Macro focus stacking - step-by-step guide for PS and Zerene Stacker

[@richardmiller8912]

What I appreciate about Allen Walls, is his non-assuming attitude. He understands that not all Hobbyist’s photographers are in it for money, and they don’t have tons of money for the best equipment. He offers alternative, less expensive options for getting it done, and knows technique is the most important aspect to bring out the best photograph possible, in regards to the equipment, skill level and money of the photographer. Most videos I see are focused on having the best pro lens, cameras and making money. Thank you Allen!

[@jorgefiocchi]

Excellent Allan!!! Congratulations for your Job!!! Thank you very match for sharing! From Rosario. Argentina, my name is Jorge. I am phothographer

[@beautifulsmall]

I sat on the train for 15 min whilst helicon focus stacked 40 1200x1400 jpg, i did that 70 times , it was a ~ 12 min composite per frame, hours of work, but great results. love the work.

[@brajapk]

Congrats Allan you are doing commendable job by sharing your immense knowledge in such a simple manner. Hats off to you.

[@davidalanmedia]

Thanks Allan. This was super helpful. I shoot with a D850 as well and and a Laowa 105mm lens. It looked like you stacked from front to back of the subject and was wondering if you might also stack from side to side but it appears that wouild not be necessary as you've shown. Thanks much for the through tutorial!

[@deanwaddington2799]

Wow, you are the master.

[@leonardoleoncastano4638]

Excelent as always from Colombia

[@steinr98]

As usual, Allan, greaat video! Thans for your work!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Thank you! Glad it was helpful!

[@randylowden1902]

Very in depth tutorial. Thanks!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Cheers Randy! Appreciate the feedback!

[@plush5486]

Thank you .. very informative 😀

[@raymondfowler1954]

Another top informative tutorial. It’s just bad luck that I do not have the Luxury of Photo shop but I will see how far that I can get down the road without it. Cheers from Chook!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Thanks Raymond - you're right that Photoshop is a luxury these days but I don't know what I would do with it! I just with Adobe's Premier Pro worked half as well. Cheers!

[@dawson207]

Allan, you are amazingly kind to do all of these videos for us! I've been addicted to your channel for weeks now ;o) I've built a couple of your flash modifiers and the macro-cage (I've termed it "The Walls' Cage" lol). I am using the trial of Zerene stacker and no matter what settings I use, I get these horrible halos around my composite images. I'm using a manual rail (bidding on an auto on Ebay currently). Any idea as to what I am doing wrong? Thank you so much for all you do, you are making this quarantine bearable!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hi Dawson, sorry for my late response... there are a number of things that can cause the halo problem. Most of them are related to your lighting setup. All stacking programs do a good job when they are working with clear, well-exposed images. It all starts to fall apart when the program has to guess what is going on in areas that are defocused, poorly lit, or lacking contrast. Continuous light is more prone to this than flash. I recommend you pick a very simple subject, with a ton of contrast, and shoot a short stack. Then change something (like add a backlight, different lens, or another flash, etc) and shoot another stack. Rinse and repeat. After shooting the same subject over and over using a variety of camera settings, stacker settings, and light setups, you will quickly figure out where you halos are coming from. If you do that and are still getting disappointing results, shoot me an email and I'll help you dig a little deeper. Don't be discouraged - everybody goes through this at one time or another.

[@Fjergie]

I just discovered your channel and I’m really Enjoying the videos! One thing that I use around my house that kills wasps almost instantly is a little dish washing soap mixed with water. I just mix it up in a cup and throw it on them. They will be dead in less than a minute. Maybe that would leave less residue.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hey John... Really!? I've never heard of that. Is there a specific type/brand that works? Once you spray anything with bug spray, it's not going to photograph well. If this works, a spray bottle of the stuff would be worth keeping around. It might even help get my house cleaner!

[@Fjergie]

Allan Walls Photography Well I know Dawn works for sure. It’s the secret “Raid” doesn’t want you to know about. It works faster and it is more humane. thepestmanagement.com/does-soapy-water-kill-wasps/#How_to_Use_Soapy_Water_to_Kill_Wasps

[@michaelmckeag960]

@@AllanWallsPhotography I was skeptical, but tried this today, brought water to a boil, poured 500 ml into a graduated beaker, added 50 ml Dawn liquid detergent, once cooled to room temperature filled a spray bottle and went on the prowl. First target was a yellowjacket, a moment after being hit with a fine spray it dropped to the ground, struggled for a few seconds and expired. Next target was a house fly my wife had already tried and failed to hit with a swatter. Hit with a fine spray the fly dropped to the window sill and expired.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

@@michaelmckeag960 Hey John and Michael - I always thought that was like an old wives tale - it really works? That would be a handy addition to my "hunting" bag. Thanks!

