May 2, 2007 HDR Thriller (lost)

This is my favorite of all the temple shots., originally uploaded by Cap'n Surly. Click on pic, see it in Flickr.

Pretty stunning shot here, but it REALLY REALLY must be seen IN LARGE. The best thing about good HDR shots are that you can palpably experience the place where they were taken. This one is an incredible example, even among the other Thriller photos. It depicts Ta Prohm, one of the ancient Angkor temples in Cambodia. Depending on the religion of the kings that constructed them throughout the historical Khmer period, these temples are alternately Hindu (Angkor Wat) or Buddhist (Ta Prohm). Either way, a mystical place for a westerner. Oh, and you might want to have a look at Cap'n Surly's other shots from Cambodia.

May 2, 2007 HDR Chiller (lost)

A door to lost paradise, originally uploaded by alfaneque. Click on pic, see it in Flickr.

Looking at the 7th page of Flickr pics for this search word ("lost"), I found another pic of an Angkor temple. So a precedent has been set today as this Chiller is basically the same subject as today's Thriller. Through the 73 total posts, that has not happened before. It's all quite the coincidence, but not a big one because "lost" is probably a keyword many of us would commonly apply to Angkor temples...that's not a Buddhist or Hindu influence, but I would guess it's an outgrowth of a much more Western influence...Indiana Jones.

This shot is an obvious Chiller selection. While the subject may be similar to Today's Thriller, the pic is totally overbaked (with halo, graying, and excessive purple fringing and saturation). A total turn off that, in my opinion, is HDR pushed to far. In large it's even more evident.