I put the images into photomatix pro 4.0.1 and move some sliders and what not. Then I put the image into PS CS5 did a few layer masks to make it look somewhat better. Next I used Topaz Detail 2 to bring out the details. And finally I did a USM.
I'm no pro, but I can tell you how I work with HDR. I like to build one really "intense" HDR image, one that is ugly on it's own but that has PERFECT exposure on every pixel, and also do one single exposure. I work with the single exposure to make it look as BEST as I can, get it to look like I want. Then I like to use the HDR image to "bring out the details" in areas that I want those details in.
Odds are you aren't going to want a perfect exposure on every pixel in your image...well unless that's what you want. But that's kind of on the extreme end.
I would say that you now know a LOT about HDR...what you need to learn now....and what will take a lot longer I guess is this. What image do you want to create, and do you need HDR to get it there? I don't think you can just "HDR" a photo and all of a sudden it's awesome. But it can REALLY help in some instances, if that makes sense.
For me, i've noticed that when it comes to photographing cars/bikes, there is something about having a PERFECT exposure on every pixel where the car/bike is painted, that makes it look in a photo as it appears in real life. Specifically on metallic paints, it really brings them to life.
Great job for a first effort, much better than my own. That being said, as far as a photo, it's not grabbing my interest much. Some of it may be the purpley pink colors, some may be the composition overall. The items of interest seem to be along the bottom of the frame, with the top half of the frame mostly black. There is also that blur in the top right, that looks like a reflection in a window that you were shooting through. Perhaps an additional exposure could have pulled in some moreof the highlight detail inside the building. Maybe, maybe not. It's a very wide dynamic range, even for HDR.
My own workflow in HDR is to shoot three bracketed exposures, a full 2 stops apart, in RAW. Since each RAW file contains (to my understanding) roughly 2 stops of dynamic range, this gives me the maximum range in my captured set. I use Photomatix lite to merge them. Even though Photomatix can import the RAW files, I convert to 16 bit TIF. A major reason is that Photomatix does not let me adjust the white balance before it does the merge. Adjsuting the exposure level for each TIF also gives me more control over how light or dark my merged exposures will be. The documentation for the program also suggests doing it this way.
I shoot a LOT of HDR. I get the best results when I set my camera to bracket 2/3 of a f/stop apart and I shoot 5 to 7 images. Also, make sure you are shooting aperture priority so your depth of field isn't changing. And Photomatix is sensitive to noise so shoot to balance low ISO and fast shutter speeds to minimize noise captured by your camera. All cameras are different so you'll want to experiment but minimizing noise in the original captures will help you when you create your HDR image.
I personally think you did an excellent job with your first HDR. Most people when the start out with the technique tend to go overboard in the processing (myself included) but you kept it more natural and it looks great. The clouds do seem a bit out of place, did you turn on the moving objects/people ghosting before you processed? May help or it may not.
I am curious as to how many exposures you used. The highlights are a bit more over exposed then I care for, but still not horrible. The biggest thing I have learned in this technique (besides not going overboard on the sliders) is to bracket the exposures more deliberately. What I mean is don't use an exposure that is mostly blown out but choose one where the shadows are exposed to how you like and on the other end use one where the highlights show the detail that you want. Then the other one(s) should cover the middle ground.
For example I have done some where I used 9-10 exposures but 1-2 on either end didn't add anything to the range and actually caused more problems. I find that in most situations 3-5 exposures covers the range nicely.
Keep working on it, you are off to a great start. Hope this helps.
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