In a nutshell

Tonemapping offers an unprecedented level of control over tonal distribution and detail rendition in your photographs. These are new creative dimensions to consider. It pays off to think in zones and to stay alert of the aesthetic rules that affect the perception of your image. Detail can quickly turn into clutter and overdone tonal range compression can quickly result in a flat look.

In the creative toning workflow, however, tonemapping is only one step. A considerable amount of look design is done in post-processing, some of the algorithms have already trickled down to LDR image editors, and nothing holds you back from polishing the tonal range directly in 32-bit mode with manual dodge-and-burn techniques.

4.5 Chapter 4 Quiz ...

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