Merge to HDR with ACR 9.0 - Bit Depth?

When we gained the option to use ACR on the 32 bit file we made with merge to HDR, it made all other methods redundant. I stopped using Photomatix, and started revisiting old bracketed sets so I could marvel at all the extra detail and image quality I could now get. Merge to HDR has changed with ACR 9.0, and I am not entirely sure if I am using it correctly.
It seems to take longer than it used to to produces the merged image, which we can now save in DNG format, and reopen in ACR to apply all the local adjustments that make using Photoshop so much better than the competition. The DNG has so far opened for me with some fairly radical settings already applied, and the image looks really quite good. However, making further 'local' adjustments does not cause the lag I was getting previously, so I'm thinking I must be working on a 16 bit image, and not 32bit.
Is this right? If yes, is the workflow cast in stone, or can I choose to save the DNG in 32 bit? I've only tried it on a couple of images so far, and to be fair, it is working well, but I am wondering if I am missing something, or our options have changed? (I could probably tried another set in the time it has taken me to type this post :-( )

JimHess asked that question and got an answer from MadManChan2000. (Basically, stored as 16-bit; rendered as 32-bit.)
If it seems to work faster while doing local adjustments, it could be because of ACR now supporting GPU acceleration. (I can't say for sure, though; I'm not a propellerhead on the matter.)

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How to view resolution (ppi/dpi) and bit depth of an image

Hello,
how can I check the native resolution (ppi/dpi) and bit depth of my image files (jpeg, dng and pef)?
If it is not possible in lighroom, is there a free app for Mac that makes this possible?
Thank you in advance!

I have used several different cameras, which probably have different native bit depths. I assume that Lr converts all RAW files to 16 bits, but the original/native bit depth still affects the quality, right? Therefore, it would be nice to be able to check the native bit depth of an image and e.g. compare it to an image with a different native bit depth.....
I know a little bit of detective work would solve the issue, but it
would be more convenient to be able to view native bit depth in
Lightroom, especially when dealing with multiple cameras, some of which
might have the option to use different bit depths, which would make the
matter significantly harder.
This
issue is certainly not critical and doesn't fit into my actual
workflow. As I stated in a previous post, I am simply curious and wan't
to learn, and I believe that being able to compare images with different
bit depths conveniently would be beneficial to my learning process.
Anyway,
I was simply checking if somebody happened to know a way to view bit
depth in Lr4, but I take it that it is not possible, and I can certainly
live with that.
Check the specifications of your camera to know at what bit depth it writes Raw files. If you have a camera in which the Raw bit depth can be changed the setting will probably be recorded in a section of the metadata called the Maker Notes (I don't believe the EXIF standard includes a field for this information). At any rate, LR displays only a small percentage of the EXIF data (only the most relevant fields) and none of the Maker Notes. To see a fuller elucidation of the metadata you will need a comprehensive EXIF reader like ExifTool.
However, the choices nowadays are usually 12 bit or 14 bit. I can assure you that you cannot visually see any difference between them, because both depths provide a multiplicity of possible tonal levels that is far beyond the limits of human vision - 4,096 levels for 12 bit and 16,384 for 14 bit. Even an 8 bit image with its (seemingly) paltry 256 possible levels is beyond the roughly 200 levels the eye can perceive. And as has been said, LR's internal calculations are done to 16 bit precision no matter what the input depth (although your monitor is probably not displaying the previews at more than 8 bit depth) and at export the RGB image can be written to a tiff or psd in 16 bit notation. The greater depth of 14 bit Raws can possibly (although not necessarily) act as a vehicle for greater DR which might be discerned as less noise in the darkest shadows, but this is not guaranteed and applies to only a few cameras.

What does the bit depth symbol mean (*, #,..)?

In the title bar of the image in PS (CS3 on Vista 32b, in my case) it is indicated what "mode" the picture is in (Image>Mode), eg for an RGB picture with 16 bit color depth it says "[file name] @ [scaling] (RGB/16)".
The bit depth can be followed by various symbols. I have seen for example:
(RGB/16*)
(RGB/8#)
What do those symbols (*, #,...) mean?

