Focus stacking for macro on the Sony A7RV

Using the focus bracketing feature of the new Sony a7RV for in-camera assistance on a final focus-stacked macro image.
Geekoto Panel
Sigma 105mm macro Art DG DN
Sony A7R5
HeliconFocus for stacking

[@marvinspates924]

This camera is on my list this spring!!!

[@DavidStella]

Very nice. I want this feature

[@benjocabarro]

Thank you for this!

[@DavidVaini]

I was reading up on the camera and it seems like It focuses from where you are to infinity. So you actually want to focus on the closest point to the camera. Also when you set the number of shots, it'll go until that number or until it reaches infinity focus, whichever comes first. For macrophotography you're going to get more shots because it's closer to the subject. So if you set it to 999, it'll take as many as it needs to do the macro shot completely.

[@heatherlarkin]

Yep! That’s exactly what’s happening in this video. I had it set to 30 shots because I DON’T want it to go all the way to infinity. I just want those three drops in focus. I don’t need several hundred photos of the rest of the flower. So 30 shots wasn’t enough to get the last/furthest drop actually in focus, so I went up to 50 shots. I started on the droplet closest to me, and ended on the one furthest away.

[@thenationalparksguy.1718]

May I ask what aperture you were in?.. The way I understand it is, you set it to Infinity.. Start at the closest point.. It will only take as many pictures as it takes to get to Infinity or the entire seen in Focus.. Thx in advance..

[@heatherlarkin]

@@thenationalparksguy.1718 I was at 2.8. Because the closer you physically get to an object the smaller your depth of field becomes, with macro images 2.8 is probably a millimeter sliver of nearly nothing in focus. I could have gone up to five or seven or even f11 and gotten more in focus, but I didn’t want that for the feel of this image. Yes the programming of the Sony goes from where you tell it to infinity and does cut off if it gets to infinity before the number of shots you have specified, but if you read the comment above yours you will see that I did not want it to go to infinity, so I set a specified number of shots only.

[@johndoe-nh9sh]

@@heatherlarkin Setting the camera to create a new folder for each focus stack is a great help too.

[@heatherlarkin]

@@johndoe-nh9sh I decided not to do that in set up because I felt like I would forget about my stacking shots and need to go looking for them later, but I think that I will change that now because finding the beginning and end of a stack in all of the rest of the images was a total pain.

[@rezar4117]

Thank you

[@erg1450]

great video, that is what I was checking if the Rv would help me with macro, what tool did you use to combine all 50 photos to get the final version?.....wold be nice if that can happen automatically in camera

[@heatherlarkin]

I used helicon focus for that! ❤️

[@wayneroth7780]

You used a Sigma lens on the Sony A7RV, which adapter did you use? I want to use my Nikon 105 2.8 macro lens with the A7RV. I always shot in manual mode for macro, with the converter AF is not available, how does this affect bracketing mode for macro images/

[@heatherlarkin]

1: I used a sigma E mount lens, no adapter needed.
2: Nikon adapted to Sony is hard, most adapters are manual only.
3: this in camera focus bracketing does not work on manual lenses or while in manual mode on auto lenses.

[@joits]

@@heatherlarkin Gotta love that Sony has so many options with 3rd Party Lenses.

[@thomastuorto9929]

Nice photo.

[@heatherlarkin]

Thank you!

[@andrewcul]

madness how they didn't bring this to A7IV, camera is more than capable

[@chriswray5010]

sony like to drip feed us all the new features , 1 per model

[@andrewcul]

@@chriswray5010 it’s silly of them because all I know is in how ever many years it is till I upgrade, it won’t be to Sony!

[@davematthew21]

Just heard a rumour from sonyalpha rumours that a A7iv 2.0 firmware update is coming soon with the focus stacking feature included 😊

[@americandronecompanyllc4268]

I hope this comes to us A7IV owners via firmware update

[@VeganShooting]

@@davematthew21 they lied

[@mostlymessingabout]

Is it possible to do it with the electronic shutter? That mechanical one is going to get knackered soon

[@heatherlarkin]

I should try that! I don’t know if it’s possible, but it would definitely be handy to keep the mechanical shutter count down.

[@ragulraj2072]

Excellent! How much mm is the lens?

[@heatherlarkin]

105mm!

[@lizrosefisher1483]

When I tried this it was dark and I could not see to focus and the camera would not allow me to use live view! Am I doing something wrong?!? I used auto focus (when set to focus bracketing) shutter 200 f/4 iso 200 Sony 90 macro using Yongnuo ring flash (Sony a7rV). Please advise❤️

[@heatherlarkin]

I would guess (but not for sure since I haven’t used that flash), that the camera doesn’t recognize that there’s a flash attached and didn’t switch automatically to the setting that changes the screen. OR there was something (like a wire) just behind the viewfinder so the camera switched to the Finder display and not the screen.

[@lizrosefisher1483]

So I took the flash off and still when I put it on focus bracketing the screen goes black. This does not happen with any of the other drive modes.🤷🏼‍♀️

[@heatherlarkin]

@@lizrosefisher1483 I’m out of ideas!

[@wolfnard1]

I'm having a similar problem....my screen is fine in all other drive modes and I have live view off but when I switch to focus bracket live view turns on automatically and the screen goes darker because I'm in studio and shooting at 125th sec, f11 under studio strobe modeling lights. It happens whether I'm using flash or not in that studio situation. I contacted Sony and the engineers are looking at it.

[@lizrosefisher1483]

@@wolfnard1 Yes, even without the flash! You can not have live view off in focus bracketing. So when you are shooting in darker areas, you can’t see to focus🤷🏼‍♀️. I spoke with a sony support person and he said that is how the camera works and will give feedback it is an issue for some people 🤷🏼‍♀️

[@mark.physique9119]

Is it possible to do this with a flash as well?

[@heatherlarkin]

Flash yes!

[@mark.physique9119]

Nice! Have u tried this? :)