There’s been a big debate in the photography community as to whether or not HDR Photos are a huge photographic break through, or simply a way for amateurs to take mediocre photographs and make them better than they really are. I personally believe the benefits of HDR photos are great and if you are a photographer and haven’t experimented with the process, you should.

HDR or High Dynamic Range Photography is essentially taking a combination of images and merging them into one photo in order to create a range of light that is otherwise impossible to attain from a traditional camera sensor. The benefits of this are vast, but most simply, when done well, it allows you to create a more accurate depiction of what a given scene looked like at the time the photograph was taken.

If you are taking a photo of a sunset it’s nearly impossible to expose for all of the elements of the scene. You can’t have the highlights, shadows and mid tones all come out correctly simply due to technological limitations. With an HDR photo you can. By taking correctly exposed shot and merging it one with one that is overexposed and one that is underexposed you are able to take the full dynamic range and turn it into one beautiful image.

HDR photography also gives you the ability to show your creative side as well. Some purists maintain this is one of the downfalls of HDR, because it allows for a lot of really bad images. It’s very easy to create a fake looking, saturated photo that looks like it came straight out of a video game. But if you can use the technique correctly, it can really allow you to be artistic and do some pretty spectacular things.

You do need to have a little bit of software if you want to create an HDR photo. Generally, Photomatix or Photoshop are the two most popular programs. Along with that, a tripod is the other very necessary tool to get the most out of your shots.

For more information on examples of good HDR Photography as well as information on how to take them and what equipment you need, be sure to check out Daily HDR.