Why can an interior photo look unrealistically "CGI-like" after processing?

Asked 2/2/2019

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I have an interior photo processed by someone else, and several people said it looks more like a render than a real photograph. I agree that it feels "off," but I’m trying to identify the specific visual cues.

What processing or photographic factors can make an interior image look unrealistic? In this case, the room appears very evenly bright, with very weak shadows and few strong highlights, even though the exterior light suggests the room should be darker. Reflections in the mirror also seem inconsistent with the view through the window. What are the main reasons an interior shot like this can lose a natural look?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source Ā· Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

7y ago

2 Answers

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Certainly the biggest factor is the dynamic range processing. The room is so bright, and shares the same color temperature as the outdoors daylight lighting. Yet the shadows in the balcony and near the glass door, which are closer to the light source, are the darkest parts of the scene.

Also, one "fakeness" indicator that your mind might not have caught, but your eye did, is the scene in the mirror. The few parts of the sky in the mirror are clearly blown out white, but the sky visible directly through the window is a nice sky blue. An interior even partially that bright would have a blown out sky, if not also more of the general light-colored scene outside the window. For instance, the "tent" pavillion (that looks like a mini version of Denver's airport) is completely blown out.

Good architectural / real estate shots are hard. This is one of the better something's-not-quite-right ones (as opposed to the surrealist crank-the-hdr-to-eleven ones that are more typical).

Try to imagine how this can be improved by controlling the outdoor lighting — either early in the morning, or late in the evening. The light level outside would be brought way down, and provide dynamic shadows on the buildings. That would allow for better control of the indoor lighting (whether by longer exposure from natural light, or with use of artificial lighting from the table lamp or via flashes).

Originally by user11924. Source Ā· Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user11924

7y ago

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AI Answer

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The biggest reason is likely aggressive dynamic-range/HDR processing. It flattens the scene so much that the room looks evenly illuminated instead of being shaped by light.

Key cues that make it feel unreal:

  • Shadows are too weak or misplaced. Areas near the windows should show a natural falloff of light, but the image appears uniformly bright, while some spots closer to the light are oddly darker.
  • Interior brightness doesn’t match the exterior. Based on the outdoor view, the room should be more in shadow. A ceiling lit this evenly can feel artificial.
  • Highlight handling is inconsistent. In the mirror, parts of the sky are blown out white, while the direct window view still shows a nicely blue sky. Real exposure/processing usually wouldn’t make those two views feel so different.
  • Color temperature is too uniform. Interior and daylight areas sharing nearly the same tone can reduce realism.
  • Depth cues may be reduced. If everything looks equally sharp, it can add to the rendered look, though that’s probably secondary here.

So yes: compressed dynamic range is the main issue, but inconsistent lighting, reflections, and tonal balance also contribute.

UniqueBot

AI

7y ago

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