Software rebates for my readers, Round 2
March 29, 2009
Last December I nailed some top deals for my readers.
And now, after some more negotiations, I proudly present the extended deal.
Autopano Pro and Ariea HDR Max joined in, as well as the fabulous Photoshop-Plugins ProEXR and Filter Forge. Many thanks to all the participating software vendors.
All together there are now 11 coupons on the Software page, that you can unlock with the right password from the HDRI Handbook. If you would use all the coupons, the savings alone add up to more than $260.00! Considering that the HDRI-Handbook is just $33.00 on Amazon
, this is a sweet roll-your-own-bundle deal.Here are all the details:
Regular | Discounted | You Save | |
NEW: Autopano Pro | $131.00 | $119.00 | $12.00 |
NEW: Ariea HDR Max | $129.99 | $109.99 | $20.00 |
NEW: Pro EXR | $95.00 | $76.00 | $19.00 |
NEW: Filter Forge | $299.00 | $239.20 | $59.80 |
Dynamic Photo HDR | $55.00 | $38.50 | $16.50 |
Essential HDR | $69.99 | $48.99 | $22.00 |
exrTrader | $60.00 | $51.00 | $9.00 |
FDRTools Advanced | $76.00 | $64.60 | $11.40 |
Hydra | $59.99 | $41.97 | $17.99 |
infiniMap exr | $306.00 | $260.10 | $45.90 |
Photomatix Pro | $99.00 | $69.30 | $29.70 |
Go get 'em, Tiger!
[Disclaimer: Some prices might be off due to currency conversion. All rebates only valid for new software purchases, there is no refund given for software you already own.]
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Site Update: New Gigapano Gallery
March 24, 2009
Ladies and Gentlemen, I started a new panogallery.
This time around it's about size. Previous experiments with HDView (1, 2, 3, 4) were interesting, but only work on PC. Speaking about web standards (see last post). Well, since most of my really big panoramas aren't even HDR, a fixed exposure will do as well. Tonemapping a 500 megapixel image isn't much fun, but worth the effort anyway. So for the sake of compatibility and smooth display I decided for the latest krpano Flash viewer.
Take your time exploring the Gigapano Gallery!
Have fun.
New take on showing HDR images on the web
March 20, 2009
Rafał Mantiuk and Wolfgang Heidrich, two recognized authorities in HDR research, have just released HDR HTML. It's is a web-viewer for HDR images. Not these tonemapped JPEGs you find on Flickr, but real HDRIs with adjustable exposure.
There have been other ways for achieving this before, namely PTViewer (tutorial here), HDView, XDepth and ADR. What they all have in common, is that they require Flash or proprietary ActiveX components to be installed in the user's browser. HDR HTML is the first fully compliant HTML solution, making it super-compatible with web standards.
The generator is even based on page templates, opening up a world of opportunities. You bet that I will use it to put together something cool for this site ;)
New version of HDRCap: OSX remote utility for Canon
March 14, 2009
Greg Ward's ingenious HDRCap is back in the house, updated by Denis Fan. Now it works with the latest Canon SDK and OSX.
It's an Mac utility, that will remote-control a tethered Canon camera. Special treat: it automatically generates the HDR image on the fly, and pops it right up in Photosphere. Sure, your MacBook not as lightweight of a remote controller as a Nintendo DS, Bracketmeister, or the latest HDR-Jack. But with HDRCap you're getting instant results without much fuzz, makes perfect sense for a studio setup.
(Tipped by forum member Kirk.)
Also, I found another hidden gem on Denis Fan's site. With all the tonemapping hype on Flickr and in photo mags lately, it's easy to forget that HDRI has some dead serious applications.
An international group of students found out how to use High Dynamic Range Imaging as a Means to Quantify Luminous Flux. In essence, this presentation shows how architects can determine the amount of light that gets through a window, just by taking properly calibrated HDR images. That's not only easier than climbing up to a ceiling light with an illuminance meter, it also results in much more data where you can literally see light falloff and light transport.
Note, that Photosphere is all you need to do this at home. Another group of students has already run Photosphere through a real-world test before. Their conclusion: "Laboratory and field studies have shown that the pixel values in the HDR photographs can correspond to the physical quantity of luminance with reasonable precision and repeatability."
