robert829 wrote:
Thanks Robert, much appreciated! This location is a veritable photographic playground, and this particular spot could hardly have begged more for the wide angle treatment. One of the most interesting places I've been.
Just a few stacking stuff I had shot between May and June. I have tried Lightroom to batch process one file that had 200 frames on it and it's quick but the quality is just not on par with NX2, so I ended up using NX2 and let the batch processes for the 3 sets (462 frames) complete overnight. Stacking on the Helicon Focus for the flowers suprisingly didn't require any Helicon retouching - I did use Method C. The CPU legs however required some retouching in Helicon since my focus spacing is irregular, as this is one of my earlier attempts using my custom Nikon bellows focus rail.
Focusing is done on the bellows rail and camara is mounted on a custom RAM mount, so the camera sits on top of the bellows. . Focus spacing on the flowers were around 0.2 ~ 0.5mm. The Nikkor 35mm f/2 nonAi still amazes me and for these shots, they are all set to f/11 but it's tack sharp for an old lens, especially close ups and macro. The background and base used for the flowers is simply soy milk.
Earlier I said I tried to use Lightroom to batch process but I'm just disappointed with the quality. I just ran thru my mojo stuff on NX2 and it's the best raw converter for nefs. The only photoshopping I did was for the CPU legs as there are errors that Helicon Focus can't remove but no croppimg on all images. Also, it's best to buy Helicon Focus if you are really serious into focus stacking (figure that out yourself).
The flower shown is just the casual weed that grows on everyone's lawn and is around 7mm in diameter while each cpu leg is about 3mm in length. Cheers.
The Tiny Ones : Nikon D7000, Carl Zeiss Luminar 25mm f/3.5, SB28 and reflectors, custom Nikon bellows rail for stacking, RAM mount, Helicon Focus (Method B - 73 frames) CPU Legs by ReyGay, on Flickr
The Tiny Ones : Nikon D7000, Nikkor 35mm f/2 nonAi, SB28 and reflectors, custom Nikon bellows rail for stacking, RAM mount, Helicon Focus (Method C - 200 frames) Twin Flower by ReyGay, on Flickr
The Tiny Ones : Nikon D7000, Nikkor 35mm f/2 nonAi, SB28 and reflectors, custom Nikon bellows rail for stacking, RAM mount, Helicon Focus (Method C - 189 frames) Lawn Flower by ReyGay, on Flickr
