Helicon Focus

Helicon Focus is a program that creates one completely focused image from several partially focused images by combining the focused areas.

The program is designed for macrophotography, microphotography and hyperfocal landscape photography and solves the shallow depth-of-field problem.

Why Helicon Focus?

Quality: advanced interpolation techniques, 16 bit workflow, direct RAW input
Scope: unlimted number of images, resolution over 100Mpixels, 64 bit support, Windows/Mac versions
Performance: very fast, multi-threaded, i7 compatible, batch and command line modes available
Tools: clone from source brush to repaint possible artifacts, 3D model , dust map, 2D panorama, Helicon Remote for automated focus bracketing

Helicon Remote

Helicon Remote is a utility that automates focus and exposure bracketing. The program sends commands to camera via USB cable to change focus distance with regular steps and takes shots.

Helicon Remote is available in Pro and X64 licenses of Helicon Focus.

What can you do with Helicon Remote:

Automate focus bracketing
Automate combined exposure and focus bracketing
Perform tethered shooting via USB cable

The video below is about focus stacking with Helicon Remote. It also gives an overview of other Helicon Remote's functions such as exposure bracketing, time lapse shooting, driving StackShot macro rail.

Helicon Remote for Android:

Helicon Remote Android

Android version of Helicon Remote is compatible with Android 3.1+ tablets with USB host controller.

You can download beta version of Helicon Remote from Android Market

Android version of Helicon Remote is a stanalone product and is licensed separately.

Helicon 3D Viewer

Helicon 3D Viewer is a free utility that helps to visualize a stack of images as a interactive 3D model.

You need Adobe Flash player to watch video sample.

Slideshow of the source images:

Fly Eye

more samples>>

Helicon Focus Lite (basic version):

Automatically adjusts and resizes images (important for stereomicroscopes and macrophotography)
Uses all available processors (1.7 times faster with 2 processors, 2.3 times faster with 4 processors)
Preserves details by using advanced interpolators for image manipulation (Lanczos, Sinc256)
Internal workflow always uses 16 bit color depth to preserve colors
Processes an unlimited number of images in the stack
Supports dust map to automatically remove black points from the resulting images
Automatically adjusts brightness of the adjacent images
Reads RAW, 8bit and 16bit TIFFs, JPEG, JPEG 2000, BMP, etc
Writes 8bit and 16bit TIFFs, JPEG, JPEG 2000, BMP
Adds text and scale bar
Provides command line interface to call it from other applications

Helicon Focus Pro (advanced version):

Includes all the features of the Lite version
Helicon Remote utility to automate focus bracketing
Retouching brush to clone from aligned source images to the resulting image (cannot be performed with external photo editor)
Export of 3D model to Helicon 3D Viewer (included into Helicon Focus installation)
Batch mode to process multiple image stacks or the same stack with different parameters
2D micropanorama
Export of animated stacks (see sample)

Helicon Focus Pro X64 (premium version):

Helicon Focus Pro X64 uses Helicon Processing Server to overcome 3Gb address space limitation for 32 bit applications. Using this technique Helicon Focus is able to get additional 3Gb of the address space on 32 bit OS and all available RAM on 64 bit OS.

Includes all the features of the Lite and Pro versions
32 bit OS: additional 3Gb to process big images
64 bit OS: higher performance + access to all available RAM

samples>> download>> purchase>> forum>>

Recommended accessories:

StackShot - Fully Automated Focus Stacking Rail from Cognisys, Inc.