Our technology includes a software process and a robotic system that are used together to produce gigapixel macro images with a high depth of field. The software process follows a specific workflow that incorporates the capture process, post-processing, focus stacking, planar stitching of photographs, and output to a variety of formats for print, archive, and online viewing. The robotic system is a very precise multi-axis apparatus used to capture the thousands of photographs needed. The apparatus makes the process extremely efficient through its automated operation and adds the level of precision that is needed to ensure accurate focus stacking and stitching. Together the software, workflow, and apparatus make it possible to create images that were once nearly impossible to create.

The key elements in our process are the automated capture of the photographs, focus stacking, and stitching. The highly precise automated capture process takes the guess work out of the process and creates a solid set of imagery to start with. When using macro lenses and microscopes to capture macroscopic and microscopic subjects, the depth of field is typically extremely shallow. The focus stacking process takes photographs with shallow depth of field and blends them together to create an image with a greater depth of field. After focus stacking, the final set of images are stitched together in planar format and rendered to Adobe Photoshop large document format. A final process converts the very large imagery to formats that are suitable for online viewing.

Below are a few answers to some common questions...

Is there a system that is currently available to purchase?
The examples presented here were produced using our prototype systems and our in-house workflow. While we do not have a system that is currently available to the public, we are working to develop a system that can be purchased and easily used by photographers, research scientists, educators, and the general public. We welcome your feedback, suggestions, and comments as we develop this system.

What are the software packages that you are using in your process?
We use a combination of in-house custom developed software, commercially available software, and publicly available software in our process. The focus stacking is accomplished with the software CombineZM by Alan Hadley. Although commercially available software exists for focus stacking, CombineZM, a free software, allows us to customize the process to each subject through macro scripts that we setup within the program. We wish to thank Alan Hadley for making this software available to the public! The photographs are then stitched together using PT Gui Pro. Although PT Gui Pro is designed for panoramic processes where the camera is rotated around the nodal point (radial format), we are still able to use it for stitching axial captured photographs.

How long does it take to produce a photograph?
Each subject varies in terms of the number of photographs needed and time involved.

In the case of the photograph of the feather, we originally shot 8,000 photographs which took approximately 20 hours to acquire. Since the apparatus is automated, we only need to check the memory periodically and battery power during those 20 hours. The rest of the process for the feather took about 6-8 hours of labor, 18 hours of rendering time, and 8 hours of post-processing computations. This production time resulted in the feather image which has a resolution of over 6 gigapixels or 6,483 megapixels.

We are continually refining the process and efficiency of the current system and will be presenting a new and more efficient apparatus soon which will reduce the capture time by 50-75%. Further development of the software process will also make it possible to reduce the overall production time.

Who built the prototype apparatus that you are using?
We produced everything for the apparatus at our studio. The current prototype apparatus uses a Canon XTi camera body, Canon MP-E65mm macro lens, two basic flash units, arduino micro controller, servo motors, two multi-axis stages, and custom written software for the automated capture system.

I have a subject I would like to have photographed, how much does it cost?
The costs depend on the size of the subject, desired resolution, and timeframe. We would be happy to review the details of your project and provide you with a quote. Contact Gene Cooper for details at gene@fourchambers.org or 707-319-9310.