80D HDR "SCN" Mode

[OldSlowHans]

I just upgraded from a 60D to an 80D.  One of the reasons was the "in camera" HDR hype.

It seems (correct me if I'm wrong), that the camera only saves the resulting JPG, not the three underlying exposures (.cr2 and .jpg).

Is that true, or if not, where are they?

[Waddizzle]

The original JPEG image files used to construct the final HDR are discarded, and not retained.  Please refer to Step 6, on page 209, in the Instruction Manual. 

"When you press the shutter button completely, three consecutive images will be captured, and the HDR image will be recorded to the card."

They could, and should, have phrased it better than that, but it states that only the HDR image is recorded to the card.  In other manuals I have looked at, the fact that the source images are not saved is clearly spelled out.

[ebiggs1]

You want RAW photos if you are any type of slow and methodical photographer who is going to be use HDR.   Adobe can pull more latitude from a single RAW file than 90% of the in-camera JPG HDR images can. If you want a JPG HDR and RAW original multi-frame file for archival purposes, you have to capture the images separately and process in post.

[Waddizzle]

---

@ebiggs1 wrote:

You want RAW photos if you are any type of slow and methodical photographer who is going to be use HDR.   Adobe can pull more latitude from a single RAW file than 90% of the in-camera JPG HDR images can. If you want a JPG HDR and RAW original multi-frame file for archival purposes, you have to capture the images separately and process in post.

---

Correct.  You can always save the RAW files on a computer, and later process them as HDR.  Even Canon's DPP4 can process images into an HDR. I prefer to do it in post, because I can apply minor corrections to the photos prior to HDR processing: i.e. white balance..

Be aware that when you use DPP4 to process RAW files into an HDR image, the final output will always be a JPEG.  In fact, the DPP4 HDR module seems to take the time to process the RAW files into JPEGs, which are used to create the final HDR JPEG, just as your camera would.  These intermediate JPEG files are not saved, either.

[kvbarkley]

To do want, you just need plain old automated exposure bracketing, but you won't get a single HDR out.

[TCampbell]

I've done this on my 5D III (I haven't tried this yet on my 5D IV).  There is a menu option gto decide if you ONLY want the final combined image saved... or if you want the source images saved as well (in which case you get 4 images... the 4th is the HDR and the preceeding three are the source exposures.)

I should caution that there are so many options in how to process and tone-map HDR images that the in-camera rendering may or may not be to your liking.  Some HDR images look surreal... some look rather natural.

There is a lot of computer-based software that can do this as long as you shoot the bracketed images.   Typically this is three images separated by 2 stops each (e.g. the middle exposure, plus 2 stops under-exposed, plus 2 stops over-exposed.)  But you can do many more images and you can separate them by a different number of stops.  Photomatix is rather popular (possibly the most popular).  Adobe Photoshop also has this built-in and I think even Lightroom might have it built-in.  Those who are fairly serious about doing HDR seem to favor Photomatix.  I don't typically shoot HDR (other than to dabble with it.)

[ebiggs1]

Here is a shot by my bud Tom Martinez.  It is 9 exposures and put together by a free program from MS.

Would you have believed 9 seperate shots if I had not told you ?

[ebiggs1]

Tim Campbell are you curious to what this is?  Can you indetify the planets?

[OldSlowHans]

Thanks, everyone.  I use bracketing (and RAW) for HDR already, but was kind if hoping that the camera would save the 3 exposures in case that I didn't like the result, letting me do my own post work in that case.  Guess I'll just keep doing it the "old way".  Nice that the 80D gives choices for the number of bracket exposures, not just three like my old 60D.

[Waddizzle]

---

@OldSlowHans wrote:

Thanks, everyone.  I use bracketing (and RAW) for HDR already, but was kind if hoping that the camera would save the 3 exposures in case that I didn't like the result, letting me do my own post work in that case.  Guess I'll just keep doing it the "old way".  Nice that the 80D gives choices for the number of bracket exposures, not just three like my old 60D.

---

If you're shooting RAW, then you have to be using an application to perform post-processing.  If you're using Canon's Digital Photo Professional, you can shoot a set of AEB shots [or you can do it manually, like I do].  Now you can download and save the shots as RAW, and process them how you want. 

Admittedly, DPP doesn't offer as many output templates as the camera might offer.  But, if you're looking to create natural looking shots that do not look like they are HDR, then using DPP is another option.

I forget how many shots I used to make that one, but it was several, five(?).  There's high dynamic everywhere you look.