Workspace of the Program

AKVIS HDRFactory can work independently as a standalone program or as a plug-in to a photo editor.

Standalone is an independent program. You can run it in the usual way.

Plugin is an add-on for graphics editors, for example for Photoshop, AliveColors, and other compatible programs. To call the plugin, select it from filters of your image editing program.

The AKVIS HDRFactory workspace looks like this:

The left part of the program's window is taken by the Image Window with two tabs: Before and After. In the Before tab the original image is shown, while in the After tab you can see the processed image. You can switch between the windows by clicking on a tab with the left mouse button.

You can select how Image Window and Before/After tabs will be shown by adjusting the View Modes in the bottom part of the left panel.

In the upper part of the program's window you can see the Control Panel with the following buttons:

• The button opens the home page of AKVIS HDRFactory.
• The button opens an image or series of shots for processing. The hot-keys for the command are Ctrl+O on Windows, ⌘+O on Mac.

  In the standalone version right mouse click on this button displays the list of recent files (single images or HDR-sets). You can change the number of recent documents in the program's preferences.

• The button (only in the standalone version) saves an image to the disk. The hot-keys are Ctrl+S on Windows, ⌘+S on Mac.
• The button (only in the standalone version) opens the print dialog. The hot-keys are Ctrl+P on Windows, ⌘+P on Mac.
• The buttons and (only in the standalone version) let you rotate an image left or right by 90^o. The hot-keys are Ctrl+, (to the left) and Ctrl+. (to the right) on Windows, ⌘+, and ⌘+. on Mac.
• The button (Deluxe/Business) activates the Ghost Removal mode.
• The button (Deluxe/Business) activates the Local Correction mode.
• The button / shows/hides the selected areas.
• The button cancels the last operation made with the tools. It is possible to cancel several operations in a row. The hotkey for the command is Ctrl+Z on Windows, ⌘+Z on Mac.
• The button returns the last cancelled operation. It is possible to return several operations in a row. The hotkey for the command is Ctrl+Y on Windows, ⌘+Y on Mac.

  Note: The buttons / , are active only when working with selections in the Ghost Removal mode or in the Local Correction mode.

• The button (only in the standalone version) opens the Batch Processing dialog to automatically process a series of images.
• The button (only in the plugin version) applies the result and closes the plugin.
• The button calls information about the program and opens the registration window.
• The button calls the Help files. The hot-key is F1.
• The button calls the Preferences dialog box for changing the program's options.
• The Button opens a window showing the latest news about HDRFactory.

If several images are opened, their thumbnails are shown under the Image Window. The Before tab displays the image, which is now selected (highlighted in blue). To display a different image, left-click on its thumbnail.

The check-box near the thumbnail indicates if the image will be used when generating the HDR-image. Deactivate the check-box near the image with a left-click, if you do not want to use it when creating the HDR-image.

Тo the left of the image window there is the Toolbar:

Local Correction Tools (available only for Home Deluxe and Business licenses in the Local Correction mode ):

The button activates the Pin Tool that allows you to process certain image areas by adding pins around which the correction area with its parameters is created. The hot-key is P.
• The button activates the Correction Area tool that allows you to mark free-form image areas that require additional processing. To adjust the processing parameters, click the selection with the right mouse button. The hot-key is B.
• The button activates the Eraser tool to edit or remove selections made with . The hot-key is E.

Ghost Removal Tools (available only for Home Deluxe and Business licenses when working with a series of pictures in the Ghost Removal mode ):

• The button activates the Ghost Removal tool which helps to get rid of defects that sometimes appear in HDR images. Adjust the tool's options in a pop up window which is shown when right-clicking on the image. The hot-key for the tool is G.
• The button activates the Eraser to edit or remove selections made with . The hot-key is E.

Additional Tools:

• The button (in the standalone program) activates the Crop tool for cutting off borders of the image and reducing its size. The hot-key is Alt+C.
• The button activates the Hand tool which lets you scroll the image when it does not fit within the window at the desired scale. Bring the cursor over the image, and while keeping the left mouse button pressed move in the desired direction. The hot-key is H.

  Double-clicking on the tool's icon makes the image fit the window.

• The button activates the Zoom tool which changes the image's scale. To zoom in click on the image. To zoom out click with Alt. The hot-key for the tool is Z.

  Double-clicking on the tool's icon makes the image scale to 100% (actual size).

Navigate and scale the image using the Navigator. Here you can see the reduced copy of the image. The red frame shows the part of the image that is now visible in the main window; the areas outside the frame will be shaded. Drag the frame to make other parts of the image visible. To move the frame, place the cursor within it, left click the mouse, and then drag.

Additionally, you can move the image in the main window with the scroll bars or by holding down the space bar, then holding down the left mouse button while moving the mouse. The mouse's scroll wheel can move the image up and down, and holding Ctrl on Windows, ⌘ on Mac – while using the scroll wheel will move the image left and right. Holding Alt on Windows, Option on Mac will scale the image. Right-click on the scroll bar to activate the quick navigation menu.

Use the slider to scale the image in the window. When you move the slider to the right, the image scale increases. When you move the slider to the left, the image scale reduces.

You can also change the image scale by entering a new coefficient into the scale field and pressing the button Enter on Windows, Return on Mac. Frequently used scale coefficients can be found in a drop-down menu.

You can use hot-keys to change the image scale + and Ctrl++ on Windows, ⌘++ on Mac to increase the image scale and - and Ctrl+- on Windows, ⌘+- on Mac to reduce the scale.

Under the Navigator there is the Settings Panel where you can adjust parameters.

In the Presets field you can save favorite settings as a preset to use them in the future.

The Hints field will help you to understand how to use the program. The description for the parameters and buttons appear when you hover over them with the cursor. You can choose where the hints will be shown or hide them in the program's Preferences.

HDRFactory v. 8.0 - Free 10-day Trial