25 Beautiful Examples of HDR Photography
Published in GalleriesFor those who love browsing through online photo galleries, HDR (High Dynamic Range) photographs are often some of the most intriguing. HDR photography involves taking several shots of the same subject at different exposures and then combining them in a program like Photoshop. (HDR effects can also be achieved using just one image with more post processing work.) For more information on HDR photography and how to achieve the look with your own photography, you may be interested in visiting Stuck in Customs.
In this post we’ll showcase 25 examples of HDR photography from various photographers. To see the images in a larger size, please click on them and you’ll be led to the source.
Photo credit: ISIK5
Photo credit: Jakko J
Photo credit: Jim Dollar
Photo credit: Top4
Photo credit: Trey Ratcliff
Photo credit: Juan José Miñor García
Photo credit: John Mueller
Photo credit: Matteo Mazzetti
Photo credit: Ferrell McCollough
Photo credit: George Thomas
Photo credit: Shutter Runner
Photo credit: Raymond Larose
Photo credit: George Thomas
Photo credit: Knowsphotos
Photo credit: ISIK5
Photo credit: Ageel
Photo credit: ISIK5
Photo credit: ISIK5
Photo credit: evrengunturkun
Photo credit: ISIK5
Photo credit: Jim Dollar
Photo credit: Jim Dollar
Photo credit: MattHalic
Photo credit: Jim Dollar
Photo credit: Brent Pearson
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19 Responses
Dare I say, I think quite a few of these have been over processed. The mapping looks ugly. The Opera House and the Grand Canyon ones look nice though. Just me opinion.
Tnx for featuring my cow!
perfect…
Agreed, it’s so easy to go overboard with HDR, but the ones with a more subtle touch are nice. I find it’s usually when photographers play up the microcontrast too much and make all those halos, that’s when it moves from beautiful to abrasive.
There’s a group that does an online live-action zombie comic using HDR, which is (I think) way more interesting than the landscapes and abandoned vehicles/buildings most people go for. Their website is http://www.nightzero.com
I can’t believe that these are just photos, You cannot see it in many Phoenix web designed pages, it’s all breath taking and I love how the photographer took those shots! It was amazing and I think this is something that he can be proud of. To be able to compile these wonderful photos are such an honors for someone who love photo shoots. Good job!
@Evan: +1
These images have nothing to do with HDR. Too much tonemapping, and over-compressed. I’d say: read what HDR is about, and try a new post. This is just crap.
@Marc: -1
HDR pic ist a picture which was combined from more than one (differently exposed) shots/images. Even though it has this “ugly” surrealistic look, it’s still an HDR image. HDR ist not a specific Look, it’s a specific technique….
P.S. Last two Pics have more realistic tonemapping than others.
The kind of exposure create a particular effect..like fantasy..but I don’t like so much..even some examples are so nice.
I agree that the processing of some photos leads to results that are more realistic looking than others. In my non-professional-photographer opinion, what I like to see in HDR photos (and other photos in general) kind of depends on the purpose and context.
Lucas,
Thanks for recommending that site, the gallery is pretty interesting.
These pictures are amazing! I really thought these are real places. I simply loved the photos of the cars which are astonishingly amazing.
Thanks for the post – great collection of photos and inspiration.
i like HDR, and i make with software photomatic, you use that?
Amazing HDR photos. I really like HDR.
@Minieice
I too have used Photomatix (Pro), however it is almost fully automatic and leaves no room for user settings (apart from removing ghosting etc.)
If you want “impressive” HDR pictures of landscapes or sceneries with moving objects, I strongly recommend shooting 3 differently exposed pictures and combining them yourself in Photoshop using layers and masks. This way you can make it just as nice as you want.
I have used Photomatix a lot when I first discovered it, but the result on textured surfaces (grass, sand, mud) as well as moving objects were dramatic (anti-ghosting function isn’t that helpful)
However, this is still my opinion. Occasionally it does render nice HDR’s
Absolutely stunning! I have to disagree about the over processes. I have never seen work this gorgeous. Thank you for sharing these.
All comments aside, still find it all quite nice to look at. There was a time I used to wonder how people created such nice colourful pictures in just one shot (I guess… they didn’t, or not all the time
) but now the age of digital camera has been around for quite some time, more and more of this is just “out there” without too much trouble 
hooray for tech and creativity!
I just love how HDR allows you to show so much more detail than a one exposure image. These are some great examples, I especially enjoy the Trey Ratcliff one at the top!
Nice collection.
Nice graphical exposure…I liked the Church inside view.