Focus stacking/exposure stacking

DanielB

okay, so i love doing macros, and now more often alot of landscapes, but everytime i go to do a landscape thats say, at sunset, i have to do 2 exposures, one for the sky, and one for the foreground. i know an graduated ND filter could do the samething but i don't have any and i'm kinda broke from my recent purchases of a flash and the 70-200... So are there any programs you know that can easily focus stack and/or exposure stacking so i don't have to erase/blend parts of one layer to make it go over another layer:dunno cause thats the technique i used on this photo, http://StandOutphoto.smugmug.com/photos/51631658-M.jpg and i wish it would have come out better *not the top of the trees and such

thanks,

Daniel

DanielB

anyone

Shay Stephens

You can try using the merge to HDR feature in photoshop. But really, doing it yourself manually is the cheap solution and easiest to implement. The skills learned in exposure blending are worth their weight in gold and far outweigh the inconvenience in my view.

Automatic programs don't necessarily produce better results, they are just easier to use.

DanielB

Shay Stephens wrote:

You can try using the merge to HDR feature in photoshop. But really, doing it yourself manually is the cheap solution and easiest to implement. The skills learned in exposure blending are worth their weight in gold and far outweigh the inconvenience in my view.

Automatic programs don't necessarily produce better results, they are just easier to use.

any ideas on how i could do the image i put above any better? the treeline and the top of that main tree has been buggin me

DavidTO

Shay Stephens wrote:

Automatic programs don't necessarily produce better results, they are just easier to use.

True. Yet, Fred Miranda has an exposure blending action, and Lord Vetinari has a focus stacking app he uses.

DanielB

DavidTO wrote:

True. Yet, Fred Miranda has an exposure blending action, and Lord Vetinari has a focus stacking app he uses.

speaking of which, does anyone know if FM's actions are any good? i've been tempted by a few of them....

Shay Stephens

Looks fine to me, but I don't know what the individual frames look like.

DanielB wrote:

any ideas on how i could do the image i put above any better? the treeline and the top of that main tree has been buggin me

Frost

Photo Acute does work, FREE trial
You might try Photo Acute Studio. Take a peek at this link at the second example of the Church interior. First shot is a well exposed window with stained glass, but all the rest is dark, and way underexposed. Then the second pic is the interior well defined and lit, but now the window is all washed out with too much exposure. 3rd picture shows both window AND the interior well in synch with each other for exposure. Like I said, it's not too bad a program and there is a free trial for the time being.

Link is at : http://www.photoacute.com/studio/index.html

David_S85

Manual is best way to go
I hate many of the automated tools that do for you what isn't very difficult in the first place. They teach you (almost) nothing about proper workflow and technique. Exposure blending can be done several ways, to achieve different results.

Daniel, have you read this tutorial yet?