"HDR has More Pop"?

I recently received a request for a quote for a photography assignment, among the requirements for which was that the photos be done using the process known as High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDRI or HDR for short). When I asked why the requirement for HDR, the client's representative explained that it was because HDR has more "pop".  I think what people are referring to when they say this that they are seeing photos created with this process that have a high degree of color saturation, often to the point that photos look unrealistic and garish. This may help the images to stand out, but in my opinion the over-the-top HDR look does not lend itself well for marketing images of buildings. On the other hand, I have seen plenty of images made with HDR that look flat, muddy, dark and grungy, that is, without any pop at all. It really is not about the process. It is about the photographer, although to some degree the subject matter will play a part as well.  With a dull subject and dull lighting, even the most talented photographer is going to struggle to produce compelling results, no matter what process he or she may use. In my opinion, the solution to such a situation is often the creative use of supplementary lighting.

While it is possible to produce compelling and realistic images using the HDR process, it can be very hard to do, since the process can be difficult to control, and, in my opinion, it is not that suitable for all kinds of subject matter and lighting conditions. Furthermore, it is quite possible to use Photoshop alone to produce images with as much pop as anyone might need. From what I have seen, the vast majority of experienced architectural and interiors photographers who are producing high-quality work for architects, interior designers, magazines, advertising companies, hotels, builders, etc., either do not use HDR, or use it only occasionally for particular situations. Where one typically finds HDR being used frequently for commercial photography is in the field of real estate, where photographers use it as an expediency to meet the requirements of assignments involving low budgets, high quantity and rapid turnaround, and where high quality is often not a primary consideration.

By the way, when I use the term HDR,  I am referring to the 32-bit, moving-point process that is the subject of Michael Freeman's book Mastering HDR Photography: Combining Technology and Artistry to Create High Dynamic Range Images.