Helicon Focus
Helicon Focus enables you to achieve infinite focus throughout the whole photograph by using a series of images with overlapping focal ranges. It is especially suited to macro photography where Depth of Field (DoF) is often very limited and can produce some stunning images. The only drawbacks are the extra time involved in capturing the initial images and the difficulty of dealing with any movement that takes place within the image from one frame to the next.
Helicon Focus is highly automated software. It automatically adjusts and resizes images; it places no limitation on image resolution; and it processes an unlimited number of images in the stack. There is also support for dust mapping to remove black marks from the resulting images.
There are several editions: Helicon Focus Lite (the basic version); Helicon Focus Pro (advanced version, with additional features such as a retouching brush and 2D micropanoramas); and Helicon Focus Pro X64 (premium version, to overcome the 3Gb address space limitation for Windows). Lite is available on a 30 day evaluation.
Comment
Because depth of field is often severely limited in close-up photography, there is a genuine need for this type of software. Using it is reasonably easy, but taking the pictures can be much more demanding. Special equipment such as the Manfrotto macro rail can help you advance the camera by tiny increments (1.25mm for every full turn of the crank).
Tech info
- OS: Windows XP onward; Mac OS X
- Price level: (Lite) $115; (Pro edition) approx. $200; (Pro X64) $250
Helicon Soft
Based in Kharkov, Ukraine, Helicon Soft Ltd. has established itself as a developer of specialist software for macro and micro photography. It also offers Helicon Filter, a complete photo editing solution, and the image management program Helicon Photo Safe.
From the same vendor:
- Helicon Filter
- Helicon Photo Safe
- Helicon Remote
©trl