How to set Nikon d70 to take HDR picks?

How to set Nikon d70 to take HDR picks?

Your manual will explain how to use exposure bracketing. Set the bracket to the maximum allowable range, 1 or 2 stops of exposure for each shot. The camera needs to be on a tripod or othe steady support, you don't want to do this hand held. When you press the shutter release, the camera will take 3 shots. 1 underexposed by the amount you specify, 1 properly exposed, and 1 over exposed by the amount you specify. This would be for auto modes.

In manual mode, it is much easier. Take 1 shot at proper exposure, then adjust the shutter speed up and then down by however many stops you wish. A tripod is needed here too.

Of course first you will need a tripod and a remote release (or use the built in self-timer). You want to eliminate any camera shake from depressing the shutter.

Then you want to take at least 3 photos.

Your camera can do exposure bracketing - how to set it up is in your manual on page 87. You have to be out of automatic mode, either in P S A or M modes will do it. Basically you wan to set up the camera to bracket with 3 photos, and 1EV or 2EV between them.

Then you compose your shot and depress the shutter 3 times. One shot will be underexposed, one normally exposed, and one over exposed. The amount of under and over exposure is set up when you setup bracketing. 2EV is the max, and I would suggest trying 1EV to start, and if you don't liek it, try 2EV.

If that seems a bit complicated to you, or if you want more then 3 shots, there's an easier way.

Again, you need to be in P S A or M mode. But simply use your exposure compensation function (page 86 in your manual).

To do this, just set your exposure compensation to say; -2EV, take your first shot. Then set it to-1EV for the second shot, then 0EV for the third, +1EV for the fourth, and finally +2EV for the fifth.

Then you will have a set of 5 photos that you can use to process the HDR image. Of course, you can use 3, 5, 7, 9, or whatever number of shots and +/- 5EV for the exposure compensation.

You normally always use an odd number of photos as you always want the "center" photo correctly exposed at 0EV.

And you don't even need to do that. You can set your camera to manual and simply set the exposure for under or over exposure for each shot depending on the EV values you want.

When you are done with that, you need to put the photos into a HDR software to combine them. Photoshop CS and PhotoMatix Pro are both good programs, but they are $500 for CS and $100 for PhotoMatix. There are probably some free ones out there. I use PhotoMatix as it is the highest rated HDR processor.
http://www.althephoto.com/concepts/hdr.php

Ideally, it's one over, one on the dot, and one under. You can add more exposure values depending on your time and patience in front of the computer. One problem is to make the frames exactly the same so you will have to use a tripod and a remote shutter. Oh, the camera? Manual of course.