They have to do with color profiles, not bit depth.
http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-pound-sign-asterik-title-bar.html
i "If you see an asterisk (*), it means your image is in a color profile other than your working space default...If instead you see a pound sign (number sign, #), it means your image has no color profile associated with it."

Setting a fixed and consistent exposure level with merge to HDR Pro?

I do panoramas with sets of bracketed HDR images. From LR I select my stack and then merge to HDR pro in CC. CC then produces a screen with a white point preview slider or the option to tone in ACR. Since I want to tone in LR I have tried to set the white point consistently for each HDR output in the panorama set, but I cannot get consistent exposure levels. I then try to adjust them all the same in LR, but sometimes differences result in undesirable effects in the panorama stitched output.
How can I get a 32bit HDR from PS CC back to LR and have each stack come back in with exactly the same exposure without me trying to guess with a slider?
I task all the images for the panorama with identical settings. Same brackets, fstop , shutter speed, ISO, etc. I should be able to get them all processed into 32bit HDRs and looking the same without manual adjustment guesses.
Thanks.

I'll tell you my workflow for panoramas such as this. Starting from bracketed stacks of images.
1. I select all images, go into Develop and turn on auto-sync. Turn on "Remove Chromatic Aberration". Do not turn on "Enable Profile Corrections". Set a custom white balance to make sure all images are WB'ed the same and optimize sharpening and noise reduction. Basically you want all images to be developed exactly the same and fairly conservative at that.
2. Export all images to 16-bit tiff in prophotoRGB or adobeRGB (depending on how colorful they are)
3. At this point one can add a logo to the nadir shot or do it at the end using the workflow I described above.
4. Load all images into hugin. Generate control points. Optimize positions - first just positions, then positions and view. Level the panorama in the GL preview and make sure the projection is set to equirectangular and the view to 360x180, then optimize view, barrel and positions and finally "everything without translation". During all these steps remove errant control points by going into the control point list and deleting the ones with the largest deviation, which are usually bad control points on clouds or other moving things. Also make sure the pano stays correctly leveled.
5. Mask the tripod out of the images that have it in them using the mask tools in hugin. Mask feet and stuff out of the nadir shot.
6. Do a photometric optimization with high dynamic range, fixed exposure.
7. Go to stitcher, set the optimum canvas size, uncheck "exposure corrected, low dynamic range", Check A. "exposure fused from any arrangement", B. "High dynamic range->tiff", or C. "blended layers of similar exposure, without exposure correction" depending on what you want to do.
8. Stitch
If you did A. You will get a tone mapped image that you can work up further in Lightroom or Photoshop. That image will be tone mapped respecting the wraparound on all sides so it won't have weird seams in a spherical projection. If you did B. you get a 32-bit tiff that will work great in Lightroom and as long as you don't use highlights, shadows, clarity and such will remain good. If you did C. you can load the multiple panorama layers you get into a HDR Pro in Photoshop, and load that into Lightroom.

CS5 Merge To HDR Pro hangs Photoshop (Win 7, 64-bit)

Hi,
I've had Photoshop CS5 Extended for about 2 weeks. I'm using the 64 bit version with Windows 7 64 bit. So far it's been working ok but I'm now getting an issue with 'Merge to HDR Pro'. Once I've entered my settings and clicked 'ok' Photoshop stops responding. I have to start the 'Task Manager' and force quit Photoshop.
Is this a common issue or am I the only one whose getting it? Is there a solution?
Thanks

Thanks for your response.
In answer to your question I'm not entirely sure. My machine doesn't crash. When I go to Automate/Merge to HDR Pro I can browse to my files, choose them and alter the settings in the HDR Pro window until my image looks the way I want it to. But when I click 'OK' the process of generating the HDR file seems to begin then stop. I can see my original images in the layer stack inside Photoshop and an empty layer at the bottom of the stack called 'Merge to HDR Pro'. It doesn't get any further than that. The only thing I can do is go to my Task Manager, where Photoshop will be listed as 'Not Responding'. I use RAW files from my Canon 40D.
I can't give you very precise details about my system because I had it custom built and I'm not very good with technical stuff. I can tell you that it is a 64 bit machine with a 120Gb solid state primary HD running Windows 7 64bit, and 2 1Tb secondary drives. It currently has 6Gb RAM. The motherboard is overclocked. My gfx card is an Nvidia GeForce GTX 295.
Thanks again.
S.

