Portrait mode with HDR+ on or off?

[pseudoware]

Should portrait mode be used w/HDR+ or not. If so, enhanced? (what's the difference?) Thanks.

 

[TraderGary]

I leave HDR+ permanently turned ON.

HDR+ (enhanced High Dynamic Range) increases the dynamic range of dark to light an image displays.
The dynamic range of the human eye is about 23 photo stops.
The dynamic range of a camera sensor is only about 7 to 8 photo stops.
In order to display a wider dynamic range of light to dark, HDR+ combines several photos taken at different apertures to increase the dynamic range of the image.

You'll notice the difference in photos that would normally have blown out highlights such as a bright outdoor window behind a subject. HDR+ will show the outdoor scene in the window exposed properly as well as the more dimly lit subject also exposed properly. Without HDR+ there would be a narrow dynamic range and the window would just be a blown out white blotch with no definition and the subjects face would look very dark with little definition.

 

[ptkelly]

It would be a simple matter to take portrait shots with the same lighting, model, and setting with HDR+ on and off and see which you like.

 

[Rukbat]

I go along with Trader Gary - I have HDR+ on all the time. At very worst (a scene with a small dynamic range) it does nothing. At best, with bright highlights and deep shadows, it greatly improves the picture. Depending on the phone and the camera app, it may take longer than you like to process, so experiment first. Take a picture in a fairly dark room, with some really, really dark shadows (like under a table), with some really bright light (like the sky showing through a window), and see botgh the difference with HDR+ on and off, and how long it takes after you shot the picture with HDR+ on. (This is for non-Pixel owners who might be reading this - because there are HDR+ camera apps available for all Android phones. The Px2 line processes HDR+ pretty fast.)

 

[Mike Dee]

I go along with Trader Gary - I have HDR+ on all the time. At very worst (a scene with a small dynamic range) it does nothing. At best, with bright highlights and deep shadows, it greatly improves the picture. Depending on the phone and the camera app, it may take longer than you like to process, so experiment first. Take a picture in a fairly dark room, with some really, really dark shadows (like under a table), with some really bright light (like the sky showing through a window), and see botgh the difference with HDR+ on and off, and how long it takes after you shot the picture with HDR+ on. (This is for non-Pixel owners who might be reading this - because there are HDR+ camera apps available for all Android phones. The Px2 line processes HDR+ pretty fast.)

HDR+ or + enhanced?

 

[Rukbat]

I leave it on enhanced. It's been a long time since I could actually call myself a photographer, but I don't really notice any degradation doing a "side by side", turning it on and off. Macro zoomed all the way in, yes. HDR+ enhanced, no. (Not that I've "burned through rolls of film", but I've experimented with it a bit, and the wood grain on my floor, under the table where it's kind of dark, shows nicely with the sun streaming in the window.)