HDR photos will amaze you, and now a similar concept has appeared in Pentax’s new digital SLRs.
It’s one of the hottest tricks for digital photo enthusiasts online, and now the HDR concept has appeared built-into new digital cameras from Pentax.
The new Pentax K200D and K20D digital SLRs have the ability to take photos with high dynamic range (HDR), solving the common problem of photos where the sky is much brighter than the people in the photo.
HDR photos are different because they can show detail in situations where ordinary photos might not. Pentax’s reps explained to us that by independently selecting different exposure levels for different parts of the photo – for example darker for the sky, and lighter for the subject – the result is a better balance of light and detail.
HDR photography has taken off with enthusiasts on the Web, though in a slightly different form. By using software to combine multiple photos at different exposures, photographers have worked out how to transform photos with extraordinary levels of detail. Flickr has over 350,000 photos tagged with HDR - the effect isn’t to everyone’s taste, but the results are sometimes astonishing: check out the examples here and here.
The Pentax photos we’ve seen don’t have the same “special effect” appearance, but the benefits of HDR are still noticeable, if more subtle. You can see an example of an HDR photo taken with the K20D here (scroll the image right to see the result, and take notice of the sky and building).
With HDR built into the camera you have the ability to take a photo with high dynamic range with one shot only, instead of combining different exposures. “It’s a different process but it’s achieving the same type of result,” a representative told us after the Pentax launch.
This week’s launch is a big one for Pentax, which is hanging its digital camera future on a new image sensor that allows an incredible ISO 6400 setting for lowlight photos. The K20D has a new CMOS sensor that can detect “diagonal light” more accurately, and which Pentax claims will help avoid digital noise in photos.
Pricing for the K20D has been tentatively set at $1,999. The camera is pitched at advanced amateurs and enthusiasts, and includes 14.6Megapixels, an HDR photo option, LCD Live View, and a dust removal system, which is a coating protecting the CMOS surface.
Pentax is also claiming a first with the cheaper K200D, for which pricing is tentatively set at $1,199. Pentax says it is the only digital SLR powered by replaceable AA batteries, meaning no need to carry a separate charger.
Pentax is claiming two AA size lithium batteries will last long enough to take over 1,000 photos. The K200D also feature shake reduction, dust removal, 10.2 Megapixels, and up to ISO 1600. Like the K20D it also includes the HDR function.