The Painted Valley - Yosemite National Park, CA
Although most of the processing that takes place on my computer these days is digital blending involving one or two RAW files using Lightroom 4 and PhotoShop CS6, I do revert to Photomatix here and there for some HDR Processing. Why you ask? Well there is just something about dynamic situations such as the one below that really beg to be processed this way, or at least I think so. All the skills used here are covered in my Free HDR Video Tutorial and the video included below. There are a bunch of other fun and free videos on my YouTube Channel.
I still continue to buy and watch other photographers tutorials as much as possible. Even if you get a few tips here and there it's worth the time and money. Chip Philips has a really good one by the way, so check that out!
The Shot
While wandering around Yosemite Valley you have a few things going for you, first, the "nice soft light" seems to last forever before the sun finally peaks over Half Dome and illuminates the valley in the early morning. Two, there are beautiful sights, sounds and smells coming from all directions, especially in the Autumn months of the year. Third, they have awesome coffee in the little lodge that sits quietly at the foot of El Capitan, but it doesn't open til 7-8AM, which is a bit late for us photographers so bring a backup. We stayed in the park for 3-4 days doing some "car camping" and scouting out different locations to shoot. Sleeping in your car with minimal comfort levels is good for one thing, you're ready to get up at 5AM and get the hell out of the vehicle.While scouting the day before I took a mental note of this location, "Come back when the sun is rising through the trees in the early morning", and so I did... ha!
Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )
Processing Time: 40 Minutes
Music: Old School Tiesto Live Set ( YES!! )
Drink: Lagunitas Lucky 13
Lightroom 4
- 5 Exposures from -2EV to +2 EV.
- Adjust RAW files for white balance, contrast and clarity.
- Export to JPEG
PhotoMatix
- Drag all (5) JPEGs into Photomatix and processing accordingly per the steps in my Free HDR Video Tutorial as shown above.
- Save Photomatix file as JPEG.
Photoshop CS6
- Digitally blend PhotoMatix JPEG with the (5) JPEGS exported from Lightroom.
- Mid Tones, Lights and Darks adjustments using Tony's Presets.
- Apply selective saturation and vibrance masks.
- Add texture to the sky. ( I created 200 or so textures I will eventually release to everyone as a digital download. )
- Nik Color Efex Pro Contrast.
- Nik Output Sharpener
- Noiseware Professional for noise reduction.
- Slight global vignette application using Nik Software.
- Save to JPEG.
Labels: California, HDR Photography, Nikkor 14-24mm, Nikon D800, Texture Blend, Yosemite National Park
