“Since the inception of cinematography, we’ve been recording HDR images with film.” – Bill Bennett, ASC

That may well be, but that doesn’t mean we’ve been creating HDR images (we haven’t been) or that we have any idea how to make compelling images in the new format. 

If filmmakers just shoot like they’ve been doing for over a century and just lift the highlights in post, of course windows, practicals and reflections are going to become distracting – which is why shooting in an SDR environment and grading for HDR doesn’t work at all. When working in that way, highlights become no more than an enhancement with no expressive purpose whatsoever. Whereas if you’re shooting with HDR intent, you’re shaping the lighting, choosing the framing and making critical decisions in the editing suite to make those highlights serve an expressive purpose to really elevate the storytelling and move the audience emotionally. So, when DPs or colorists say that windows and practicals need to be darkened toward middle gray or plastered with a truckload of diffusion so as not to disorient the viewer, it’s not because our eyes can’t adjust, but because they simply fail to understand how to exploit the extended dynamic range and color palette of HDR.