Tractor in Hayfield

I shot Tractor in Hayfield with a Canon 30D with a Tameron 28-105mm f/2.8 lens. I set the ISO to 400. Using aperture priority, I set the aperture at f/16 and varied the shutter to capture a 9-shot bracketed exposure over a 5EV range, exposing in 1/2EV increments. I shot in RAW.

After my discovery that a 7-shot bracket is far superior to a 5-shot bracket over the same 5EV range, I decided to try a 9-shot bracket at the next available opportunity. I wasn't planning on doing this the very next day but, while driving to deliver some prints to a client, I saw this tractor in a hayfield that just screamed, "Photograph ME!!!" On my way back I took out my camera and tripod, parked the car and shot away.

If a 7-shot bracket over a 5-stop range is fantastic, how can I describe the 9-shot bracket over the same range? I am not certain there are enough superlatives in the language to describe anything like what I have in front of me. The richness of the shadow detail along side the sharpness of the highlight detail is quite striking. I printed the image on Moab Entrada Rag Bright matte paper and the image simply jumps off the page. The luminance value of matte paper is far less than a glossy finish so I also printed the image on Photopaper Glossy Professional paper from Office Max (I use this paper for proofs and presentations) and the image nearly jumped off the page.

I want to say a bit about when to use more exposures in a bracketed shot. The scene with the tractor was a high contrast scent, bright sunlight, dark shadows. While in the days of film one might refer to such a day as a 5-stop day, the truth is it is more like a 17-stop day. In a high contrast situation, in order to cover the totality of the dynamic range, one must make more exposures over the 5-stop range. As one overexposes one really is exposing for the brightest part of the dynamic range while the opposite is true for the under exposed shots in the bracket. While a 5-shot bracket is better than a 3 shot bracket, so a 7- or 9-shot bracket will capture incrementally more of the dynamic range and, therefore, provide an hdr image that captures more of that range.

In low contrast situations, what one might call a 3-stop day, say, for example, in overcast skies or in foggy conditions, or just in shadow, a 3- to 5-shot bracket across 3-stops will be adequate to capture a vivid hdr image. Indoors, in normal tungsten light, I shoot as I would in low contrast conditions.

A couple of other thoughts. I have written about the need for a sturdy tripod when shooting for hdr images. I use a carbon fiber tripod because it is lightweight yet incredibly sturdy. The problem with carbon fiber is the expense. My tripod cost a bit under $900.00, and when I bought it that was a bargain. Today, however, the story is different. Induro carbon fiber tripods start at around $300 and provide the same light weight and sturdy features that my tripod does. Trying to shoot hdr without a sturdy tripod is something like balancing on a tightrope in a 30 mile per hour wind. The results won't be so good. By the way, a sturdy tripod on soft ground is not sturdy. When setting my tripod on soft or spongy ground I generally wiggle it around until it settles on a firm surface. In another situation, you may set your tripod on a smooth polished surface, tile or marble flooring, which may cause your tripod to slip. Again, a remote trigger is advisable in a situation like this. When you are out in the field you must do everything you can to get the shot right the first time because you may never again have the chance to re-shoot.

Another thought, if you are shooting at 1/15th of a second or faster and your camera has a mirror lock up feature you might want to use it. The movement of the mirror causes some camera shake and that shake is likely to place stress on the merger of your bracketed images. You might try shooting the same image with and without mirror lock up and compare the difference. If you do use a mirror lock up it is a good idea to have a remote firing device, either an electronic device or, if your camera allows, an old fashioned cable release. Shutter speeds less than 1/15th of a second don't really require mirror lock up simply because the vibrations caused by the mirror are long over before the pixels begin to saturate across the digital sensor.