I love shooting at sunset, and even more so now that I have HDR Efex Pro 2 to allow me to so easily merge my bracketed exposures to capture the full dynamic range of sunset in one image.

For this particular image, I shot 5 exposures bracketed at a stop apart.  I shot on a tripod and told my model to hold as still as possible, and HDR Efex Pro 2′s ghost reduction did a great job at removing any slight movement in my model as well as in the ocean.

Here are my original 5 shots:

© Sara Schneider

© Sara Schneider

© Sara Schneider

© Sara Schneider

© Sara Schneider

I took these exposures into HDR Efex Pro 2 and was very happy with the initial merge.  I made only a few small changes within the HDR Method section.

After creating the image in HDR Efex Pro 2, I straightened and cropped it as well as used Photoshop’s clone and content aware fill tools to remove some errant seaweed.  For the finishing touches, I used Color Efex Pro 4′s Brilliance and Warmth filter to add a little bit of perceptual saturation, and Darken/Lighten Center to draw the viewer’s eye to the surfer.

Here is my finished image:

© Sara Schneider

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