HDRI on a Mac

[rastermon]

I've been using an open source 3D program lately called Radiance. It is a very accurate global illumination renderer. Now that I have a digital camera and a reflective metal ball, I can do "Image-based lighting" as demonstrated by Paul Debevec. It involves taking many pictures of the ball - each pic has a different exposure. Combining the bracketed photos with PhotoSphere into one high dynamic range (HDR) image, that information can be used in Radiance to light CG objects with natural light.
Here's my examples
http://www.geocities.com/rastermon/HDRIProbe.html

 

[Robn Kester]

Sounds interesting!

Is tha ball just a metal ball or is it something special?

 

[rastermon]

I used a chrome ball - from those asian therapy balls - they are a little scratched, tho.
The ball needs to be highly reflective - some people have used Christmas ornaments, but the best method is from 1" or 2" ball bearings.
Debevec.org has everything you need to know about it
http://www.ict.usc.edu/graphics/HDRShop/main-pages/faq.html