Contrary to the iPhone being a lousy HDR camera platform, the iPhone is a good companion when you head out with your DSLR to capture HDR images. Why?
My typical setup for an HDR shot in the field looks like this:
- Setup the DSRL on a tripod
- Use the spotmeter in my Canon 5D to meter the lightest and darkest parts of the scene
- Sit down and do the math how many shots it takes, what to set the Auto Exposure Bracket (AEB) settings to and how many AEB shots it will take.
The calculation can become quite challenging based on the limitations of your camera equipment. My Canon 5D only allows for 3 shot AEB with a maximum bracketing distance of 1 EV between each shot. If you need to bracket 7 EVs, you need 3 AEB shots with what settings for each shot? I guess you get the gist of the problem.
Two iPhone applications can help you with the math. My favorite is EVcalc – simply set the desired Aperture, the initial speed and the bracketing distance, then let it calculate the corresponding brackets. It’s quite simple and fast. The only improvement I would have wished for is to be able to pick the max EV and AEB settings for my camera from a picklist. But since I know these anyway, it was not too much of a problem. And the price is right: It’s free.
The other application is HDR Helper. It pretty much does the same as EVcalc, with one added feature: You can also change your ISO sensitivity in your HDR setup. This might be important for some photographers, especially when you shoot handheld, but I don’t need it, thus my preference for EVcalc. But if you want ISO support in your HDR calculations, $1.99 is a good price for a very capable iPhone HDR companion app.
[Posted with permission from iPhonePhotoVideo.com]
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