Memory issue with 'Merge to HDR' in CS4

Hi All
I use Lightroom 2.3 and have recently tried to use the 'Edit in' function to 'Merge to HDR in Photoshop' with just 3 Raw files.
PS opens fine and the three images appear as separate layers, the 'Merge to HDR' window then opens allowing me to set the White Point preview etc. but on trying to complete the operation I get the following error message..
"The operation could not be completed.
Not enough storage is available to complete this operation"
I am using;
-Win Vista 32bit with 3gb of Ram.
-Intel 2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.4GHz
-NVIDIA GeForce9600GS (7.15.11.7490 Driver)
Under 'Preferences'/'Performance' I have 'Memory Usage' set to 1298MB(79%) and the Scratch disk is set to the internal HD with 502.86GB reading as free. (I also have 2 external USB2.0 HDs with 880 & 909GB free respectively.I have tried every permutation of having these combined or individually as the Scratch disk but to no avail.)
The really annoying/bizarre aspect of this is that if I open Windows Task Manager and watch the Photoshop Memory usage it peaks and stays at 1,247,704K for about 1/1.5minutes during which I continue to get the above error message if I try to complete the Merge process.
However, if I wait and monitor this memory usage it starts to drop after said period to 1,003,612K after which the Merge process completes no problem??? (Memory usage by PS then drops to 770,384K)
Whilst I appreciate that my PC is no Ferrari..having to wait over a minute seems more than a little odd. Have I got something set wrong?
All advice gratefully received......
Many thanks!

Hi Chris/Zeno
Many thanks for the responses...
After more experimentation, I think I have solved this. If I set all three HDs as Scratch disks (which totals 2285GB!!!) and switch 'Enable OpenGL Drawing' OFF then I can merge as many RAW files as I like with no time delay..
Even with OpenGL Drawing switched to off, if I only have the internal HD set to be the Scratch disk, then I get the above error message which I would not have expected to see with 500+GB of free space???
Anyway, it works now...
Cheers
JJN

Merge to HDR doesn't work with Raw

I have Raw .CR2 images that I would like to Merge to HDR. If I load them through Camera Raw and then into Photoshop, then attempt to merge with the "currently open files" option it gives me a warning that it won't be as nice as loading the CR2s directly into Merge. So I do that. The layers and windows bounce around like normal, then nothing, just an empty Photoshop window as if I had just launched it. Am I missing something here?

>Am I missing something here?
Some basic info, like WHAT VERSION OF PHOTOSHOP ARE YOU USING? While one might presume you are using Photoshop CS3, if you don't state it, how will anybody know?
As far as I know, this isn't a Camera Raw issue but a Photoshop issue. Does the merge work if you process out tiff files? That would be the first test to see if it's a Camera Raw issue. If not, you'll need to do some basic Photoshop troubleshooting and you might go to the correct Photoshop forum for your platform (which you also don't mention).

Photomatix plug-in's HDR merged image has suddenly stopped showing up as part of the stack, yet when I repeat the merge it warns that these images are already merged. I have the merged image labeled with a HDR suffix.

Photomatix plug-in's HDR merged image has suddenly stopped showing up as part of the stack, yet when I repeat the merge it warns that these images are already merged. I have the merged image labeled with a HDR suffix. Worked fine until now. Thanks

I am not sure what's happening with IE9 (no live site) but I had real problems viewing your code in Live View - until I removed the HTML comment marked below. Basically your site was viewable in Design View but as soon a I hit Live view, it disappeared - much like IE9. See if removing the comment solves your issue.
<style type="text/css">
<!-- /*Remove this */
body {
    margin: 0;
    padding: 0;
    color: #000;
    background:url(Images/websitebackgroundhomee.jpg) repeat scroll 0 0;
    font-family: David;
    font-size: 15px;
    height:100%;

"Merge to HDR" & "Align Images" will not work with 5000+ pixels

Merge to hdr will work almost instantly for any size image as long as you dont use the "align Image" function. When used, it drastically slows down at about 4000 + pixel images then craps out completely at 5000 + pixels.
I dont get it, worked just fine in CS2, now it doesnt work in CS4?
merge to hdr is useless without the "align" function

