Focus stacking of a snowflake

Olympus Focus Stacking Example, Snowflake 2016-013

Now I have been focus stacking for a while using a pair of film lenses mounted face to face (which resulted in 3.6:1 macro so I understand it pretty well.  I recently purchased a used E-M1 and 60mm macro lens to make my life easier when shooting extreme macro.  The snowflake above is about the same macro magnification as my manual setup because I added two extension tubes (16mm and 21mm, Movo brand, with M4/3 electrical contacts) to the 60mm Olympus macro lens.  Here is what I have found out so far:

1. It is not as easy as you think!
2. Because, at this high of a magnification, the area in focus is just a sliver and any movement can ruin the whole series of shots.
3. I delete way more than I keep.
4. A tripod is a waste of effort when doing snowflakes because by the time you finally get it set the snowflake either blows away or melts.
5. I have been getting the same amount of keepers whether I used the camera's autofocus or found the start point by manual focus with a dedicated FN button to switch to manual.
6. Using the camera's autofocus is a bit tricky because it could focus on the background, while the snowflake is a millimeter above it (held in position by the fibers of the background) and the whole series is out of focus.
7. The photo above is a series of 12 exposures but I started with 30.  18 were so far out of focus that I just deleted them.  I try to start at a spot that is in front of the subject and hopefully by the end of the series I have traveled past the last bit of flake.
8. Still took over 6 hours of Photoshop for the final image.

I think I will be able to eventually get the hang of this.  For my old manual film lens setup (see below) I machined a clear acrylic tube (lens shade?, not really!) to mount on the back of the Olympus 50mm 1.4.  The other lens is a Minolta Md 85mm 1.9.  The length of the tube set me at a sweet spot for focusing with the manual setup.  I hope to do the same soon with the 60mm macro.

Simply amazing. How many snowflakes were melted in the making of this picture?

The result of your monumental effort is beautiful. I look forward to hearing more about this.

/Bill

Marvelous! I admire both the result and your dedication in achieving it.

The shot below was with the manual lens setup.  It was a stackup of 50 shots!  This was a very big snowflake.  It was shot with the E-M5 and had to kept in my jacket between shots to keep the camera warm.  The E-M1 performed flawlessly out in the cold.

I applaud your technique, dedication and stunning final result.  Not tpo mention the quarts of hot chocolate/coffee it must have taken to thaw the photographer out!!

Does the Snow Flake Union know about this?

You done a very good job on this, nice photo.

Gary

Pueblo, CO

Excellent, thanks for sharing!

Funny...

Usually at least two hours standing outside, but with warm boots, flannel lined jeans, warm jacket and gloves!

Thanks.  Not the best year for snowflakes though.  It has been plenty cold enough but the snow has been fragile.

Thanks,

I have pretty busy this last year.  I think this is the first thread I have started in quite a while.

I like your Wayne Gretzky quote!

very impressive

Thanks Gary

James A Rinner wrote:

Olympus Focus Stacking Example, Snowflake 2016-013

Wow.  The (most welcome) technical details aside, this is indeed an amazing photo. Wow.

Sincerely,
James A. Rinner

My pleasure!

Simply exquisite!

Very nice work I know what you are going through

I went a little different rout and built a bench similar to what you would think of as a microscope.

More info can be found here

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/56974730

The deck design allows me to level the flake to sensor to maximise DOF and easier to handle flake.

I would first capture the flake on a old lens filter and place it on the deck and use LV to level the flake ( a helpful hint is to use sugar or salt to pre level the deck in a warm house before hand)

My reward in finding the perfect snow flake

Insearch of the perfect flake