HDR - try it you might like & a small rant on RAW

First off Russia rocks! It is my first trip abroad and I loved it, can't wait to go back for many reasons most of which is my girlfriend Alexis just moved there. I miss her so much I have already bought tickets to go back. Creatively, the country did provide me a breath of fresh air (and motivation) that I was missing here.

More pictures to follow as soon as I have time to work on them (and will be viewable at the link above, just not yet).

When most people go on vacation and look at the nasty local weather report (thick cloud cover and 40 degrees F) they generally get a bit bummed. No bright sunny days walking around enjoying the sights and getting to experience the absolutely best that the place has to offer. Well that cloud cover provides that best soft-box any photographer could hope for not to mention adding quite a bit of drama to any shot as above. So when out and about remember what you see with your eye on a bad day could be made better with a camera and some playing around with exposure

As far as HDR goes I see it as another possible tool in the digital darkroom tool box. As the small movement in advertising explored high dynamic range photography I have a need to learn the how and why of the process. Using Photomatrix and some burning and dodging in Photoshop is all I did with the shot above. being able to blend the high lights and the shadows a lot easier and with out having to do too much extra work. I do have to suggest that anyone who wants to work with HDR, do not bother to use it unless you are willing to shoot in RAW. Shooting in RAW makes a huge difference when it comes to this process.
In fact, it is my opinion that shooting in anything else but RAW, unless they are just party pictures just for fun and you are an amateur and want to stay that way, it is just not a good idea. I know a few Professional Photographers that just don't get why to shoot RAW. Come on!!! Let me make it simple...
In the realm of covering all of the zones of exposure in a single shot JPG = slide film as is RAW = negative film + 4 stops (for those of you at home that would be 11 stops between the high lights and the shadows). Color... JPG = 256 box of crayons as does RAW = 16 million color box of crayons, OK that one was an exaggeration, but it still is a huge difference. Soapbox done!