Hi,
The Ps CS6 public beta version contains the same camera support as found in Ps CS5/5.5 compatible CR 6.6. There will be future updates to CR 7 for Ps CS6 to pick up more camera support. The Nikon D800 NEF files are not supported, yet.
If you like to work with your D800 files in the public beta build now, you'll have to get the DNG Converter 6.7 from here: http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/cameraraw6-7/
and convert your files to DNG.
regards,
steve

LR3 - Questions regarding virtual copies with different exposures and Merge to HDR Pro in Photoshop

Hello,
I'm currently testing LR3. I have a master copy and 4 virtual copies with different exposures selected in LR3. I tought to myself that I could simply use the "Edit / In Merge to HDR Pro in Photoshop" option and tune the resulting HDR image in Photoshop but it seems that Photoshop doesn't take in consideration the exposure changes I've made on the virtual copies in LR3. The 5 images are identifical in the HDR Pro tool.
Is there something I can do to about it ? Maybe there is a step I've forgot in my workflow or something ?
Maybe I could simply export the master and virtual copies to JPEGs and then import these in the Photoshop HDR Pro tool but I don't think I would get the same results right ?
Thank you for your help.

Depending on the image ISO and overall content, you can get some pleasing DR pickup using this routine over simply hitting the fill light slider up and the exposure slider down. I never really liked the PS approach since it seemed to require too much tweaking inside PS. I have experimented with LR/Enfuse and Photomatix plug-ins and have settled on Photomatix for my HDR exposures (both "real" with multiple images and "fake" with a single image as you have described). I think LR/Enfuse is donation ware so you might want to start there. In both cases, the resultant image still needs a little adjusting back in LR after it is automatically imported into the Library.
Jeff

Merge Digital Images with HDR

A recent issue of PCMagazine, 6/27/2006, had an article entitled "Cool Photo Projects" which explained merging digital images with HDR. It mentioned that Photoshop CS2 will do that. Can it be done with Photoshop Elements 3? If not, is there a workaround that someone can suggest?
It does indeed look like a "cool project".
Thanks. Eva

I didn't know what HDR was, but read about it here: http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/hdr.shtml
Seems to me that there's very little you could do in PSE to emulate this, as it's built-in functionality in CS2.
Having said that, taking a series of identical images, at different exposures, and simply using the best parts is quite possible.

Merge to HDR pro is producing very washed out results. Resulting images look terrible and bleached.

I posted here before, but was directed to go through the help menu in Photoshop, which brought me back here!! Please Help Me!
Merge to HDR pro is producing very "bleached" and overexposed images.
Thank you,
Rob

Thank you for the reply, Ed. I've delved into the PS preferences as best I could but did not see anything related to this issue. I have ACR set to convert at 240 dpi with ProPhoto color space and have never encountered this problem under typical 16 bit conversions from RAW to psd. For some reason PS sets the document size of 32 bit images to 3.5' x 5' @ 72 dpi which results in an extra step to the already time consuming workflow when creating such images in PS.
Perhaps this is an issue Adobe can address in a future update? They did a good job addressing other issues such as the disappearing RGB data in the info pallette when adjusting images with curves. It appears that the Windows version of PS has too many non-fatal (but annoying) flaws that aren't present in the Mac version.

Merge to HDR Pro???

Photoshop CC and Lightroom 5. In Lightroom choose "Edit in" and "Merge to HDR Pro in Photoshop". Select 32 bit in HDR Pro and selection available is "Tone in ACR". When selected the image is presented in Camera Raw. The only choices afterward are "Cancel" or "Okay". Return to Photoshop is blank desktop and no toolbars and no image. If you select "Save" the invisible HDR image is saved back to Lightroom but the photoshop desktop is not useable and you must quit Photoshop and re-launch. Previous Photoshop CS6 round trip with this function worked just fine.

