Complete Review of HDR Efex Pro

Complete Review of HDR Efex Pro, originally uploaded by mavenimagery® Bringin Artist 2Gether For Cancer.

Complete Review of HDR Efex Pro
Processed by: mavenimagery Lab, Universal Studios, Californa.
HDR PROCESSED with IRET (Iris Range Enhancement Technology)
IRET (Iris Range Enhancement Technology and MavenFilters are products of mavenimagery Labs Innovation)

Note: This image was taken for 'test' and review, purposely, under the worst lighting and wheather conditions. Beside a colorless, overcast late afternoon, there was a gust of wind and movement such as shifting river floats and fast pacing clouds that cause ghosting in HDR images.

Those who missed the first impressions of the review can catch up here: www.flickr.com/photos/maven_imagery/5127045978/

Welcome back. HDR Efex Pro has been around enough now to assume that we've all have our share of experience. Before we continue to get with the program, I’d like to mention a few things about human [eye] perception. However, if you’re a student of human perception or have a Gestalt-ian (deliberately throwing a grand German name here to make this review look as intelligent as humanly possible, and, maybe, just maybe, to grab your attention so that you stay with me throughout this most important guiding principles for tonemapping) vision and an eye that would make Stephen Spielberg bite his lips with an overwhelming jealousy, causing him to maybe even swallow his tongue, please skip this section. Above and all: If your image(s) are free of the following inherent problems in any form of photography and sure that they will qualify for the ‘standard market’ requirements (since most of us would like seeing our works published), then, by all means STOP READING! (not recommended) Time is precious so use it for more productive labor. Here are the most overlooked fundamentals that will cripple your ambitions and prevents you from entering the professional world which luckily still has a little room for the talented:
Your image is free of following:
- Artifact Problems: Noise/Grain/Chromatic or other artifacts due to low light, blue or purple fringing, high ISO, over-sharpening or post processing techniques. Please view image at 100% prior to submission.
- Low interest subject: Probably little demand/selling potential for this image. Try for more marketable shots.
-Blurry: Image is not very crisp or is blurred when viewed at full size. 1:1 or 100%
- Snapshot composition: This image is more of a snapshot than a marketable image. Overall problems can include poor lighting, poor composition, non-interesting subject matter, etc.
- There is enough of this subject already...sorry. More unique images will help your images stand out from the crowd. Not another sunset, flowers or flags which are easy to shoot
- Hard shadows: Caused by on-camera flash. Try not to use flash, use more fill light instead. Flash often creates hard ugly shadows
- Exposure problem: Image is too dark or too light, not properly exposed. You may be able to try using 'Levels' control in Photoshop to fix depending on how bad the issue is.
- Poor composition/Cropped subject: Chopping off part of subject makes photo harder to use generally
There are hundreds of reasons more why your image wouldn’t work, but these should suffice since they are the ‘gate kipper’ to the ‘Declined’ and ‘Accepted’ of the Art World.

But, I’m staying and keeping my course along with those who do. Who knows, maybe I’ll read your book where you call HDR Technology “an art form” (as sum-fellah did and got away with it; the very same person who recently blessed us with Nik’s HDR Pro Efex exaltations and asserted that HDRI was splintering…breaking and disintegrating into the realms of abyss. Impressive statement, ha? To me, it’s nothing more than a plain Forest Gump’s “stupid as stupid does-kind of assertion”) and not “a tool to combine artistry and technology to create High Dynamic Range Images”. That’s HDR-ly confused and messy…
Confused and messy? That’s right. HDR and tonemapping allows us, given the right set of exposure, to reproduce any tone and any color in an image in any way we choose. This may sound great and unlimited freedom in producing the ultimate image as close to human’s eye perception as possible, right? Wrong! This is exactly where one can face confusion with all of them sliders and stray away long from true-perception.
Are you still with me? Hope you are, Skipper. Because, I want this review to be as much a fun as instructive.
Perception. Seeing. Why is it so important?
When an artist looks at a tree, he or she sees details, light, shadow and reflected light as opposed to a normal individual who sees three as a whole. But, an artists who are born with innate talent and an eye sees more: If it’s Spring, he or she sees is green and pinkish blooms, contrast, structure, shade and details that make each leaf and the light that falls on them in three values: Direct light, diffused light (reflectance) and shadow (Luminance=3D form). But,
Confused, already? I don’t blame you. That’s only natural. We’ll stretch ad flex underneath this phenomena.

Will continue...