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.
-
The Chair1st prizeJOSH TAYLORFreestyleNikon D314-24MM 2.8 NikkorThis shot was taken at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, it is in a state of ruin and is in the process of being restored so im not sure how much longer a scene like this will be around. I was aiming for a mood of doom, spookiness, grittiness and general texture without looking fake. This was a 7 shot exposure in which I adjusted the exposure manually through reading the histogram and not just by bracketing in camera. I used a Nikon D3 and a Nikkor 14-24mm 2.8 for this shot, on a tripod, with a trigger release. The overall feeling of my shots as I try to achieve is for the viewer to actually feel the photograph.7 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 F2.8LDate gone wrong at the Bonneville Salt FlatsOne 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 USMTaken from Dead Horse Point SP in Utah overlooking Canyonlands NP. It was taken in the morning where there was significant contrast between shadows and bright areas. The colors of the canyons in the early morning light in this area are hard to believe..Tripod (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/4This is Hamilton Pool, a locally famous partially collapsed sinkhole near Austin, Texas. I arrived when I thought that the sunlight would illuminate the inside/roof of the sinkhole - but instead the light was directly at the camera, and the interior was in deep shadow. I thought that the conditions were so bad that I would just leave; but since I had bothered to drive all the way out there I figured that I'd fire off some shots just to make the drive out and back halfway worthwhile. I really didn't expect any kind of image that I'd like. It wasn't until I processed the bracketed photos with HDR Photostudio that I got this fantastic image! The picture wasn't likeable processed with either Photoshop's HDR or Photomatix. Wow!7 shot bracket; one stop between shots -
Cold SteelHonorable MentionJohn AdamsFreestyleNikon D500018-55Taken in the Thunder Cycle Designs showroom in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I am an HDR heavy metal shooting addict and imaging in settings like this are like big amusement park to me. This vantage and framing of lined up bikes is one of my favorites and under artificial light really come out nice as i found out during this session. This is a handheld shot 3 images and 2EV.3 shots at 2EV only edited in HDR PhotoStudio. -
The hills east of my homeHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II17-40mmIn the hills east of my home.3 shots, 2 ev bracketing, polarizer. -
Golden CanyonHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II17-40mmGolden Canyon Death Valley National Park.3 shots, 2ev bracketing. -
Atlanta skyscrapers1st prizeJose AlvarezArchitectureNikon D700Sigma 12-24Atlanta skyscrapers. Taken with ,Nikon D700 and lens Sigma 12-24 , 1/124 F22. I liked the colors combination, with the sense of height, the inclined buildings line gives dinamic to the photo, and the clouds and buildings mirrored gives senso uf uniti to the photo.I 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 shot of the interior of the Saint Nicholas Cathedral, a Russian Orthodox church that is in Washington D.C. This shot is my pithy attempt at capturing all of the wonderful frescoes that adorned the walls from floor to ceiling.This 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 II17-40mmMosaic Canyon, Death Valley3 shots, 2ev bracketing. -
Rundown rail yardHonorable MentionJustin FarrisArchitectureNikon D40Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6Shot in Spokane, Washington in a rundown rail yard that housed the largest railroad depot between the Rocky Montanans and the coast. "Hill's Yard" was the reason Spokane could exist in the late 1800's and through the great James J Hill's contributions a fertile economy was formed sparking new growth and population in Spokane. Today, Hill's yard or Hillyard is a poor community with a rundown rail system that lays in ruins. This shot (in part of a series) was to capture the life in what seems to be lifeless.This 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 @ F5.6Please explain the location, your thoughts, notes and technique used. What do you like most about this image. NYC Times Square at dusk - Crossing the street when I took the shot - Hand held. Really like the way the HDR picked up all the lights.3 shots at 1 EV -
Unnamed meadowHonorable MentionMark BristolLandscapeEos 1DS Mk II28-70 f/2.8Lake Tahoe area, unnamed meadow off 283 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)Please explain the location, your thoughts, notes and technique used. What do you like most about this image. Iguazu Falls 1 These spectacular falls are on the border between Argentina and Brazil. The mist generated by all the rushing water gives rise to rainbows when the Sun hits the mist at the right angle. When you think about Iguazu Falls you think about large falls of a kilometer length that have been photographed many times. I found this small section of the Falls during my exploration. The lush tropical vegetation has the glowing green color. But what made the image for me is the Zen painting like look and of course, the rainbow. In this image the water is flowing away from us. There are other images of the Falls with rainbows on my website (http://www.AjitPhoto.com) in the South America GalleryTwo 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 NikkorFront Entrance of the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.This 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.
HDR Expose 2 is the pro’s choice for creating stunning and color-accurate HDR images.
This major upgrade incorporates 26 new or improved features making it a full-featured application and not just a tone mapping utility.
HDR Expose 2 ships with Adobe Lightroom and Apple Aperture export plug-ins.