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HDR & focus stacking

Photo Merge combines several frames into one better one — an exposure bracket into a single high-dynamic-range photo, or a focus bracket into one image sharp from front to back. The result is a new file, catalogued and stacked with its source frames.

HDR: merge an exposure bracket

When a scene's range is too wide for one exposure — a bright sky over a dark interior — shoot a bracket (say −2, 0, +2 EV) and merge it. Lumidex Studio blends the well-exposed parts of each frame into one image that holds detail in both the highlights and the shadows.

  1. Select the bracketIn the grid or filmstrip, select all the frames of the bracket.
  2. Open the mergeChoose Photo ▸ Photo Merge ▸ HDR….
  3. Set the optionsAuto-align is on by default for HDR, since brackets are often handheld. Pick an output format (see Output).
  4. MergeThe merged photo is written, catalogued, and stacked on top of the source frames with the shot's metadata carried over.

The blend is halo-free — it fuses per region of the image rather than averaging the frames flat, so you don't get the tell-tale bright rim around high-contrast edges.

Focus stacking: merge a focus bracket

In macro and close-up work, depth of field can be paper-thin. Shoot the same frame several times with the focus stepped through the subject, and focus stacking keeps the sharpest version of every region to build one image that's in focus throughout.

  1. Select the focus bracketSelect all the frames.
  2. Open the mergeChoose Photo ▸ Photo Merge ▸ Focus Stack….
  3. Set the optionsAuto-align is off by default for focus stacks, on the assumption you shot on a tripod. Turn it on if the frames drifted. Pick an output format.
  4. MergeAs with HDR, the result is a new catalogued photo stacked with its sources.

Output format

Both merges offer the same output choices:

  • JPEG (the default) — smallest, good for sharing.
  • 8-bit TIFF — lossless, widely compatible.
  • 16-bit TIFF — the most editing headroom, LZW-compressed; best if you'll grade the result heavily afterwards.

A note on alignment

What auto-align can and can't fix

Auto-align corrects a straight side-to-side or up-down shift between frames — the kind handholding introduces. It does not correct rotation or a change of scale (for example the slight "breathing" of the frame as focus shifts, which is most pronounced at the edges of a wide or fisheye lens). Frames with that kind of movement can show faint ghosting.

For the cleanest result: shoot on a tripod, and make sure all the frames are the same pixel dimensions (merge needs matching sizes).

Coming soon

Panorama and HDR Panorama merges appear in the Photo Merge menu but aren't functional yet.