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Author Topic: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?  (Read 7623 times)

Ellis Vener

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Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« on: November 01, 2016, 05:03:23 pm »

I thought I had a perpetual license to Helicon Focus but apparently since I last used it that changed. and today I discovered that an update would run $155.00/year. It's a great program but I don't use it enough to justify that overhead so I am looking of alternatives. I already have Photoshop CC 2015,, the ENFUSE plug-in for Lightroom (also CC2015),  PTGui Pro, perhaps one of those?  My OS is OS X.
« Last Edit: November 01, 2016, 05:07:04 pm by Ellis Vener »
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Arlen

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #1 on: November 01, 2016, 05:09:36 pm »

If you still think you had a perpetual license, but no longer know what the key is, you might contact Helicon and ask them to restore it.
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jrsforums

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #2 on: November 01, 2016, 06:46:40 pm »

I thought I had a perpetual license to Helicon Focus but apparently since I last used it that changed. and today I discovered that an update would run $155.00/year. It's a great program but I don't use it enough to justify that overhead so I am looking of alternatives. I already have Photoshop CC 2015,, the ENFUSE plug-in for Lightroom (also CC2015),  PTGui Pro, perhaps one of those?  My OS is OS X.
http://www.heliconsoft.com/helicon-focus-licenses-swreg/

Looks like the $155 is to upgrade from a one year license to unlimited.
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John

Bart_van_der_Wolf

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #3 on: November 02, 2016, 05:38:07 am »

I thought I had a perpetual license to Helicon Focus but apparently since I last used it that changed. and today I discovered that an update would run $155.00/year. It's a great program but I don't use it enough to justify that overhead so I am looking of alternatives. I already have Photoshop CC 2015,, the ENFUSE plug-in for Lightroom (also CC2015),  PTGui Pro, perhaps one of those?  My OS is OS X.

Hi Ellis,

The two main applications for serious focus stacking are Zerene Stacker and Helicon Focus. HF has been around longer and is a solid performer. ZS is also very good but slightly less polished, e.g. in the Retouching abilities. ZS does have an additional small manual adjustment that might be useful in getting better fusions, but it could be that HF does it automatically instead of offering a manual override.

If you already had a perpetual license instead of an annual licensed version, the folks at Heliconsoft will be able to help you. And as said, upgrading is also an option, which would avoid having to fork out the full amount.

Cheers,
Bart
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Ellis Vener

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #4 on: November 02, 2016, 07:36:22 am »

Thanks Bart and everyone else. I'll contant Helicon's mothership today.

As a general question: no other alternatives?
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smahn

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #5 on: November 02, 2016, 08:45:44 am »

My focus stacks only involve 2 to 4 images, and Enfuse works fine me. If you have it you might as well test it for yourself.
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bjanes

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #6 on: November 02, 2016, 09:42:27 am »

The two main applications for serious focus stacking are Zerene Stacker and Helicon Focus. HF has been around longer and is a solid performer. ZS is also very good but slightly less polished, e.g. in the Retouching abilities. ZS does have an additional small manual adjustment that might be useful in getting better fusions, but it could be that HF does it automatically instead of offering a manual override.

Bart,

I have Helicon and am satisfied with it for general use. However, I understand that Zerine is preferred for extreme macro where hundreds of images are involved. This month's issue of Popular Photography (generally not a very high end publication) had an article on macro showing stunning images of insects by John Hallmén who uses Zerine.

Cheers,

Bill
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Bart_van_der_Wolf

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #7 on: November 02, 2016, 10:56:57 am »

I have Helicon and am satisfied with it for general use. However, I understand that Zerine is preferred for extreme macro where hundreds of images are involved. This month's issue of Popular Photography (generally not a very high end publication) had an article on macro showing stunning images of insects by John Hallmén who uses Zerine.

Hi Bill,

I've processed stacks of 100+ images (21 MP each) with Helicon Focus, so that would seem to be not a big issue with HF either. I have not compared the memory use between HF and ZS, nor have I methodically timed the stacking operation, but they seem comparable.

