Scenes Where Focus Stacking Makes all the Difference

2017-10-29 • SEND FEEDBACK |
Related: focus stacking, Nikon, Nikon D850, Nikon DSLR, Sigma, Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art, Sigma DG HSM Art, Sigma Lenses

See my Nikon wish list and get Nikon D850 at B&H Photo.

See my growing review of the Nikon D850 in Advanced DSLR.

I conveyed my excitement about the Nikon D850 Focus shift shooting feature for focus stacking in Nikon D850: 'Focus shift shooting' Feature Most Important Feature since Live View; Focus Stacking is the ONLY Solution to Full Resolution Images.

The 3-frame focus stack below exemplifies a scene in which background blur has no value, barring some peculiar purpose—I want to see every crack, every blade of grass and a crisp sunstar to boot. Here, sharpness is corner to corner and near to far—a tour de force of total image detail. No Ansel Adams print offers a fraction of the detail of this image. He’d have to have used f/64, which would have cut resolving power considerably, and that’s assuming perfectly flat film... no this result is far superior to what was possible in yonder days. The processing of the B&W version even introduces some subtle grain into the sky.

The full resolution image from the Nikon D850 is found on the Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art Examples: Eastern Sierra page. I recommend viewing it on an iMac 5K.

Boulder Field near Mt Conness in Hoover Wilderness area

f7.1 @ 1/500 sec focus stack 3 frames, ISO 31; 2017-10-26 13:55:45
NIKON D850 + Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art

[low-res image for bot]

Boulder Field near Mt Conness in Hoover Wilderness area

f7.1 @ 1/500 sec focus stack 3 frames, ISO 31; 2017-10-26 13:55:45
NIKON D850 + Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art

[low-res image for bot]