Foggy Stacks

I think I have actually, finally figured out a circumstance to use HDR photos. Well maybe.

On my way into work, I was in a bit of a glum mood, to match the hazy, foggy day. Actually, the mood wasn't influenced by the weather, I happen to like the foggy, drizzly, Seattle-ish weather. Regardless of that, I was looking for opportunities for something to shoot, and saw the smokestacks of the Menomonee Valley power plant hazing off into the fog.

As I shot them, I was noting that the low light was causing such a narrow range of light, that the picture was either going to be overall blown out, or overall dark and muddy. Or grey. Sure, I could artificially enhance those values after the fact, but I'm a graphic designer - that sort of thing feels so typical, so boring. All of a sudden, it hit me - this was the exact circumstance where a High Dynamic Range photo could come in handy, maybe?

Maybe not, but after running it past the Photoshop gnomes, this was what popped up. I played with other variations, but this was the most attractive end result. Yay me for learning!