selecting appropriate preset a lot easier.
- Preset thumbnails should load a bit faster now.
Addition of Finishing Touch window. This window, which by default shows when the tone-mapping/fusion finishes, allows you to make basic edition of your photo including contrast curve adjustments, color saturation adjustments, sharpening. Finishing Touch can be also used from Batch Bracketed. Just open Batch and then "Naming & Output Options".- Redesigned GUI in case of Windows version. Now the windows have custom title bars which in my opinion look a lot better than default OS ones used in previous release
- Differences between preview and final image has been minimized.
- Instead of size ratio like 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 etc. now there are zoom buttons.
- Improved multi-monitor support
- New processing method Fusion/Realistic (available only in the Batch Bracketed photos for now). It should work especially well for real-estate photographers.
- All EXIF data should be now properly transferred from the source images.
River Bend
a29 March 2012
My Photomatix Pro presets
Hi guys!
Note: you will find even more presets here.
No new photo today as today I decided to release some of my favourite Photomatix Pro presets for you to use.
Presets are important part of photo editing workflow and Photomatix Pro is no different here. In case of spending half an hour moving the sliders I just choose preset adjust one or two sliders (most often saturation and temperature) and I can click "Processs button".
- Click download to start downloading presets.
- Then unzip them.
- Copy folder contents to C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\HDRsoft\PhotomatixPro\Presets where UserName is your user name.
Also be sure to check out my HDR tutorial.
| Preset Thumbnails | Preset Name | Preset Description |
|---|---|---|
 | BlackWhite | This preset I use when I want to create Black & White HDR images. |
 | Castle | I use this preset when shooting architecture shots. |
 | Cemetery | I use this preset when creating some dramatic mood in the architectural shots. It also works quite well for me when shooting cemetaries. |
 | City | I use this preset when shooting in the city and it's quite shadowy. |
 | Fountain | I use this preset when shooting all kinds of fountains and sculptures. |
 | GoldenHour1 | I use this preset when shooting HDR architectural shots during the golden hour. It makes images even more warm and golden. |
 | GoldenHour2 | I use this preset when shooting HDR architectural shots during the golden hour. It makes images even more warm and golden. Note that it's a bit softer than GoldenHour1 preset. |
 | Lake1 | I use this preset when shooting sunsets over lakes or seas. |
 | Lake2 | I use this preset when shooting sunsets over lakes or seas. |
a28 March 2012
Looking back
This one was one of my first attempts in using Photomatix Pro. I really like the mood in it. This photo is special for me for one more reason. It was the first photo I took with Canon 10-22 lens which since then became one of my favourite glasses.
a27 March 2012
Having fun in Barcelona
a26 March 2012
Just ocean
a25 March 2012
Tutorial: Wallpapers and what makes depth-of-field shallow
Hi,
At the beginning I would like to mention that I made two more changes to this blog. First, I added wallpapers section at the top of the screen. At the moment there are just a few wallpapers in 16:10 ratio but I plan to add more shortly (if anyone will use them :) ) so I'm looking for your feedback. Second change is addition of clouds tag in the right panel of this blog what should make finding interesting content a bit easier.
Now I would like to tell a few words about depth of field and what affects it.
At the beginning I would like to mention that I made two more changes to this blog. First, I added wallpapers section at the top of the screen. At the moment there are just a few wallpapers in 16:10 ratio but I plan to add more shortly (if anyone will use them :) ) so I'm looking for your feedback. Second change is addition of clouds tag in the right panel of this blog what should make finding interesting content a bit easier.
Now I would like to tell a few words about depth of field and what affects it.
a24 March 2012
Just walking (in color)
a23 March 2012
Tutorial: Tiny planets effect
yesterday I finished processing the photo you can see on the left. It uses very creative and popular technique known as tiny planets (a.k.a. little planets, small worlds and a few other names) and in this short post I would like to share with you the steps necessary to create your own small world like this.