It's an Mac utility, that will remote-control a tethered Canon camera. Special treat: it automatically generates the HDR image on the fly, and pops it right up in Photosphere. Sure, your MacBook not as lightweight of a remote controller as a Nintendo DS, Bracketmeister, or the latest HDR-Jack. But with HDRCap you're getting instant results without much fuzz, makes perfect sense for a studio setup.
(Tipped by forum member Kirk.)
HDRI method approved for architects
Also, I found another hidden gem on Denis Fan's site. With all the tonemapping hype on Flickr and in photo mags lately, it's easy to forget that HDRI has some dead serious applications.
An international group of students found out how to use High Dynamic Range Imaging as a Means to Quantify Luminous Flux. In essence, this presentation shows how architects can determine the amount of light that gets through a window, just by taking properly calibrated HDR images. That's not only easier than climbing up to a ceiling light with an illuminance meter, it also results in much more data where you can literally see light falloff and light transport.
Note, that Photosphere is all you need to do this at home. Another group of students has already run Photosphere through a real-world test before. Their conclusion: "Laboratory and field studies have shown that the pixel values in the HDR photographs can correspond to the physical quantity of luminance with reasonable precision and repeatability."
Ricoh CX1 / FinePix F200EXR: pocketsized HDR cameras?
March 3, 2009
Both newly released cameras claim to capture a higher dynamic range.
Both are right and wrong at the same time.
Both, however, are a step in the right direction.
First of all, I love the fact that dynamic range is pushed by marketing as competitive advantage. Because it is, and such a valid argument will hopefully spur some more competition among camera makers. Bring on the Dynamic Range Wars, we have enough Megapixels already!
I haven't personally held either one of them in my hand. From what I can gather from the trustworthy internet sources, is this little peek under the hood:
In "DR double shot" it is claimed to capture 12 EVs of scene DR, which is about equal to what you can recover from a RAW file out of a modern DSLR. Then again, in perspective, for a consumer camera at about 1/5 of the price tag, that's pretty phenomenal.
There is actually a second dynamic range expansion built in, that I haven't mentioned in the table above. It uses the red and blue channel to interpolate clipped areas of the green channel. Sounds like a smart hack and is certainly appreciated, but I wouldn't want to rely on it for my wedding photos...
Bottom line is: The tech advantage is in the sensor speed and all the fun stuff you can do with sequential shooting. It's a great toy for getting into other areas of computational photography, too. If the firmware would just be a little bit less "magical", and would allow shooting simple exposure brackets at high-speed, the Ricoh CX1 could even be taken serious.
Basically, what you get here is the tried-and-true technology from Fuji's flagship DSLR FinePix S5Pro. Even one generation further. In fact, it will be interesting to this new sensor in a more professional camera, where we get access to the RAW files.
Yes, compared to other compacts, they sure do.
Do they shoot real HDR images?
No, both save only JPEGs, which are by definition LDR (low dynamic range) images.
The whole point about HDR imaging is, that you get an 32-bit HDR file, where you can tweak your heart out without loosing data. These cameras, however, do all the tonemapping/exposure blending (read: all the fun stuff) in hardware, and only deliver the final result. I guess that's the idea behind a point-and-shoot camera: Take all the high-tech and make it a single button that my mom could push. However, don't fall in for the marketing talk. They're close, but they're not real HDR camera just yet. Specifically, naming the Fuji camera "EXR" couldn't be more misleading. Coincidence? Or is there someone buzz-wording involved?
Did my monthly update chores. The new sIBL-of-the-month is from Arches National Park, and the Hot-on-Flickr gallery is now looking at the most popular images from March. Who knows maybe we'll see some first CX1 or F200EXR shots float atop this month?
Christian Bloch
Both are right and wrong at the same time.
Both, however, are a step in the right direction.
First of all, I love the fact that dynamic range is pushed by marketing as competitive advantage. Because it is, and such a valid argument will hopefully spur some more competition among camera makers. Bring on the Dynamic Range Wars, we have enough Megapixels already!
