My first attempt at a stack. Going to try more as time permits.
D7000 w/Nikkor 28-105w/Cokin P Close up +1
F8, 1/200, ISO 100
Studio strobes for lighting
Manual focus. (See comments in gallery for this photo for why)

This was 9 shots taken walking the focus through the subject to get the different areas of the subject in focus, then combined in CS5 to make this final image.

Mike G.

Looks good but as you said, there area couple OOF areas due to holes in the stack. I like the overall photo comp, sharpness, lighting, etc.

Regards,
Wasil

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

Hi Mike,

I'm looking at the OOF "holes" and wondering if part of the problem is also due to DOF. You're at f8, and the DOF at f8 and this magnification would be pretty shallow. The stacked coins in the fg are at a steeper shooting angle than those further back. At f8 with the focus on the upper penny there may not be enough DOF to get everything sharp on the lower coins even if you took a narrow enough slice to get the upper penny completely sharp. Can't say for sure but it looks like the lower coins are softer than the upper penny probably due to DOF.

Just a thought.

John

This was 9 shots, fairly evenly spaced for focus, and that's where I think the problem lies. (Should have been more, like 12-15.) This was also my FIRST attempt at this technique, which was also handicapped by my first attempt shooting with a hard tether to my tablet. (Tablet used to frame, focus and take the shots.)

So, in all honesty this was a collection of a few firsts, combined.

The software I used didn't allow the fous to be shifted between shots. You focused the shot, took it, moved the focus, and in auto focus it would refocus on your first focus point, take the next shot, etc.... 27 shot stack all focused on the same point in space. So I had to manually focus each shot in this stack.

Since this shot, I've found an android app from Helicon that is in beta. This app does stacks, hdr and a few other tricks. (More coming even as I type!) The Helicon app can compute the total number of shots needed for the stack, pause for flash recycle, and take each photo, adjusting the focus from one shot to the next, for the complete subject. Supposedly it will also work the same way/method for hdr's.

This is currently in beta and supports almost every Nikon with live view. (Might be some missing, but you could help fill in the blanks!) This is the link to their software in the Android Market: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.HeliconSoft.HeliconRemote2

This was mainly taken to test the waters. (Of focus stacking, Android tethering, etc.) Posted because, for a first(s) was a fairly good and successfully test. I expect to take many more, and will enjoy posting them for additional feedback!

Thanks for the comments/suggestions!

Mike G.

I have a couple questions for you.

First, I have the exact camera/lens setup and I am wondering how expensive the Cokin is, and are you happy with how it performs? Would you suggest it as a viable alternative to a true macro lens?

Second, which tablet are you using? I have a Nook Tablet, which runs Android 1.4.2. Would this work like your tablet?

I have an opportunity to do some gem photography for a coworker and we are considering a joint venture in selling his gems on EBay.

Thanks and I hope my first attempt comes out as well as yours.

George

I think I spent under $25 US off eBay for the close up +1 and maybe another $10-$15 for the holder/adapter for this lens. I have several other Cokin filters so have adapters for all my lenses.

I honestly do NOT know if the software I used on my tablet will work on yours. All I can suggest is to try it. I know you will need a USB port to connect to the camera. I'm not sure if yours has the right connection. You will need to try it.

My tablet is a Toshiba Thrive 10" running honeycomb. Version 3 and alot of numbers behind... I have both a USB in (from camera) and USB out. (To computer.)

I have the Nikon R1 on it's way now. I hope tomorrow. I'll be trying some more stacks when i can get it in my grubbies. In fact, might try to "redo" this first shot, see if I can get rid of the few holes I have in this shot with a new one.

Hope I helped. If I can help more, pm me.

Mike G.

I highly doubt my Nook will work with that. I only have one mini USB port, and running Android 1.4.2. Oh well.

I had an R1C1 a few months ago. I found I hardly used it, so I sold it. It's a nice unit though. I am finding a softbox works pretty well for the type of closeups I will be doing, plus I have a light tent. I am going to try the 28-105 as is and see what I can do with it before spending any more money. I know I was pretty impressed with it in the past. I am considering an AI 50mm micro if I need a true macro lens. Decent units can be found for under $200 used.

Thanks for the info and looking forward to seeing your work.

George