Photography Experiments

These experiments will focus on photography of objects with size around 1-3 inches.

Limitations of Camera Focus

A technical discussion of camera focus and depth of field is here

The key takeway is that no matter what camera and lens you are using, and no matter how much you adjust your camera settings (focal length, aperture), you may not be able to get all of your subject in focus in a single photo.

Photo Stacking

The idea of photo stacking is to take multiple photos, each with a different distance in focus, then combine all the in-focus parts into a single image.
A description of the equipment and software is described here.

Sample Photos

[Click on the images below for high resolution versions.]


Single Image With Only A Narrow Band In Focus


Stacked Image (Composed From 94 Images)


Detail (Cropped From Image Above)

Sample Application: A Tsuba (Japanese Sword Guard)

Some tsuba are basically a flat plate of iron with some piercing.
Even these may benefit from photography at an oblique angle.

The image below shows a typical view with the tsuba facing the camera squarely.


The image below shows an oblique view of the same tsuba.




When zoomed in, the oblique view reveals some of the craftsman's workmanship.
The steel looks like it is composed of a coarse core layer, sandwiched between two layers of finer skin steel.
Clues like these might help identify the maker's school but are invisible in the standrad view.