How to Create an HDR Photo [Windows, Mac]

You should capture images for HDR photo creation from a fixed position. You will need to use a longer shutter speed when capturing the details in shadows. If you don’t use a tripod, you might notice a “camera shake” effect in your images.

A tripod makes it easier to align and merge your images when creating an HDR photo.

In this camera mode, you can control your camera’s aperture while your camera automatically adjusts the shutter speed. To select this mode, move your camera’s PASM dial to the A or Av setting.

Generally speaking, a wide aperture between f/1.8 and f/7 is ideal if you want shallow depth and background blur—for example, when photographing a flower or insect.

In landscape photography, a narrow aperture of f/11 or higher is ideal. All your subjects will be in focus at these aperture settings, even at varying distances.

Most photographers take three shots at exposure values of -3, 0, and +3. A negative value results in a darker exposure, and a positive exposure is brighter.

You can take more than three shots to capture more image data. For example, instead of three shots, you can take five shots at exposure values of -2, -1, 0, 1, and 2.

You might not use all these shots during the editing stage, but the additional data might come in handy.

A camera with an auto exposure bracketing (AEB) function can automatically take multiple photos at varying exposure levels. If your camera doesn’t have this function, follow the instruction in Step 7 to make manual exposure adjustments before each shot.

The AEB feature reduces the risk of the camera shifting between shots. However, even using the AEB function, you should keep the camera still while it takes the shots in quick succession.

Once you have launched PhotoDirector, you can upload the images you want to use to create your HDR photo.

To import your images, click on the Library tab, then select Import from the bottom of the library panel. Then, select the From Camera import option to upload the files directly from your card reader. You can also choose the Photo import option if you have already stored the image files on the hard drive.

After uploading your images, you can use the Bracket HDR tool to merge them into one HDR image.

Open the Guided tab, then select Photo Merge from the left-hand vertical menu. Next, select the Bracket HDR tool from the top of the Photo Merge drop-down menu.

When the Bracket HDR tool is open in PhotoDirector, you can select up to five images from your library to merge into an HDR photo.

Thumbnails of the photos that you most recently imported to the PhotoDirector platform will appear below the preview screen. You can double-click or drag these thumbnails to your preview screen to use them.

After selecting the photos, you want to use, click on the Merge button below the preview screen. While the Bracket HDR tool merges these image files into an HDR photo, a Merging Photos window appears with a progress bar.

When the Bracket HDR tool completes the merging process, the composite will appear on the preview screen. This HDR photo combines the over- and under-exposure of each image to show detail in the scene’s darkest and lightest elements.

If you are satisfied with your HDR photo, click on the Save as button in the lower right corner of your screen. A file manager window will open where you can give your new HDR image a name, select the storage location, and save the file. 

When you save the HDR image to your computer, the image will automatically save to your PhotoDirector library.

Three adjustments appear under the Glow category. Experiment with these sliders to apply the Glow or halo effect to your image.

The Strength slider adjusts the halo effect that applies to your photo. The Radius slider adjusts the contrast that applies to the edges in the photo. The Balance slider applies the glow effect to your image’s bright or dark elements.

Drag the Strength slider to the right to increase the visible detail in the contrast edges. The Radius slider adjusts the amount of contrast that applies to the edges in the image.

The Balance slider applies the HDR edge effect to the image’s bright or dark elements.