After one of the first cold nights at my weekend cottage, I found this leaf in the garden. To me it looks like ice is produced: You see the snow coming out at the stem, and then sliding down the leaf transforming into ice!
Specific Feedback Requested
Any comments are welcome!
A technical issue: If you zoom in you could see “ghosting” along the leaf edges due to the focus stacking. Any advise to avoid this or to fix it in post-processing?
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
1/20 f/8 ISO 250 60 mm macro (120 mm eqjuiv.) in-camera focus stacking
Nice one. I love icy macros. Your choice of a square crop works pretty well here. There are some halos and other issues with the stacking. I get that in camera and in post with Zerene stacker sometimes. It’s a pain, but you can fix it. Well seen!
Ola, the details in the ice look great. It’s pretty amazing how it looks like individual drops are frozen along that curving leaf. The problem of “ghosting” in stacks is quite common. In Helicon focus, it tends to be worst when you use the B method and when there are very bright whites or very high luminosity changes across a sharp edge. Since Helicon lets you make adjustments after the stack and before you save, I always go in and fix the ghosts using specific areas from different slices as needed. If you can’t correct the ghosts in your stacking software, you can go to high magnification (200%) and clean up by cloning with a tiny brush.
Wonderful, Ola. Great contrast between the bright green foliage and icy cold droplets. Very nice detail in the droplets on the edge of the leaf and the OOF background really sets off the the droplets even more. I have not master the technique of ghosting, but sounds like @Mark_Seaver has given some great suggestions. Nicely done.
