Lumenzia Support

[ If you need information on exposure blending, please see the main PreBlend support page. ]

The "Focus Stacking" tab in PreBlend button is designed to help you combine multiple images shot on a tripod with different focusing distances in order to increase depth of field. This is advanced technique and success demands proper image capture. Be sure to see my Focus Stacking: From Start to Finish tutorial course to get the best results.

This feature is available in Lumenzia v12.0.0. To get started you must click the "Focus Stacking" tab in PreBlend and provide your source images in one of two ways:

Focus Stack DOCUMENTS: This option is offered when the current document has a single layer and there are other similar images open in Photoshop with the same dimensions (ie you opened each image separately in PS).
Focus Stack Layers: This option is offered when the current document has suitable layers (any mix of raster and smart object layers is fine as long as they have matching dimensions). This workflow is convenient for those using Lightroom where you can use Edit in / Open as Layers or Smart Object Layers.

Options in the focus stack tab:

Output: This option is only shown if the current image has a single layer (ie you are going to be combining documents, not stacking from existing layers). This lets you choose where the output will go, which can be one of the valid open images (helpful for easily saving back to Lightroom) or a new document.
Sort: This may help to put images sorted by focus distance (sorting by layer name is best in most cases, but there is an option to infer distance which assumes that the closest content is lowest in the image).
Lock Layers (highly recommended): Locking layers is ideal to prevent accidental movement. You may use the "RAW" button in Lumenzia Basics to edit Smart Objects without unlocking them first. However, if you prefer to double-click Smart Objects to edit them, you may skip the locking for simplicity.
Match color to active layer: This may help match frames if color / lighting was shifting during capture, but is not available if any layer is a smart object.
Crop transparent edges (recommended): This is recommended to eliminate blank pixels at edges caused by alignment necessary to address focus breathing, however you may leave it off if you prefer to use content aware fill.

Finishing steps after running PreBlend's Focus Stacking:

Review the image for any areas where the image is not sharp. The automatic masking on the bottom group of layers will typically require minor corrections. However, it is best not to edit those masks because the workflow gets complicated. If you need to paint white on a lower layer, you'll also have to paint black on an upper layer (and if you make any mistake, you may leave transparency in the image which makes some pixels white).
Paint on masks in the correction layers. This is the best way make corrections (fewer steps and no risk of transparent pixels).
To help find the right correction layer: activate Photoshop's "move" tool and right-click on good pixels near the problematic area. This will show the name of that correct layer, and when you click on it, Lumenzia will automatically activate the paint brush and select the correct mask to paint (when you select a layer from the lower group, Lumenzia will pick the right correction layer). Do not left-click with the move tool as this won't give you the option to pick the layer, and if you are working without the locking option you will cause serious problems in your image by moving the layer!
To edit any RAW Smart Objects, click the "RAW" button in Lumenzia Basics. This will avoid the need to unlock them first (they will remain locked after your edit). Lumenzia creates dependent smart objects, so that editing your correction layer also updates its corresponding auto-masked layer below (and reduces file size).
Optionally use the blank "Cloning / Healing" layer for repairs (be sure to sample all layers). This may be helpful to address problems caused by movement between frames, capture limitations, or other complications.