Photo Stacking PSP 2023 Help Needed

[jamessveta]

Hello,
I have PSP 2023 and I have been trying to use the focus stacking feature without any success. I will explain what I'm doing and how it turns out. I follow the directions given by the PSP tutorial. I add the photos that I wish to stack together and after the stacking process is complete the image I get is a zoomed-in image of a small part of the photo. The images I am using are all Canon CR3 RAW photos. Do they have to be in a different format? All photos were taken on a tripod so each image is identical except for different focus points. Any help on this would be much appreciated. Thank You
James

[Jean-Luc]

From my testing, I have found the following.
The best result is obtained when photos are processed in the order they were shot and the out-of-focus is progressive.
If the order is not possible, try to select the photos with an increasingly out-of-focus state.

[jamessveta]

Hello,
What I found was that I was not able to use RAW files. Once I saved the RAW files as JPEGS and tried it again it worked but the resulting photo was out of alignment. I did not see a feature to align the photos. The reason I upgraded to the 2023 version was because of this feature. The information that Paintshop gives is rather vague and I haven't found any information on the internet from anyone who has used this feature. It looks like Corel needs to do more work on this feature. I'm disappointed and I will be looking for dedicated software for focus stacking.

[Andy2011]

I haven't got PSP 2023 with stacking - just PSP 2020 and I don't think I will be 'upgrading' any time sooon. Whilst it doesn't feel quite right to recommend another piece of software on this forum, I can share my experience of focus stacking.
I agree about using jpeg rather than RAW so some test shots are needed to get the optimum exposure, white balance and so on. Also, when taking macro shots, dust on the subject or on the front surface of the lens becomes very noticeable.
In the past I have tried the well known free programs. They did work to an extent but left rough edges. About a year ago I got Affinity Photo (AP), at a bargain price, for the more complicated photo edits. It is a very different product from PSP and does have focus stacking. I started off using a focus rack but now I have also got a Nikon Z6ii which has a feature of taking multiple frames with varying focus. Moving the rack adjustment wheel between each frame did lead to some displacement of the camera / subject so images definately needed aligning. The images always differ slightly due to the changing field of view as the focus changes. (Sometimes called 'breathing'.)
AP does quite a good job at combining the images including aligning then. AP gets the combination wrong sometimes - especially where there is a bright reflection. This is quite easy to deal with by selecting an appropriate in-focus image in the stack and over-painting the problem area. This sounds a bit complicated but it is quite easy in AP's interface. It does take a bit of time, though.
I expect Corel's first venture into focus stacking will mature over time - or they may decide it is not worth spending more effort on and depreciate it in future versions if it is not widely used ( as per, e.g., geotagging, face recognition etc.).
There is quite a bit of focus stacking software about and free or trial periods are available. Happy shooting.

[Suffolk_bobby]

Hello,
What I found was that I was not able to use RAW files. Once I saved the RAW files as JPEGS and tried it again it worked but the resulting photo was out of alignment. I did not see a feature to align the photos. The reason I upgraded to the 2023 version was because of this feature. The information that Paintshop gives is rather vague and I haven't found any information on the internet from anyone who has used this feature. It looks like Corel needs to do more work on this feature. I'm disappointed and I will be looking for dedicated software for focus stacking.

I am so glad to discover I am not alone in reporting this problem with stacking in 2023. After the reply I received from support (suggesting incorrect focus) I began to doubt my own experience.
I too found when using RAW files, although the thumbnails processed correctly, the rendering was unrecognisable, however, In JPEG although thumbnails were again correct, the rendering was totally out of alignment and in fact parts of the resulting image reversed. I agree more work is required before this feature can be seen to be fit for purpose.
I will add that the image rendered perfectly with a 2010 version of PS.

[josephlin]

Hi jamessveta,
I'm Joseph from Corel Photo team. I just checked your report and think it's a very interesting case. Basically, we tried to collect many different focus stacking samples for testing and validation before PSP2023 release. As the result, all the outcome is good for sure to tell us this feature is ready to go.
Of course, we cannot guarantee this feature is 100% perfect so in some specific cases we may not be able to take care of it well. According to your report, can you share more information even samples for evaluation? For example,
- What is the RAW sample of camera model you worked with?
- You mentioned after you cover the same sample from RAW to JPG, Focus Stacking can work normally but the result is out of alignment. Can you offer a screenshot or video for reference?
- If you don't mind, please share your sample image (RAW) for testing. I think it will be the best and quick way to figure this root cause out.

Let me know if anything else I can assist with here.