In this technique we use a wide-angle or even better a panoramic shot which we sort of wrap using polar coordinates. It makes right and left side of the photo touch so there is need that both sides are identical or at least very similar so they seamlessly blend.
a22 March 2012
Outside the Hieronymites Monastery
a21 March 2012
Changes to the blog
As you can see I started to make some design changes to this blog. It should be easier to read and more clear now as I removed some distracting elements (including semi-transparent background). Design isn't finalized yet but I plan to finish it in a few days.
Another change is that my HDR tutorial is always available now. There is a direct link just below logo (which is also new BTW) so you can easily access it at any time you need. Also it is now available as a web page rather than PDF as some of you might prefer this way of reading (no need to download anything). Click here to go there directly.
And here is a daily photo:
Taken in Rome it depicts Tiberian Island (Isola Tiberina).
Another change is that my HDR tutorial is always available now. There is a direct link just below logo (which is also new BTW) so you can easily access it at any time you need. Also it is now available as a web page rather than PDF as some of you might prefer this way of reading (no need to download anything). Click here to go there directly.
And here is a daily photo:
a20 March 2012
Saint Peter's Square
a19 March 2012
Memory of summer
a18 March 2012
Sunset in Rome
Today one of my favourite shots (I even use it as a background for this blog :) ). Taken in Rome in 2011 during golden hour. Hope you like it.
a17 March 2012
Cathedral in Milan
This time a bit older photo, taken in 2010 in Milan. I didn't like it at first but now after two years I find it quite nice. Post-processed in Photomatix Pro.
As you may noticed I started to make some design changes to this blog. I plan to make it more easy to read and add a few sections.
a16 March 2012
Tutorial: Photographing sculptures in HDR
On the left you can see some samples of the sculptures I photographed during last year. First three were taken in Lisbon, next two in Rome and the last one in Berlin.
Here are some tips on shooting sculptures I'd like to share:
- Use available light only. It can create really nice light & shadow play as well as some very nice, sometimes almost unnatural colors.
- Process the photos with HDR workflow. Sculptures often have very nice detailed textures. Using tone-mapping brings even more detail to them, making them look more stonish and more detailed and thus more pleasant to an eye.
- Boost contrast in post-process to make the photos more powerful.
- Shoot from low-angle with a wide-angle lens (or even better with an ultra wide-angle lens like Canon 10-22 for crop sensors or Canon 16-35 for full-frame cameras). As you might know already this makes the people look more powerful.
- Try to focus on detail. Sometimes sculpture as a whole might be pretty boring but some parts of it (like a prop it holds) might be pretty unique and extraordinary.
- Try black & white version as well. It can make the photo even more powerful in some cases. Look at the photo of a soldier (2nd from top), colour didn't fit it well.
- Remember about using a tripod :) although all this shots were shot handheld with high ISO it's not a really recommended practice :)
a14 March 2012
Welcome to Hell
Boca do Inferno, Hell's Mouth, located near Cascais town in Portugal is an impressive location which is quite popular amongst tourists. It's a chasm in the seaside cliff. Water having an easy access into it through some sort of gate or mouth, strikes its rocky walls with great power (it really isn't a nice place to be in I guess).
This HDR photo was in fact taken outside of the Boca do Inferno. However, you can see how angrily the waves are hitting the cliff. The mouth itself can be seen in this photo as a black square-like shape in the right side of the cliff.
As you can see it's another black & white HDR photo I've taken recently :)
BTW check out my HDR tutorial: http://hdrphotographer.blogspot.com/2012/02/hdr-photography-tutorial.html
a11 March 2012
The Ruins of the Carmo Convent
It's another photo taken in Lisbon. This one depicts the ruins of the Carmo Convent which as many other buildings in the city was severely damaged during the earthquake in 1755 (library and 5000 books were all lost). The Carmo Convent was founded as a convent for the Camelite Order in 1389 and was finished by 1423. This gothic building despite being just ruins still is very impressive. The only bad thing is that photographing and filming inside the building is strictly forbidden. To my despair as the textures and light falling on the graves of the Portuguese kings (eg. King Ferdinand I) inside were just brilliant and would make for some exceptional shots...The photo on the left was taken during the golden hour. I loved the play of light and shadows on the wall in the back of the shot and decided on the black & white treatment to make it look even better and enhance details in the walls and pillars.