Struggling with dynamic range

[englishpremier]

I'm currently using a Nikon D50, and finding that the dynamic range of the camera is becoming a real pain.

It's most evident on nice sunny days.

For basic landscape shots I can use a GND filter, but when taking shots with foreground objects in but also showing some sky/landscape that's impossible.

Here's an unprocessed example of what i'm talking about.

Obviously I can do some work on this example in processing, but are there tips, tricks or skills I should at the time of capture?

 

[englishpremier]

I figured taking three images, e.g. light medium and dark might be the way to go, but then of course how would you go about merging them? If the camera is handheld they will all be slightly different.

I don't really like HDR.

Used with a flash the D50 has a max shutter speed of 500. A bright sky often needs 4000, so would be horribly over exposed.