The fascinating images created through focus stacking are often described as “three-dimensional,” “hyperreal,” or “extraordinary.” Focus-stacked images appear razor sharp with a textural quality that’s usually impossible to capture in any other way. And, with the latest camera technology, focus stacking has become an extremely easy way to create amazing images.
Focus stacking is the process of capturing a series of images all focused on a different part of the subject and then merging them together to create a single image that is precisely sharp—anywhere you want exact focus.
Focus stacking can be accomplished in several ways, but the easiest is when all of the captures are made automatically. With the press of a button, many recent camera models can quickly capture individual frames while automatically adjusting the focus to create the stack of captures that will be used for the final image.
What’s the difference between focus stacking and depth of field?
Focus stacking uses multiple images that are each precisely focused on a different part of the subject, and then using software, blends the captures together so that the final image is perfectly sharp. This is very different from the concept of depth of field because rather than a single point of focus combined with the perceived focus obtained with depth of field, focus stacking delivers actual focus—everywhere you want it! Even the smallest f/stop on a lens would not deliver anywhere near the depth of focus and sharpness obtainable with focus stacking. By comparison, a single capture made at even the smallest lens aperture will only produce a single area that’s precisely focused
Something else to know about using a lens at a minimum aperture to obtain depth of field is that lenses don’t perform at their best when set to their smallest f/stops. So, if you’re seeking to have the important parts of your subject tack sharp, using focus stacking gives you the best of all possibilities: Complete focus throughout the important parts of the frame, and because you’ll be working closer to the optimum aperture of the lens, you’ll also be getting the absolute highest lens performance you can attain.
All you need for successful focus stacking is a tripod, a recent camera and lens, and a subject that remains still until all the captures are made. The process begins by focusing on the nearest part of the subject that you wish to have in complete focus. Then, using a camera like the Nikon Z 8, or any other model that has focus stacking capability, setting the camera to automatically make a series of images until every part of of the subject has been captured in focus from near to far. I capture everything in the RAW format and each file is around 50 MB in size. Amazingly, because of the write speed of a Delkin Black CF Express cards, 100 captures usually takes less than a minute!
Focus stacking truly makes what used to be impossible, possible. It’s a way to capture subjects where you can completely control what’s in focus, what’s not in focus, and where both begin and end. Focus stacking will help you turn nearly any subject—from flowers to butterflies to water droplets—into the sharpest images you’ve ever seen.
Joey Terrill is a photographer for clients that include American Express, Coca-Cola, Disney, Golf Digest, Major League Baseball, Nikon, Red Bull and Sports Illustrated. His career has included a range of specialties including advertising and corporate photography, architecture and interior design, golf landscapes, and editorial portraiture.
But it’s the rich potential within macro photography that has always been a deep fascination. Using his cameras and lenses to magnify and explore, he experiments with unusual subjects, a variety of liquids, exotic flowers, and then shapes what he discovers with careful illumination. His macro studio is dedicated to exploring new possibilities.
Joey presents at seminars and workshops including the Summit Series, PhotoPlus Expo, WPPI, Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar, UPAA Symposium, Popular Photography Mentor Series, Imaging USA, BILD Expo, Consumer Electronics Show, World in Focus, and the prestigious Alexia Workshop at Syracuse University.
Visit: https://www.joeyterrill.com/index
