Focus stacking images.

[titch]

Is this the only way to do it?

Open up the images, process etc and then save all to desktop. 

Click on file, New Focus Merge and then select the images from desktop.

[firstdefence]

What other way could there be?

[thomaso]

11 hours ago, titch said:

Open up the images, process etc and then save all to desktop. 

Click on file, New Focus Merge (...)

Depending on the "process etc."  it might be more efficient to do it vice versa:

1. create the stack,
2. process the result.

[titch]

Lets assume I want to stack three images and I open them up in Affinity and Develop them. The image numbers of all three  are under the top tool bar.  I then go to file, New focus merge and a panel appears for me to add the images.  I was hoping that I could drag or move the images to this panel without having to go to desktop and then add them.

[walt.farrell]

On 7/25/2020 at 12:19 PM, titch said:

Lets assume I want to stack three images and I open them up in Affinity and Develop them. The image numbers of all three  are under the top tool bar.  I then go to file, New focus merge and a panel appears for me to add the images.  I was hoping that I could drag or move the images to this panel without having to go to desktop and then add them.

No, you can only create a stack from files that exist on disk.

And yes, you should load your RAW images, and Develop them, and export them to disk. You could create a stack from RAW images, but I would not recommend it as the RAW images won't go through the normal Develop Persona processing if you do that, and you probably won't like the results. You can simplify the process by using File > New Batch Job to convert the RAW files to TIFF format. Then use File > New Stack File > New Focus Merge to load the TIFF files.

[carl123]

On 7/25/2020 at 7:43 PM, walt.farrell said:

Then use File > New Stack to load the TIFF files.

File > New Stack ?

or

File > New Focus Merge as regards the OP's problem?

[walt.farrell]

6 hours ago, carl123 said:

File > New Stack ?

or

File > New Focus Merge as regards the OP's problem?

Yes, New Focus Merge. Thanks.

[Aad Slingerland]

Converting NEF (Nikon RAW) to TIFF is new to me. I did a lot of focus merge for macro foto's past spring and never was disappointed. However, next time I will follow this workflow just because i am curious 🙂

 

[walt.farrell]

46 minutes ago, Aad Slingerland said:

Converting NEF (Nikon RAW) to TIFF is new to me. I did a lot of focus merge for macro foto's past spring and never was disappointed. However, next time I will follow this workflow just because i am curious 🙂

 

Affinity Photo allows you to directly construct a focus merge stack from RAW files, but if you try it you'll generally get results that are not as good as if you Develop the photos first. Currently, only File > Open and File > New Batch Job in Photo use the full Develop process, including the Develop Assistant options. Other uses of RAW files (File > Place, File > New Focus Merge, File > New Stack, etc., or using RAW files in Affinity applications other than Photo) will thus give different results, which may not be to your liking.