Ricoh CX1 | Fujifilm FinePix F200EXR | |
 |  | |
| Sensor Type: | CMOS | Super CCD EXR |
| Max Image Sixe: | 9.3 MP (3456 x 2592) | 12 MP (4000 x 3000) 6 MP in Wide DR Mode |
| DR Increase Method: | Shoots a burst of two images. The camera’s firmware takes care of blending both exposures and saves a single JPEG. | One-shot solution: Sensor pixels are reconfigured to have varying sensitivity. Firmware interpolates and saves a JPEG. |
| Special Extra Features: | Focus Bracketing 120 fps in VGA resolution | Scene DR detection Film stock simulation |
| Optical Zoom: | 7.1x / equivalent 28-200mm | 5x / equivalent 35-140mm |
| Dimensions: (W x H x D) | 101.5 x 58.3 x 27.9 mm | 97.7 x 58.9 x 23.4 mm |
| Price: | $430 | $400 |
| More Info: | Official Ricoh product page dpreview interview | Official Fujifilm product page dpreview sample gallery |
I haven't personally held either one of them in my hand. From what I can gather from the trustworthy internet sources, is this little peek under the hood:
Rico CX1
We're looking at an advanced CMOS sensor, that has a "smart layer" of transistors. Supposedly related to what I've described it in Chapter 3.1.4 as "Digital Pixel Sensor". It is capable of shooting at very high speed, enabling extra features like this "Dynamic Range double shot mode", Focus bracketing (which can be used for focus stacking), and 1 second recursive shooting buffer at 30fps.In "DR double shot" it is claimed to capture 12 EVs of scene DR, which is about equal to what you can recover from a RAW file out of a modern DSLR. Then again, in perspective, for a consumer camera at about 1/5 of the price tag, that's pretty phenomenal.
There is actually a second dynamic range expansion built in, that I haven't mentioned in the table above. It uses the red and blue channel to interpolate clipped areas of the green channel. Sounds like a smart hack and is certainly appreciated, but I wouldn't want to rely on it for my wedding photos...
Bottom line is: The tech advantage is in the sensor speed and all the fun stuff you can do with sequential shooting. It's a great toy for getting into other areas of computational photography, too. If the firmware would just be a little bit less "magical", and would allow shooting simple exposure brackets at high-speed, the Ricoh CX1 could even be taken serious.
Fuji FinePix F200EXR
This camera is all about the new (5th generation?) of the Super CCD sensor. Fuji keeps redesigning it, coupled with an evolution of the readout-process. It's following the "spacially varying exposure" method, as described in Chapter 3.1.5 and 3.1.6. After experimenting with dual sized photosites, they went back to one size for all (but still in a honeycomb pattern instead of a pixel grid). Photosites are still considered to be two groups, but their sensitivity can now be set arbitrarily. A maximum setting of %800 suggests, that the individual images can be +-4 EV apart. If you ever had a chance to look at the different exposures, because the firmware does not hesitate to mush them up and stomps everything into a JPEG...Basically, what you get here is the tried-and-true technology from Fuji's flagship DSLR FinePix S5Pro. Even one generation further. In fact, it will be interesting to this new sensor in a more professional camera, where we get access to the RAW files.
The Bottom LIne
Do these cameras capture a higher dynamic range?Yes, compared to other compacts, they sure do.
Do they shoot real HDR images?
No, both save only JPEGs, which are by definition LDR (low dynamic range) images.
The whole point about HDR imaging is, that you get an 32-bit HDR file, where you can tweak your heart out without loosing data. These cameras, however, do all the tonemapping/exposure blending (read: all the fun stuff) in hardware, and only deliver the final result. I guess that's the idea behind a point-and-shoot camera: Take all the high-tech and make it a single button that my mom could push. However, don't fall in for the marketing talk. They're close, but they're not real HDR camera just yet. Specifically, naming the Fuji camera "EXR" couldn't be more misleading. Coincidence? Or is there someone buzz-wording involved?
Unrelated sidenote
Did my monthly update chores. The new sIBL-of-the-month is from Arches National Park, and the Hot-on-Flickr gallery is now looking at the most popular images from March. Who knows maybe we'll see some first CX1 or F200EXR shots float atop this month?
Christian Bloch