Tool for automatic generation of HDRIs with canon cams

[mike.edel]

just stumbled over this tool to automate the generation of hdri files using non-dslr canon cameras
http://www2.cs.uh.edu/~somalley/hdri_images.html#auto
first one is an automatic remote capture utility
second one assembles the images to a hdri file

just tested it on my living room (+ some sky through the windows) and it works fine
my canon g5 is able to produce 16 exposures with 1 f-stop difference (@ 5.6 aperture in order to minimize negative effects due to higher apertures)

only one hook: right now its only free for personal and research usage
commercial users need a license

[themaxxer]

wow, cool. I searched a long time for a tool like this. but unfortunetly I have an EOS D350!

would it be posslible to write a script or a tool for EOS cams?

best regards
themaxxer

[mike.edel]

well, they are using the canon camera developer kit to access the camera's functions
unfortunately canon's dslrs use a different sdk

so in theory it should be possible to do something similar with dslrs - it might be even as simple as recompiling the app
you might want to ask the author about it

[rpc212]

Already asked and he said not until he gets a dslr will he add support.

[jacksc02]

why would you not make this app for DSLR's??

[DJ-Studd]

A DSLR version would be fantastic..
hmm...


-- DJ

[rpc212]

My question is why Canon themselves have not done this? They have all the resources; much more so than a single, individual student for crying out loud!

[mike.edel]

My question is why Canon themselves have not done this? They have all the resources; much more so than a single, individual student for crying out loud!

well, they still haven't written a good raw conversion tool - how could we expect them to do something for hdris?

btw: if you are willing to shell out money ($95) you can use dslr pro from breeze systems to shoot the bracketed images (with dslrs)
http://www.breezesys.com/DSLRRemotePro/features.htm

Auto Bracketing

DSLR Remote has a very flexible auto bracketing function which is ideal for high dynamic range (HDR) images and for product shots and interior shots without using sophisticated lighting. DSLR Remote Pro can automatically vary exposure using the shutter speed or aperture to take auto bracketed sequences of up to 15 shots.

http://www.breezesys.com/DSLRRemoteP....html?main.htm

You can set the number of shots in the sequence using the first dropdown list. Then set the number of exposure stops should separate each shot. This can be 1/3, 2/3 or 1 stop per shot depending on your camera's settings (if your camera is set to use 1/2 stop increments instead of 1/3 stop increments selecting a value of 1/3 or 2/3 stop increments will result in 1/2 stop increments being used).

probably even cheaper than the commercial license of the other tool
can even capture raw files
you could probably use the second tool i posted to combine the images (you need to create the exposure file by hand or find a tool that extracts exposure information from exif data - im quite sure there are automatic ways to create the file)

btw: should also be faster since it allows saving the images to the camera only (should be faster than transfering everything over the usb/firewire bus) - the timings for different cameras in the help file confirm this

[Dynedain]

why would you not make this app for DSLR's??

Because the author doesn't have a DSLR. On his webpage he says as soon as someone buys him one, he'll write a version for DSLRs.

[rpc212]

probably even cheaper than the commercial license of the other tool Wink

That tool being the first one you posted above? Sorry just wanted to clearify.

[mike.edel]

i was refering to the second tool of the two - a command line tool for assembling the shot jpegs
http://www2.cs.uh.edu/~somalley/hdri_images.html#ahdric
you need a text file that specifies the f-stop difference between the shots - it is normally created by AHDRIA (the auto-capture-tool)

mine looks like this
ExposureInfo.txt

AHDRIA Information File
-----------------------
Shots acquired: 16
01: Exposure length: 0.00050   Relative Stops: 0.00
02: Exposure length: 0.00100   Relative Stops: 1.00
03: Exposure length: 0.00200   Relative Stops: 1.00
04: Exposure length: 0.00400   Relative Stops: 1.00
05: Exposure length: 0.00800   Relative Stops: 1.00
06: Exposure length: 0.01667   Relative Stops: 1.06
07: Exposure length: 0.03333   Relative Stops: 1.00
08: Exposure length: 0.06667   Relative Stops: 1.00
09: Exposure length: 0.12500   Relative Stops: 0.91
10: Exposure length: 0.25000   Relative Stops: 1.00
11: Exposure length: 0.50000   Relative Stops: 1.00
12: Exposure length: 1.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
13: Exposure length: 2.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
14: Exposure length: 4.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
15: Exposure length: 8.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
16: Exposure length: 10.00000   Relative Stops: 0.32
Total shutter time: 26.0072 sec.
Total acquisition time: 215.2190 sec.
Time efficiency: 12.08%
TimeStamp=20060329125037

as it seems, AHDRIC comes with a tool (hdrihelper) that extracts this information from the exif data of the jpeg files

REGARDING JPEG SEQUENCES NOT CREATED WITH AHDRIA: Select the JPEG
sequence in Windows Explorer and drag the sequence onto HDRI_Helper.exe
(included with AHDRIC) to create an ExposureInfo.txt file compatible
with AHDRIC. Use this file as directed in the "Usage" section, below.

just tested it on the same jpeg sequence and the output file seems to contain the same values

AHDRIA Information File
-----------------------
Shots acquired: 16
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_01.jpg
01: Exposure length: 0.00050   Relative Stops: 0.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_02.jpg
02: Exposure length: 0.00100   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_03.jpg
03: Exposure length: 0.00200   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_04.jpg
04: Exposure length: 0.00400   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_05.jpg
05: Exposure length: 0.00800   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_06.jpg
06: Exposure length: 0.01700   Relative Stops: 1.09
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_07.jpg
07: Exposure length: 0.03300   Relative Stops: 0.96
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_08.jpg
08: Exposure length: 0.06700   Relative Stops: 1.02
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_09.jpg
09: Exposure length: 0.12500   Relative Stops: 0.90
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_10.jpg
10: Exposure length: 0.25000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_11.jpg
11: Exposure length: 0.50000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_12.jpg
12: Exposure length: 1.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_13.jpg
13: Exposure length: 2.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_14.jpg
14: Exposure length: 4.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_15.jpg
15: Exposure length: 8.00000   Relative Stops: 1.00
!I:\Projekte\hdri\AHDRIA_16.jpg
16: Exposure length: 10.00000   Relative Stops: 0.32
Total shutter time: 26.0075 sec.
Total acquisition time: UNAVAILABLE
Time efficiency: UNAVAILABLE

ps: in my case the automaticly created hdri file looked better than the one i created manually in hdrishop

if you intend to use the hdris for commercial purposes (forbidden with AHDRIC), Photomatix Basic (free) could be interesting - it could even process raw files shot with dsrl pro (after converting them to 16bit tif files with Photoshop/RAW shooter essentials)
http://www.hdrsoft.com/resources/features_basic.html

[mike.edel]

oh, btw: photomatix has a batch mode
file-->automatic batch processing
works like a charm by just inputing jpegs or tifs (with exif information included)
just make sure only the image files reside in the folder you chosse (i had to restart the program to get it working after it didnt like the other files in the original directory)