![]() ![]() Highlight all of them by clicking on the first image, then holding down the shift key and clicking on the last image, then click ‘OK’: The files will now appear in the Photomerge box.Once you have selected your images, click on ‘OK’: Click on ‘Browse’ and select your set of images.When the Photomerge box opens remove the tick on the ‘Blend images together’ box:.Open up CS6 and click on ‘File’, scroll down to ‘Automate’, click on ‘Photomerge’:.Since I’ve only used CS6 for focus stacking I’ll run down the basic work flow for you. Many photo processing software products have an image stacking capability. As it is often said…patience is a virtue! 2) Processing your images If you look closely you will see that I missed a few leaves on the tree which are visible in this stacked focus sample. I took a total of 13 exposures with my D800 at f/8 to make the focus stacked image above. It is important to try and ensure that you’ve taken exposures all around the outside edges of your macro subject and at various points on the inside of your composition otherwise you could end up with some soft, out-of-focus areas in your composite image. NOTE: when doing macro focus stacking you should expect that CS6 may leave some unwanted artifacts around the outside edges of your finished, composite image so it’s important to allow some cropping room with your original set of images. If your camera has the capability to focus from the rear touch screen you can simply touch various points on the image to reset focus and get your set of exposures in that manner. ![]() Other folks like to focus on fewer areas of their subject, but take multiple shots from those specific focus points at different apertures…say f/5.6, f/8 and f/11. Some people set their camera for a particular f-stop like f/5.6 or f/8 where their lens may be at its maximum sharpness, then manually focus on different parts of their macro subject without moving their camera or tripod. You will need to capture a sufficient range of exposures to ensure that all surfaces of your macro subject are in focus on at least one of your shots. If you’re shooting with a DSLR using the ‘Mup’ (mirror up) setting is also recommended to avoid camera shake caused by mirror movement. Using the shutter delay setting on your camera or a shutter release is recommended. You will need a good, stable tripod and a solid ball head or pistol grip to try and ensure no movement of your camera between shots. There’s no magic to this…it’s more of a trial and error process, and after we’ve made enough mistakes at it…we eventually call it ‘experience’. On the other hand, if you’re putting together a macro image of a fairly wide/deep object and using a full frame camera, you may have to take 20 exposures or more to get everything in the scene captured in focus by at least one of your shots. If you’re using focus stacking to extend the apparent depth-of-field with a landscape scene you may only have to take three exposures, each focused on different parts of the scene….foreground, mid-ground, and background. It also takes considerable skill and experience, both behind the camera and in post processing.įor us mere mortals, having a good tripod and head, a decent camera and macro lens, and software like CS6 is enough to do some basic macro focus stacking and have a lot of fun. When used for macro photography and done at a professional level, focus stacking is a precise and exacting process that can require very specialized equipment like an automated focus stacking macro rail and would need to be done in a highly controlled studio setting. Obviously for focus stacking to work your subject must be stationary. Focus stacking is most commonly used with macro and landscape photography where it may be critical that the image is pin-sharp from the top to the bottom of the frame. NIKON D800 + 105mm f/2.8 105mm, ISO 50, 1/25, f/8.0įocus stacking is a technique that can be beneficial when a photographer wants to extend the apparent depth-of-field of an image, and also wants to avoid the loss of image sharpness that can result from the effects of diffraction when using an increased f-stop. It’s far from perfect, but it does represent a typical result that most hobbyists can easily achieve. It was composed from 11 separate exposures. The following image is a quick focus stacking example I put together for this article. To put this article in proper context, I’ve never used focus stacking for any of my client work, and I don’t profess to be an expert at the technique…but I have experimented with it. ![]() For most people who just want to have some fun with their photography and have another ‘trick up their sleeve’ focus stacking can be an interesting technique to explore. ![]()
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