Helicon Focus User Guide -
Click the Render button (or press F6). The software processes the stack. For 20 RAW files, this takes about 30 seconds on a modern PC.
Photoshop has a "Auto-Blend Layers" function. Why not use that?
| Feature | Helicon Focus | Photoshop | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Speed | Seconds to render 50 images | Minutes to render 20 images | | RAW Support | Native (direct decoding) | Must convert first | | Halos & Artifacts | Minimal with Method B/C | Frequent, especially on hair | | 3D Export | Yes | No | | Tethering | Yes (Helicon Remote) | No | | Retouching | Non-destructive pixel-level brush | Mask painting | helicon focus user guide
Verdict: For stacks over 15 images or any macro work, Helicon Focus is 5x faster and yields significantly fewer artifacts.
If you want, I can create:
In the world of macro photography, product photography, and scientific imaging, achieving a image that is perfectly sharp from foreground to background is one of the most difficult challenges. Due to the laws of physics (specifically, depth of field), a lens can only keep a single plane of focus sharp. When you are working with high magnification or wide apertures, that plane can be thinner than a sheet of paper.
Enter Helicon Focus—the industry-standard software for focus stacking. This powerful application takes a series of partially focused images (a "stack") and intelligently merges the sharpest areas from each frame into one completely focused composite. Click the Render button (or press F6)
This Helicon Focus User Guide will walk you through everything: from downloading the software and capturing your source images, to advanced retouching and exporting your final masterpiece.
After rendering, you’ll have a composite. Rarely perfect – use Retouching: Photoshop has a "Auto-Blend Layers" function
Go to File > Save as > PSD. Ensure "Save source layers" is checked. This creates a Photoshop file where each image in the stack is a separate layer, masked by the depth map.