Digital BW, The Print

HDR has been useful for difficult images from time to time, used in ways for which it was 
not intended. THis relates to the zone system/film/scanning compression thread as well. 
One thing film can do, even when a great deal of minus development is used to control 
excessive scene range, is remain (for the sake of this discussion) virtually continuous tone. 
In other words, despite the dramatic compression, there is still tonal distinction, no 
outright posterization. So with a hi bit scan, those locally compressed tones can be pulled 
apart nicely.
But it can be difficult. A recent image made down in a forest ravine looking out into sunlit 
areas was very compacted via developement, and the density range scanned easily. But 
despite a lot of messing around it was hard to get pleasing local contrast and retain the 
range, with such image complexity.
HDR does seem to deal with this successfully sometimes, so I fooled it. I've never been 
successful with PS HDR, so this was with Photomatix. I simply made different file versions 
from that scan, increasing contrast and changing brightness similar to what a bracket 
might have looked like letting extremes go, then combined them with Photomatix. If I 
recall I had to put in some fake exposure data. Obvioulsy registration is a non-issue.
It only got part way there, I wound up working it as a new scan with masked adjustment 
layers etc., and layered back in the original scan in areas, but it gave a good starting point 
I doubt I could achieved manually. One exposure, one scan.
The point is, when all else fails, break the rules... use tools for what they seem to be good 
at, often not what they were intended for...
Tyler

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "ilford100" <robertrowe2@...> 
wrote:
>
> So far I have managed to ignore HDR imaging, but curiosity has got the best of me.  I 
was 
> wonder1ing if anyone has used HDR compositing techniques, then tone mapped back to 
grey 
> scale.  More importantly, how did the image(s) look?  If you have such an animal, can 
you 
> post a link to it?
> 
> Thanks
>