Unified Color Technologies True Vision HDR Photo Contest Phase 1
After months of accepting submissions, we announced the winners for this phase of our "True Vision HDR Photo Contest". Below is a collection of their winning images. We want to thank all participants as well as the panel of distinguished photography experts who judged the contest.
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The Chair1st prizeJOSH TAYLORFreestyleNikon D314-24MM 2.8 Nikkor7 shot, self adjustment of exposure from reading histogram, on tripod, with mirror lockup activated and with a teathered trigger. i upped the contrast and added a tiny bit of sharpening to give the gritty textured feeling. i also added specific areas of saturation but very subtly. -
Date gone wrongHonorable MentionDan MorrisFreestyleCanon EOS 30dCanon EOS 17-35 F2.8LOne RAW image exported at 5 exposures +/- .5, 1, 0 -
Dead Horse Point SP in Utah overlooking Canyonlands NP1st prizeDan HartfordLandscapeCanon 40DCanon EF-s 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USMTripod (of course). Merge of 5 images ranging from -2 to +2 EV in 1 stop increments. Post procssing included removal of Veiling glare (-25) some contrast and staurtation adjustments along with a sharpness tweak. -
Hamilton PoolHonorable MentionDavid HoelscherLandscapeHasselblad H3D-II 31HCD 28mm f/47 shot bracket; one stop between shots -
Cold SteelHonorable MentionJohn AdamsFreestyleNikon D500018-553 shots at 2EV only edited in HDR PhotoStudio. -
The hills east of my homeHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II17-40mm3 shots, 2 ev bracketing, polarizer. -
Golden CanyonHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II17-40mm3 shots, 2ev bracketing. -
Atlanta skyscrapers1st prizeJose AlvarezArchitectureNikon D700Sigma 12-24I took 9 photos bracketed in 1EV step. Ofcourse, merged to HDR with HDR Photostudio 2 -
Saint Nicholas CathedralHonorable MentionJOSH TAYLORArchitectureNikon D314-24MM 2.8 NikkorThis is a merge of 6 photos which were taken on a tripod, with a tethered trigger and in mirror lockup function. In HDR Photostudio I adjusted the contrast and the brightness a bit along with localized saturation of specific colors. -
Mosaic CanyonHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II17-40mm3 shots, 2ev bracketing. -
Rundown rail yardHonorable MentionJustin FarrisArchitectureNikon D40Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6This is a 5 exposure HDR image. In post I felt that I needed to boost the saturation in some color ranges and try to achieve a strong contrast without loosing anything in the blacks. I love the result. -
NYC Times Square at duskHonorable MentionJoseph CorradoFreestyleNikon D300Sigma 18-200mm @ F5.63 shots at 1 EV -
Unnamed meadowHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II28-70 f/2.83 shots bracketed at 2ev, starting a +1 ev. -
Iguazu Falls on the border between Argentina and BrazilHonorable MentionAjit GokhaleLandscapeSony DSLR A350Sony lens DT 16-105 (not the kit lens)Two shots at different exposures were made in Aperture priority, RAW format. The focal length was 26mm (equivalent to 39mm in 35mm format). A Singh Ray warming polarizer was used. A Slick Carbon Fiber tripod with an Acratech ballhead was used. Image editing was done on my wide gamut 24 inch HP monitor that can rotate from landscape to portrait mode. The monitor is calibrated with X-rite’s i1Display 2. I did not use any image editing software other than the HDR Photo Studio to process this image. The RAW images were input to HDR Photo Studio and all the controls were used pretty much in the easy sequence they are laid out: Veiling Glare, Brightness/Contrast, Shadow/Highlight, Sharpening and Saturation. In the Veiling Glare I used the black rock at the bottom left of the image (the darkest portion) to set the base point. The amount was -100. Most other controls were set by visual feel of the image. I have used other HDR software but HDR Photo Studio gives me more natural colors, avoiding the unnatural "HDR look" from other HDR software. Unlike other HDR software I do not have to process the RAW images first in Camera Raw, saving me time. -
National Cathedral in Washington D.C.Honorable MentionJOSH TAYLORArchitectureNikon D314-24MM 2.8 NikkorThis is a 7 shot merge, shot off tripod with a tethered remote in mirror lockup function to reduce camera shake. exposures were determined by reading the histogram and adjusting accordingly. In HDR Photostudio, I adjusted the contrast, shadows and saturation very slightly.