aber mpke showed some of his auto stacking pictures and I wrote a little explanation on a different website already, I thought Id say a few words and show my results here as well.
Picture stacking combines pictures of the same non-moving object with different focus to create a bigger depth of field then cameras usually achieve. The software that I have been trying so far has been CombineZP and Zerene Stacker, both of which have online tutorials and are easy to use. Zerene Stacker is a bit more complex, but offers great retouching support to remove processing artifacts.
What you need in order to apply this idea:
a tripod
a camera that allows for manual selection of the focus point (even for "normal" digital cameras there are programs that will allow you to do that)
The results:
Camponotus detritus major, with 65 pictures stacked the biggest endeavour so far:
Pheidologeton diversus Queen:
Pheidologeton diversus major:
I keep advising people to try it, because with a little bit of (enjoyable
) effort, anyone can produce those pictures. I used an very outdated Canon EOS 350d with a reversed 18-55mm kit lense (reverse adapter costs around 10€ on ebay), so no hightech at all.If you have problems setting the ant in a lifelike situation, a little needle with a bit of wax on the tip will provide a great holding device after you heat the wax and attach it to a place that won't be visible on the picture.
Regards,
Necturus
