HDR JPEG / JPG with gain maps in Photo AI?

Topaz Photo AI Ideas
1

Recently Adobe has released Lightroom updates to support HDR photo editing from RAW using gain maps - basically, you edit the image specifically to have color/intensity values for an HDR display. This makes a JPEG file look extraordinary on HDR displays (even from a single RAW file, no bracketing necessary). The JPEG file embeds a gain map for fallback to SDR display on a machine that isn’t capable of displaying the extra HDR features.

This is absolutely the future of all photos moving forwards, as the vast majority of mobile devices already support it, as do a decent amount of computer and tv screens. Moving into the future we’ll see it everywhere.

Does Topaz Photo AI already support it? If so, how should I integrate it into my workflow? If it doesn’t support it, is there a timeline for future support? Thank you very much for the time and consideration!

1 Like
2

Just a quick note - you may find an explanation of this on many Youtube channels and online forums, but I found https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V1edlS0O5k to be very helpful. This is specifically NOT about the standard “HDR” photo technique where you cram as much dynamic features into a standard color space as possible - it’s specifically about extending the dynamic range past SDR for modern displays, creating more vibrant pictures without making them unreal looking.

Edit: Here’s the official Adobe post! High Dynamic Range - Explained | Adobe Blog

3

This would be great. Presently, the Ultra HDR raw files from my Pixel 8 Pro do not work: the images have a green cast in Topaz Photo AI. If I convert them to 16-bit TIFF from lightroom, they loose their HDR highlights.

4

Yes this also happens with HEIC HDR files from both iPhone and Android phones.