Focus Stacking in Photoshop?

santa_fe

I found an old discussion in these forums on this very subject and am wondering if anyone has had any success using Ps for this purpose??

Seems to me that as many features that Ps has, surely it is capable of accomplishing this. Would be great if Adobe would take an interest in this if it is not truly possible with the latest version.

Regards,
Phillip

santa_fe

I probably should have mentioned that I use a MAC. I know there are programs/plugins available for focus stacking, but most are PC centric.

I am not entirely sure if a focus stacking plugin even exists for Ps, but if there is, the possibility is far greater that it was created for PC's rather than MAC's.

Just want to be clear on this.

Thanks.

Lord Vetinari

There is one commercial focus stacking prog for the mac I know of- Helicon focus.

You can do focus stacking in PS however using masks and layers or as I frequently do just by using the repair tool and repair clone from the originals onto the master pic. You may need to do some resizing/rotation to align the pics properly before attempting to do this though.

Brian V.

santa_fe

Lord Vetinari wrote:

There is one commercial focus stacking prog for the mac I know of- Helicon focus.

You can do focus stacking in PS however using masks and layers or as I frequently do just by using the repair tool and repair clone from the originals onto the master pic. You may need to do some resizing/rotation to align the pics properly before attempting to do this though.

Brian V.

Hello Brian,

We chatted in the not so distant past as I PMed you from (I believe) the fredmiranda forums this past week.

I will surely give Ps a go ASAP, but I have these questions for you. Keeping focus stacking in mind:

1. What I believe I have gleaned, from the many posts of yours that I have read, it seems to me that much time is consumed aligning images up properly in the focus stacking process. If this is indeed the case, does it not make more sense to use a focusing rail to move the camera incrementally to and fro, as opposed to changing the focus? Focusing rails can be adjusted very precisely, ie, one turn CCW, then two turns CW, etc., while focusing can never be done that precisely if one's goal is to have images taken equidistant on both sides of the original focus plane. Perhaps this really does not matter in the end.

In my mind the focusing rail would eliminate a lot, if not all of the alignment and magnification issues inherent with focus adjustments, assuming wide apertures, of course. Please correct me if I have overlooked something in my thinking.

2. Now, I am really thinking out loud here, but trying to enhance the DOF using several nearly identical images in Ps via layers et al, seems to me to be a very iffy proposition. I have not had a chance to try this due to inclement weather here in Chicago, but I will today if possible. I do not have a focusing rail, but that is on order.

All of this macro stuff is a wonderful adventure for me. I am sure that you see it as such as well. It brings about much joy to the daily grind, IMHO.

I sincerely appreciate your dedication, not to mention the time you spend responding to the incessant barrage of questions that come your way.

Warm Regards,
Phillip Anthony Briles

ziggy53

Phillip,

I think you will find that "rails" do help with axial aligment and rotational issues, but you will still probably have to contend with the foreground/subject/background relationship as the focus shifts through the image plane. For still-life images in a controlled environment it will probably be an overall benefit.

For small animated creatures, you may find focus rails more trouble than benefit.

Lord Vetinari

Philip as Ziggy says- yes using a focus rail would help with focus stacking but I suspect you would only be able to use it with non-moving subjects. I don't use a tripod let alone a focus rail as I like to be very mobile when shooting. Stacking software takes care of some of the FOV differences by resizing each image as appropriate.

Focus stacking by hand in PS using the repair tool method certainly works well- I can use this in situations where the output from a stacking programme is useless. It also gives you interesting control of DOF as you don't want to necessarily stack the whole image (ie you can employ differential dof). It does take a while to get used to doing it but painting in detail into a picture is amazingly therapeutic

Brian V.

santa_fe

ziggy53 wrote:

Phillip,

I think you will find that "rails" do help with axial aligment and rotational issues, but you will still probably have to contend with the foreground/subject/background relationship as the focus shifts through the image plane. For still-life images in a controlled environment it will probably be an overall benefit.

For small animated creatures, you may find focus rails more trouble than benefit.

Ziggy,

Thank you for your insightful comments on the use of the focusing rail.

Thinking about what you have written, I cannot help but think that I have much to learn. And, nothing would be better for me than to get a shake on and get some practical field experience.

I appreciate your time and comments.

santa_fe

Lord Vetinari wrote:

Philip as Ziggy says- yes using a focus rail would help with focus stacking but I suspect you would only be able to use it with non-moving subjects. I don't use a tripod let alone a focus rail as I like to be very mobile when shooting. Stacking software takes care of some of the FOV differences by resizing each image as appropriate.

Focus stacking by hand in PS using the repair tool method certainly works well- I can use this in situations where the output from a stacking programme is useless. It also gives you interesting control of DOF as you don't want to necessarily stack the whole image (ie you can employ differential dof). It does take a while to get used to doing it but painting in detail into a picture is amazingly therapeutic

Brian V.

Brian,

I think you hit a nerve with me in that I, too, prefer to be a 'mobile macro' shooter.

Case in point: A few days back I was out in my butterfly garden when something caught my eye. There, on my wife's metal butterfly ornament was what I would describe as a, 'leaf hopper', of some sort. Gangly legs with very long light and dark segmented antennae. I quickly took a few shots, but knew I had failed. When in Lightroom, my fears were confirmed: Both images were badly underexposed and severely blurred from the very short shutter speed. Lesson learned. I should create a flash rig so I can at least have a chance at capturing these fleeting moments that we all regret missing.

I will give Ps a go today. I am not certain which 'repair' tool you are specifically referring to, but I know my way around Ps fairly well, so I should have a better grip after this.

Thank you again for your never ending support.