HDR photos can be more vivid and better match our human eyes. But compatibility complications are holding back the technology.
During Samsung’s Galaxy S24 smartphone launch, one little announced tidbit got me very excited: The devices will be able to upload HDR photos to Instagram.
The deal involves just one product family from one smartphone maker and one social media app. But I, a serious photographer, am giddy about it because it likely means we can expect HDR photography to spread to more devices, more apps, more web browsers and more photo editing software.
In other words, the Samsung-Instagram partnership could help begin a new, better chapter in digital photography. That’s an improvement all of us can appreciate, not just photo nerds like me.
HDR stands for high dynamic range, and for photography, it means pictures accommodate a broader span of bright and dark tones. That can make photos more realistic and vivid, particularly ones with dramatic lighting differences. Bright skies are bright instead of washed out. Sunsets explode with color. Scenes often look more like they did in person with your eyes.
HDR has caught on in video, though there are complications. For photos, though, it’s unusual. A variety of compatibility and capability constraints have held back HDR photos. For the technology to work, you need file formats that can store the data, cameras that can capture photos in HDR, editing tools that let you manipulate HDR shots, and displays that can reveal the extra tones.
