@creative-click-photography, I didn’t feel my critique of your picture went very well last night during the webinar and don’t know if it will be included in the replay….so, here are my written answers to your questions!
I would say the main reason your shot has the feeling of looking “fake” like you mentioned, is because of how dark it is around the sun relative to how light the rest of the sky is. In HDR, is everything to do with relative tonal values….what our eyes are used to seeing vs what is constructed by software. Since our eyes see 100% of every scene 100% realistically (that’s how we gauge “realistic” right?) just one tiny aspect of incorrect tonal balance will throw an entire picture off. Our eyes never lie. Learn what your eyes see (through intentional observation in various light-contrast situations), get to know what is “real” first, really wwell, and then see if you can start pinpointing problems in “fake” HDR images.
Do you take 3 photos and merge them or 5 photos?
The key is making sure your brightest shot is exposed properly for detail in the darkest areas, and your darkest shot is exposed properly for detail in the lightest areas. Looing toward the sun at sunrise/sunset, it’s usually going to be a 5 photo bracket. (I usually bracket 2 stops between photos.)
Is there an ideal number?
No. I generally don’t do more than 3 or 5.
Do you merge them using Lightroom or Photoshop?
Sometimes Lightroom does a good job. You can tell if you do the merge and then zoom in to 100% and scan over the image. You’ll know which areas were not merged well. Photoshop does a better job. Manually merging multiple exposures realistically is called “Photo Blending”. It’s a more complex process which I haven’t learned yet. I am trying to learn from Jimmy McIntyre, https://www.shutterevolve.com/
Would you tick the auto align and auto tone and would you do any de-ghosting?
Yes! Do auto align especially if you hand held the shot! Auto tone means after you finish merging the photos, Lightroom will automatically adjust the sliders to edit the photo in the way that it thinks looks nice. Since you have complete control over the sliders, it doesn’t matter. You can reset or adjust each slider however you want. It just depends on where you prefer to start (with 0 auto adjustments, or with the computers auto adjustments applied). And lastly, yes, I apply high de-ghosting, but I don’t know the pros/cons. It’s there to remove ghosting in your final, merged photo if there happened to be any moving object in your scene (like a tree blowing in the wind or a person walking along).
How do you get them to look realistic?
Tweak, tweak, tweak! This is a super deep question. Maybe you could start another topic on it?
Do you recommend editing the photos before you merge them or editing the final image?
It is not necessary to edit the photos before merging them. I only edit the photos after the merge.
What are some HDR must-do’s and things you definitely don’t do?
If at all possible, use a tripod next time. 🙂 The mistake I usually always make is when shooting the bracketed exposures, I don’t get enough detail in the brightest and darkest photos. Realistic HDR takes a whole lot more time, so be prepared for that. It’s a more artistic form of photography so approach it as art and less documentary. Prepare to spend a whole lot more time in post processing on the computer too.
What not to do? Don’t rush. Don’t expect to get more than one HDR merge per sunset/sunrise. Think it through, do it right, learn from your mistakes, and enjoy the artistic experience.
Hopefully that will get you started? 🙂