Thanks for your response.
I actually figured it out.
Thing is, I have been working with LR since it started along with PSE from about v4 but never worked with Photoshop until I joined the CC.So when I right clicked a file or files and chose 'edit in', I only saw PSE or Topaz as options. I never had a choice of 'merge to HDR pro in Photoshop'. So, what I did wrong was to send three photos to 'edit in Photoshop' and then did the merge to HDR. When finished I clicked the 'x' on each file name and they closed and went away. The three that came from LR, went back to LR. The HDR went to my last open file on my 'C' drive. Even though I found the file, I couldn't import it into LR. But that's another issue.
I got the hint from a Linda Kost (is that right name) tutorial on HDR processing. She showed how to work from 'Bridge' which showed the 'edit in merge to HDR' command. She worked with a Mac, I work on a PC and so I looked for it in LR thinking it might be there as in Bridge. And it was. Would have saved me some time if she also referened the PC workflow also.
Thanks again for responding.

Merge to HDR Pro: What you see is not what you get?

I am using PSCC on an iMac (Mavericks). When I bring bracketed shots into PSCC's Merge to HDR Pro, I can work the settings and/or presets to get an image that looks OK. However, when I exit from HDR Pro by clicking OK, the image displayed in PSCC is very different from what I was just looking at in HDR Pro. The screenshots here show just one example, working in 16-bit mode. Other images show even greater differences. Working in 32-bit mode makes it even worse. This did not use to happen in my earlier versions of PS (perpetual license). Am I missing something or doing something wrong?
Image in HDR Pro:
Image in PSCC after clicking OK:

Trevor.Dennis wrote:
Yes I realised that. There are now quite a few applications for processing HDR, and IMO Photomatix has always been the best of them, and certainly did a better job than Photoshop. My point was that the old 'Merge to HDR Pro' workflow is now redundant if you have Photoshop CC, and that using Camera RAW as outlined by Julianne Kost, has suddenly leapfrogged all the competition by an order of magnitude.
So I strongly urge you to take Mr Prengel's advice. Output the image in 32bit, and use ACR to process it. Did you watch the video tutorial I linked to?
You certainly shouldn't get all pixel-peeper about how the 32bit image looks on your screen. It is not possible to show the tonal width of a 32 bit image on a computer screen, so you are seeing a 'representation' of how it might look after processing.
FWIIW I have taught HDR (and Photoshop) to some of the best photographers in the world at two PSNZ National Conventions back in 2010 and 2011, so I kind of have strong opinions about it. Not that I use it excessively, but it is a very handy tool to keep in your photographic skills repertoire.
Trevor,
I am sorry if I misunderstood your post. I am actually using the same workflow as Julianne Kost in her video (which I had watched prior to posting here). And, as I posted above, I do agree with Mr. Prengel that I should just take the 32 bit image into Camera Raw and do the toning there. As a matter of fact, that is what I have been doing in Photoshop CC (sending the pictures from Lightroom, same as Julianne Kosts does), and I can do a very good job, if I say so myself.
So the question I had was merely one of puzzlement at seeing the difference between the image just before exiting HDR Pro and what shows up in Camera Raw. In the examples I provided, and in many other cases, it clearly went beyond pixel-peeping: they were two very different images. But I think I understand now why this is, which you kindly pointed out: it is not possible to show the tonal width of a 32 bit image on a computer monitor. I had not considered that and I thank you for mentioning it.
It may be that in some cases (as in Julianne Kosts's video) the representation in HDR Pro is actually pretty close to the initial view in Camera Raw, but in other cases (my examples) it is not. Not really an issue, I agree.

Merge to HDR Pro from LR5. After applying preset and during conversion of file, Iget an error message "Adobe Photoshop CC 2014 has stopped working" and closing PS

In LR5 i do: Merge to HDR Pro. After I apply my preset and PS attempts to convert HDR file, I get an error message from PS: "Adobe Photoshop CC 2014 has stopped working". Then PS Closes.
My source files are 5 NEF files of 28 MB. I select 16-bit, I also tried 8-bit. No difference. Same error message.
I have a Toshiba Quosmio X870 with Intel i7 3610QM @ 2,30 GHz, 16 GB RAM, Windows 7x64 HP SP 1, 7,3 Performance Index
Any suggestions?

As the crash report says - your outdated video card driver is crashing. You need to update your video card driver from the GPU maker's website (AMD/ATI in this case).

Merge to HDR with ACR 9.0 - Bit Depth?

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