another FWIW technique

[chauncey]

I am a huge fan of using HDR toning in PS CC, especially when I'm trying to enhance the detail
in white subjects, whether it be orchids or egrets.

I start by making a entire, flattened duplicate of the image>apply the HDR Toning, focusing only
on the areas that concern the detail that interests me>make selections of those areas>cut/paste
them into virgin images as a separate layer to play with at your will.

It does require a delicate touch.

[Shadowman]

I can see the benefits of such a technique.

[kernowbhoy]

Any chance of some examples that you have done ?
Cheers.

[IzzieK]

Can you please upload such examples so I will understand better? My little mind cannot picture what you are trying to describe...original shot and edit will be nice with proper arrows pointing in the direction of your narrative illustration...just my thought...I will turn on my learning channel soon...

[chauncey]

This is one of my first swan images but, let me preface this by saying that there are other ways to
accomplish the same results...I just like this method. The unimproved one is first... followed by
the HDR Toned swan pasted into the first image...followed by the HDR Tone settings used for this
particular image.

[James G]

William, very nice, I'll be trying this myself thanks....

[Kris V]

Oh - gotta try that method when I have some time.

[IzzieK]

I second the motion! Will be worth a try when we go to the Botanical Gardens...hubby said there are some white swans there...hmmm, just googled it and there isn't any mention of it...I'll look elsewhere. It is in my bucket list for the month of April...

[Max von MeiselMaus]

That works well.

So, is it an HDR image on top of a "virgin" image, with only selected parts of the HDR image being present in the final version? Not sure if I have that right. If so, would it not be easier to turn your HDR version into a layer mask and delete out the parts you don't want HDRed in the final image? Or perhaps I have missed something. If not, using a layer mask would give you more flexibility with less hassle than selecting them.

[chauncey]

Max, when I pasted the "HDR section" into the virgin image, it was done as a mask.

[Max von MeiselMaus]

Ah, so you are not actually "selecting", as in selecting, but just deleting out the parts you don't want, using the layer mask? I did wonder if I had misunderstood. I have a loathing of anything involving manual selecting, largely because I am terrible at it.

[chauncey]

No, I make and save the selection in the virgin image>open the image dropdown menu>
select duplicate image>apply HDR Toning>load selection>drag into virgin image>auto align.

[dedro]

good stuff Chauncey...way more advanced than I am capable of at this time.

[rpcrowe]

I often increase the detail in the white coats of my rescue Maltese dogs by using the structure slider in NIK Software Viveza...