Tone Mapping

This article include information about all relevant factors of tone mapping technique and how to make your experience with this service as smooth as possible.

INTRODUCING TONE MAPPING

Tone-mapping is an HDR enhancement that consists of merging multiple images through software end adjustments. The input material is best produced by auto-bracketing. Tone-mapping can be combined with other HDR enhancement and the output will be finally edited through our core photo editing process. With tone mapping, flat HDR images will look punchy and full of detail. Tone mapping deals with reducing the tonal values within an image to make them suitable to be viewed on a digital screen

INPUT REQUIREMENT

The general idea is 5 photos bracket, where one is the main exposure and the other fours are under and over the main exposure. Main exposure photo should be +1 EV and supporting exposure photos are 1 to 1,3 EV in different for each step over/under. More detail below.

OUTPUT FORMAT

Approximate 12 Megapixel

Dimension: 4252 x 2835

JPG format, quality at 10.

Suggestion for bracketing using 100% ambient exposed images

System	Manual setting/Manual bracketing	Aperture priority (A or Tv) with Auto-bracketing (ABK)	Notes
Setup	Tripod should be used as the frame should be maintain between shots and allow shooting at long shutter-speed.	Camera movement during shooting can make it impossible to auto-merge the images.
Measure	Full matrix, Optional / according to preference	Full matrix
EV	-1 / 0 /+1 / +2 / +3/ or-1,7/ -0,3/ +1 / +2,3 / +3,7	Main exposure +1 EV steps : 1-/+ or 1,3-/+Regulate by shutter.	EV distance too far will make it impossible to do tone mapping.
Focus	2/3 into the space in the frame	Set focus mode to Manual
Aperture	f/7,1 to f/13 depending on the lens
WB	Fixed white balance for the best results	AWB may work but it makes color-cast- correction less likely to be done optimally as the light temperature will be different in the exposures and the tone-mapping result will be an odd mix.
ISO	Set at optimal quality	Noise and color quality is also a problem with HDR as it would be in single exposure. Maybe even more, so, try to avoid those