Macro Focus Stacking – An Affordable Solution!

Posted on April 16, 2013

Nature’s Art – Nautilus Shells
5DMKIII, 100mmL macro, f/8, (17) frames, bracketed focus using Promote Control, 100 ISO, blended using Helicon Focus Pro software

I was recently contacted by a company out of Houston, Texas inquiring if I would be interested in trying a new product that allows a multitude of overrides for my camera – starting with the ability to do HDR bracketing at various stop-intervals up to 45 frames! Being somewhat of gadget/software freak, I immediately replied “yes!”

This past week the unit arrive along with all the needed cords, cables and attachments. As with any new piece of technology, I went to the company’s website Promote Systems and downloaded the latest firmware update. To my surprise, there were actually more features added to this unit including the ability to automatically bracket focus the lens for advanced focus stacking! Immediately I had thought of some applications for macro focus – something that is nearly impossible to do by manually focusing the lens.

Screen Shot 2013-04-15 at 9.15.06 AM

Before I discuss how I used this amazing product to created macro focus-stacked images, let me mention some of the other techniques that Promote Control will control:

* High Dynamic Range (bracketing up to 45 exposures)

* Bulb HDR

* Bulb Ramping (allows for time-lapse photography where light levels transition (from sunset to night)

* Manual Shutter Hold

* Hyperfocal Calculator

* Time Lapse

I need to preface that I am just getting used to working with Promote Control and will be writing more as I have the chance to explore and test all its features.

What I can discuss is my impressions for using this product for focus-stacking. For those of you new to this technique, focus-stacking is a method of bracketing various focus points throughout a scene and allowing a software such as Helicon Focus to blend into one sharp seamless image.

For the image leading off this article, I simply entered the focus-stacking mode by cycling through the Mode button. Once there, I attached the unit to my camera via a USB cable and set a range of focus (Small, Medium, or Large – I recommend small for macro). For the above image, I chose Medium (in the future, I will use Small, which allows smaller focus increments). I focused on the foreground shells, then by pressing the top ” – ” button, the unit automatically focused through to the far shell, while in the process determining the number of frames needed for the stacking to work. For this image, it took 17 frames. In the Small mode, it would have needed 53 frames. Next, I simply pressed the Start button and allowed Promote Control to do its thing. NOTE – make sure to either turn off image review or set for a maximum of 2 seconds. I had mine set to 4 seconds and the unit stayed fixed on the first focus. Once I discovered my mistake, I turned off image review and the unit worked flawlessly!

Now the game was on! My next thought was to shoot down on a Nautilus Shell. The form of the shell itself has fascinated naturalists, mathematicians and physicists for years. The spirally coiled, chambered shell is perfectly proportioned mathematically.

With this extreme macro, had I focused on the tip of the shell, this would have been the result, even at f/16 (note, this is a RAW file with no processing):

Canon 5DMKIII, 100mmL macro, f/16, 10 seconds, 100 ISO

For my focus stacking, I set my aperture to f/8 (in turn reducing my shutter speed from 10 seconds to 2.5 seconds). Similar to the first image, I focused on the tip of the shell, then allowed the Promote Control unit to determine the number of frames needed to adequately carry focus throughout the shell.

Canon 5DMKIII, 100mmL macro @ f/8, (26) bracketed focus frames using Promote Control, ISO 100, images blended using Helicon Focus Pro software

For my last test, I decided to cut a rose from my wife’s garden. Here I used just the 100mmL macro at f/7.1. Here is the first frame of the sequence (this is a RAW images with no processing):

Canon 5DMKIII, 100mmL @ f7.1, 1.5 seconds, ISO 100

The resulting image did indeed combine 32 frames into a singular sharp image (from foreground petal to background petal), but I felt the image would be better served with a gradual drop-off of focus, this is easy to accomplish in Helicon Focus by simply deselecting layers you do not want sharp. I ended up deselecting the final (9) frames to achieve this look:

Canon 5DMKIII, 100mmL macro @ f/7.1, 1.5 seconds, (23) frames of bracketed focus using Promote Control blended using Helicon Focus Pro software, processed as RAW file in Adobe Camera RAW and finished in PSCS6 using Nik DFine, CEP-4, Viveza 2 and Nik Sharpener Pro 3 software

2013 Photo Workshops

6th Annual Springtime in Big Sur and the Monterey Peninsula – Wildflowers, Misty Fog and Headland Color – May 6-9, 2013 (WORKSHOP SOLD OUT – WAITING LIST ONLY)

4th Annual Kauai Workshop – Garden Isle and Tropical Paradise – June 21-25, 2013 (4 spots left)

1st Annual Grand Canyon Monsoon and Lightning Photo Workshop – August 19 – 23, 2013 (co-taught with Gary Hart) (WORKSHOP SOLD OUT :: WAITING LIST ONLY)

2nd Annual Fall Color in Grand Teton National Park – September 28 – October 2, 2013 (WORKSHOP SOLD OUT :: WAITING LIST ONLY)

2nd Annual Fall Color in Grand Teton National Park – October 2 – October 6, 2013 (WORKSHOP SOLD OUT :: WAITING LIST ONLY)

5th Annual Arches/Canyonlands National Parks – Full Moon Over Red Rock, Arches and Canyons – October 15-19, 2013 (3 spots left)

3rd Annual Bryce/Zion National Parks – Hoodoos and Fall Color – November 4-8, 2013 (Hurry 1 spot left)

2014 Photo Workshops

5th Annual Magic Light, Moonlight, and Pfeiffer Arch Workshop – Winter in Big Sur and the Monterey Peninsula – January 15-18, 2014

6th Annual Northern Arizona Workshop – Grand Canyon (full moon), Page (Horseshoe Bend and Upper Antelope Canyon) and Sedona – March 14-18, 2014 (8 spots remaining)

6th Annual Northern Arizona Workshop – Grand Canyon (full moon), Page (Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon) and Sedona – March 14-18, 2014