Lichen-In-Camera Image Stacking-Easy and lots of fun

Nice captures

Dale

Chris DC wrote:

I am really enjoying the in-camera image stacking feature of the newer Olympus camera. Paired with the 60mm macro lens, taking such images is a breeze. Here I used a tripod and took 15 images. The camera produces the stacked image in less than ten seconds:

British Soldier Lichen. 15 image in-camera stacked image.

Cup lichen. In camera stack of 15 images

I hope you enjoy these!

CDC

I like #2 best

i’m curious about in camera stacking, it looks so useful, sometimes a stack doesn’t turn out right so this almost instant feedback must be an advantage

have you tried stacking the images afterwards in eg helicon to see if it’s better ?

Chris DC wrote:

Hi Jim

i had the very same curiosity. I have done both in camera and on-computer stacking several times and gotten very comparable results.

I find the in camera method very effective in refining composition and figuring out the best aperture and such.

Thats exactly the problem i was trying to solve Chris. Without in camera stacking when i take a stack i wonder what it will eventually look like, so i adjust something and take another stack (several times usually), then i sit with the pc for ages processing and comparing and eventually choose  one over the others. My next camera will definitely have that.

I use Olympus workspace to stack on a computer.

Interestingly, the Olympus software won’t stack images produced by my Sigma FP.

CDC

I like the images.  I would like more detail.  Have you tried starting at different focus start points and extra lighting?

Nice, and lots of fun. I've been in camera focus stacking with Olympus since about 2016 or 2017. Currently, I use either the EM-1 II or EM1-X and 60 macro with similar results; although the stabilization of the EM-1X can allow it to be used handheld with reasonable bracing.

Mostly, though, in macro I use ICFS and a tripod because while stability is not an issue, the precise focal range is and any motion by me changes the focus point and range of the image. Outside of macro I don't need a tripod at all.

I sometimes use a Raynox 250 for greater magnification and sometimes 26mm of Kenko extension tubes, but find that the extension tubes are hard to use without a very stable focusing rail - which starts to get to be a heavy rig.

I currently have images of a few hundred mosses and a growing collection of lichen images also.

What a wonderful way to see into a world well beyond our eyes. I've done two hikes this week just to shoot mosses.

Chris DC wrote:

Definitely a handy feature!

you can also try differing focus spots and this speeds choices for later stacking.

I typically shoot 4-6 sets with at least a couple of them with a slightly different range of focus, because one often does not know what will look best. I also use a 2 second self timer to assure stability.

As to quality, the ICFS are very good though it may be that a larger set of bracketed images may yield slightly better results, but is more work if you shoot lots of images. Sometimes I get ghosting on parts of the images that are just outside of the precise focus range. I believe those come from the position of the lenses as the focus is changed in a stack. Mostly, though the images are very good. Mosses are tough if not set against some background as moss on moss images don't have much for the camera to obtain an image through subject diffentiation - almost no color or contrast differentiation.

Richard Dutton wrote:

Really nice images. Good to see these in camera stack example from Oly. Very useful in the field when you want to do things quickly rather than messing around with a rail.

At the moment I do use other techniques to generate stacks outside but they do not give clean results in Helicon / Zerene.

Unfortunately my Z6, which has in camera stacking, won't stack with my preferred macro - a Tamron SP90 which I use on DSLRs and it doesn't either with ad hoc added tubes and achromats added to a Z lens.

I might try with m43 instead having seen your post - maybe get a em10.2 which has some in camera stacking functionality.

If you are just trying this out I would get a used EM-1 II; it and my EM-1X get substantially the same images, though I prefer the functionality of the EM-1X. The latter is not a small camera but has great functionality and ergonomics.

cheers

Richard