Brushing up: spring macros: stacking/focusing rail

signgrap wrote:I shoot RAW and convert to 16 bit TIFF's. This give you the best color and subtle detail.

I am learning Dick, so be patient

So I guess I will just go ahead and post process them in whatever I want (correct?), probably PS and output 16-bit TIFF's.  I am ok with this, as I am a purist too.  It is tough for us guys you know.

I use a focusing rail as I find it much easier to get consistent results which gives me stacks that are evenly spaced between frames, which I find very hard to do when you adjust focus to stack.

This above phrase I underlined is an interesting observation you've made.   Do you have a rail brand/model you recommend?  

The software I use is Zerene Stacker. Easy to use with great results.

I do not know about Zerene.  I know everybody is high on it, and I do like the interaction I have had with the guy who created it.....good attitude he has.  But my results have sometimes looked like they were a bad VR experience, you know..... maybe blurry or something like multiple exposures.  Seems that maybe they do not mesh or align perfectly.  But I allow that this was probably due to my poor technique to that point.   So, when I started to rent PS (a little over $10 a month), I switched to the stacking mechanism in PS and the results were like hitting a grand slam...for me anyway ....albeit via JPEGs.  

Does Zerene offer its use in two computers?  I have it in my old defunct Windows PC and not in this Macbook pro.  Guess I should contact him to see if I can have a copy downloaded to this machine.     

signgrap wrote:You can't beat RRS focusing rail but it is pricey. RRS makes a number of different models with a range of prices. I use an Adorama focusing rail that I got many years ago in the 80's. Less than $80 then but I think they still might sell something similar but made by a different company now.

To get good results I find a good tripod and a focusing rail are a must to get good results when focus stacking. Focus stacking is like working with a large format camera, you take your time and carefully plan you composition and lighting as you want the end product to be worth the time you spend taking the image.

Yes, I plan on taking a lot of time on each end product.  Now I need to follow through with a couple of images this spring/summer.

Zerene does allow use on multiple computer - a very different company from Adobe. I believe that PS's latest stacking program works reasonable well but I have never used it personally so I can't verify this from personal experience.

Mark Picard wrote:I haven't used a rail - I just focus (using the live view mode) on what I want in focus in the FG, then take a series of shots by changing the lens focus heading away from the camera until I reach the last area I want in focus. I don't think it matters if all the shots are evenly spaced or not. You can take as many as you want. I've only used PS so far, not a specialized program. I don't do enough of this type of photography to warrant getting a special program. I shoot wide open to control the DOF I need. Here's one I did where the BG was so close I had to stack in order to keep the flowers separated from the BG. Otherwise lots of the distracting BG would ruin the shot due to a wide

depth of field that you'd get from F11-32, for example. This was at F4 and I took about 8 shots if I remember correctly. These were taken up here in Maine where we have lots of White Ladyslippers. There are 13 in this bunch, my personal record for the number in one clump! 

Mark Picard wrote:I can 't see any reason that you would have to take 30 images to achieve your desired stack Robert. I personally have never gone above a dozen. Just think if you were shooting at, say, F4 and got a half inch of DOF and you needed to cover 6 inches to achieve sharp focus on your subject/subjects, you would need to take 12 images. I also stack them in RAW format, as I never shoot jpegs in camera. Of course, all that is dependent on the megs of your particular camera as to how long the process takes in the computer, along with the processing power of your computer. 

And on a side note - every lens, including macros, can focus out to infinity,, so you never run out of focus distance away from the lens (unless you're using extension tubes) using just the lens with no rail or bellows. Therefore you can't run out of the correct focus location in relationship to the camera/lens using just the stationary lens location.  

Steve Cirone wrote:This is the whole Stackshot system.  It automatically takes the shots after you set the a to z parameters and tell it how much of a gap between images.  I was near buying it a year ago when I decided instead to get a Canon 7 D II and the new 100-400II which left me broke.

Mark Picard wrote:Robert - I use a highly scientific procedure (NOT!) ) Starting at the closest in focus subject spot you choose, just turn the focus a bit outwards each frame until you end up reaching the last spot you want to be in focus as the last shot. Live view will show you those increments quite well (blown up large on the camera's monitor screen during exposures. If you don't like live view, use your green conformation light and move your focus point around to your subjects spots that you want sharp. If it's a single flower you would need a bit less number of frames compared to say a bunch of 10 flowers. If you're real close to, say, an caterpillar at an angle, and you're shooting at a 1:1 ratio you will need several more images stacked than that single flower requires as an example. Thankfully, your monitor or your live view will show you all this beforehand. The live view method would come in handy if you were using extension tubes too. I find that every single subject will have it's own set of visual/camera setup problems, but by being able to see them in the camera's monitor as you go along really helps simplify the procedure. 

Blck-shouldered Kite wrote:   But what is this "green conformation light" ?    Are you talking about your D3S Mark ?