Helicon Focus User Guide

The Ultimate Helicon Focus User Guide: Mastering Macro and Micro Photography Stacking

Helicon Focus is the industry-standard software for focus stacking. Whether you are a macro photographer battling the shallow depth of field of a 5:1 lens, a jeweler capturing a diamond’s intricate facets, or a museum curator digitizing historical artifacts, Helicon Focus is the tool that turns a series of partial-sharpness images into a single, pin-sharp masterpiece.

3. The User Interface (UI) Walkthrough

When you open Helicon Focus, you are greeted by a four-panel layout:

Method C (Pyramid) – The Professional’s Choice

• Best for: Insects, feathers, circuit boards, rough surfaces.
• How it works: Uses a multi-scale pyramid algorithm. It is the slowest method but the most accurate for preserving fine textures (like tiny hairs on a fly's eye).
• Settings: Keep "Radius" at default (4). Use "Smoothing" at 2-4 to soften digital noise without killing detail.

Advanced Tip: Use the "Show mask" overlay to see exactly where each pixel is being sourced from. Red areas = from source image A; Green = source B.

5. Output & Retouching (Crucial Step)

After rendering, you’ll have a composite. Rarely perfect – use Retouching:

• Stacking Mode: This parameter determines how the images will be stacked. You can choose from several modes, including Default, Advanced, and Manual.
• Image Alignment: This parameter allows you to adjust the alignment of the images. You can choose from several alignment modes, including Auto, Manual, and Advanced.
• Depth Map: This parameter allows you to adjust the depth map of the stacked image.

The typical workflow in Helicon Focus involves the following steps:

Helicon Focus is the industry standard for "focus stacking"—a technique that blends multiple images taken at different focus distances into one tack-sharp photograph. This guide will walk you through the workflow from import to final export. 1. Preparing Your Source Images

Loading Images into Helicon Focus