I do know that the author of Zerene, Rik Littlefield, has a lot (40+ years) of experience with stacking images of microscopic and macroscopic subject matter. That's why he developed his own stacker, trying to optimize the process for 'deep' stacks with many slices, as are common at those magnifications (DOF per slice is minimal). The algorithms used for stacking are quite similar between ZS and HF.

For those on an Adobe-centric workflow, e.g. with Lightroom, HeliconFocus is able to Raw convert, stack, and output the result as DGN file, which might be a benefit (although I personally do not use conversions to DNG). I do not know how good it works, e.g. dealing with Chromatic Aberrations. Helicon's integration with Helicon Remote (also available for Tablets) may also be a benefit.

Both programs support automatic focus rails, like the StackShot.

Cheers,
Bart
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Arlen

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #8 on: November 02, 2016, 11:50:45 am »

I've compared Helicon and Zerene, and to me it's hard to say that one is better than the other. Each has its strengths and weaknesses. I decided that for insects, my primary stacking subject, I like Zerene a little more. I find the artifacts it generates are usually less serious and usually easier for me to fix in Retouching mode. Their Retouching modes are somewhat different, and I think different people may find one to be more intuitive than the other. If I had my druthers, I would combine some of the features of each into a new product. But I don't think you will go too far wrong with either of them, and the 30 day free trials are useful in seeing what works best for you.

In my tests of stacking insects with Photoshop, it generated considerably more artifacts than either of the above two products, and retouching them was more tedious. But depending on your subject and the number of images stacked, it may suffice if you don't do a lot of focus stacking, especially considering the price of Helicon and Zerene. For anyone considering the purchase Zerene Stacker, it may be worth noting that for the last several years they have run a 20%-off sale from the end of November to the end of December, and might do so again this year. Here's a link to last year's discount announcement: http://zerenesystems.com/cms/stacker/docs/purchasing/specials
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Ellis Vener

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #9 on: November 02, 2016, 12:08:50 pm »

Thanks Bart and everyone else. I'll contant Helicon's mothership today.

As a general question: no other alternatives?

Once again thanks to all who chimed in. The new version is now fully re-licensed.

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Rory

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #10 on: November 02, 2016, 12:38:49 pm »

My solution was the purchase of an Olympus E-M1.  The in-camera focus stacking at up to 11 fps is outstanding.  Olympus has a very effective focus algorithm that allows you to set the amount of DOF overlap (1-10) and it remains consistent factoring in focus distance, focal length and aperture.  I use Zerene to process the stacks.  Not sure if this would be a solution for micro-photography though.  Sure wish other camera companies had this feature.
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Ellis Vener

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #11 on: November 02, 2016, 01:28:21 pm »

My solution was the purchase of an Olympus E-M1.  The in-camera focus stacking at up to 11 fps is outstanding.  Olympus has a very effective focus algorithm that allows you to set the amount of DOF overlap (1-10) and it remains consistent factoring in focus distance, focal length and aperture.  I use Zerene to process the stacks.  Not sure if this would be a solution for micro-photography though.  Sure wish other camera companies had this feature.

I use CamRanger to drive the focusing adjustments as well as otherwise "hands free" camera operation.
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Rory

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #12 on: November 02, 2016, 06:08:55 pm »

I use CamRanger to drive the focusing adjustments as well as otherwise "hands free" camera operation.

Yes, that is what I used before I got the E-M1.  I found the CamRanger solution to be slow and cumbersome.
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kers

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Re: Alternatives to Helicon Focus?
« Reply #13 on: November 03, 2016, 02:35:26 am »

Yes, that is what I used before I got the E-M1.  I found the CamRanger solution to be slow and cumbersome.

I see Olympus is doing well.
I think Nikon could implement such a thing to.
- it is just software.
That said, both Nikon and Canon are very late with a EVF full frame camera and the better options you have with these.
They have to come very soon with one or loose market share.
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Pieter Kers
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