[@paulleather6742]

Awesome. Keep up the good work, very informative

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Thanks Paul!

[@michaelmckeag960]

Allan, I've been binge watching your videos since discovering your channel recently. In this video I was particularly interested in seeing what you looked for in adjusting the DMap threshold and whether you would use DMap or PMax as the retouching basis. As you proceeded with retouching I thought you had selected DMap as the basis (as I expected you most likely would have), but as you narrated the retouching you referred to PMax as the basis repeatedly. This sent me back to "frame peeping" the video. Sure enough, at 23:09 Dmap was selected when you clicked Start Retouching. When you have an opportunity, expanding on the considerations that go into choosing Dmap vs. PMax as the retouching basis may be helpful for many. Its a crucial juncture in the process. By the way, I came away from this video with a better understanding of what to look for in adjusting DMap threshold. Thanks.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Whoops! Thanks Michael. Don't know how I missed that in the edit. I always run both algorithms and usually, but not always, retouch the the depth map output. But I've been surprised a few times and found the Pmax to be a better base. I'm real excited about the new slabbing capability - it works pretty well and I see it saving me loads of time in the future!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hey Michael, me again! Sorry, I missed the last part of your comment, about the Zerene workflow. I am in the process of putting together a video that looks at the new "slabbing" feature of the latest Zerene update. When I do that video, I will address the issues you raised in your comment - they will fit perfectly into that video! Thanks, Allan

[@luishecheverym56]

Excelente video muy profesional, gracias por compartir sus conocimientos

[@erkanyurt2049]

Thank you so much

[@vytautasslenderis2702]

Why didn't you bend the pin and pierced it from behind the wasp? You would not have to go through the difficulty of removing it in front of the leg.

[@onegreenev]

Im using Affinity Photo for photo stacking. Zerene is good but I like Affinity much better.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hi Pete. Stacking software is something we all seem to have a loyalty to! I have used PS, Affinity, Zerene, Helicon and a couple of others, and they are all mostly excellent. The main reason I settled on Zerene was the best-in-class retouch functionality. It is invaluable for very detailed 100+ stacks. But several people have told me about how much they like Affinity, so I'm going to give it another try. Thanks for the tip. Allan

[@steinr98]

Allan wall first video macro

[@waynemartin5247]

Thank for video, but I'm slightly confused as to why exactly did you bothered with Lightroom? Photoshop can import all files as layers with ease (File - Scripts)

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

I do most of my editing and all of my file management in LR. It has a very sophisticated catalog system that allows me to access images, or stacks of images, instantly. I keep everything there and pass the work out to PS, Premiere Pro, Zerene Stacker, and whatever other apps I need to use, while keeping the originals archived and organized in LR. Photoshop is one of my very favorite tools, but it isn't made to manage large image collections. When I export to PS from LR (individually, in groups, or as layers) it send a copy to PS, not the original. If I pulled images directly in to PS, the editing would become destructive. LR prevents that by keeping the original images.

[@waynemartin5247]

@@AllanWallsPhotography I'm only fairly new to stacking so I appreciate your videos and comments they help me a lot, I still have many to go through. I have another question. Is it possible to install a Worm Geared Motor DC 12V - 5rpm to that cheap eBay slider and shoot in 4k video so I can upload the video as layers?

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

@@waynemartin5247 I have experimented with several different motorized sliders, and they all seem to have the same problems. It is hard to get really smooth motion on cheap sliders, but not impossible. I have been disappointed using DC motors for this particular application. I have found that a rotary encoder-controlled stepping motor is a more versatile and predictable solution, with more torque for heavier camera rigs, and smoother motion. If you decide to try the geared 12 V DC motor, please let me know how that works out, I'm sure I was doing it wrong.

[@davidhefner5668]

I've seen motors on rails. Are they on timers and synchronized with the camera shutter so you dont have to move dials manually?

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Actually, the entire operation of positioning the camera, pausing, releasing the shutter, and advancing again, is controlled by a microprocessor. You can focus stack manually, automatically, or something in between. I have several recent videos dealing with all these techniques.

[@davidhefner5668]

I was really just wondering. At this point probably costs more than I would want to spend. Although it would make the job easier I strongly feel I must do it the hard way and suffer first. Now I understand a little better about stacking and do touch-ups. PhotoShop....now that is going to be a must. One more thing. When I was a kid I captured a huge grasshopper. I took it inside the house and something very strange began to happen. While holding it between my fingers I noticed tiny maggots coming out from behind its head. Is this a natural thing? I thought they might be grasshopper larvae or something. Anyway....I haven't give it much further thought until now. Or maybe a fly landed on its head and laid eggs. It would have been great to photograph.

[@ilanrosen4760]

you lost me when you said you kill your poor subject This is really a very bad method