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stacker:docs:faqlist [2020/06/28 20:54] rjlittlefield [How do I save images as TIFF or JPEG?] |
stacker:docs:faqlist [2020/08/23 00:06] rjlittlefield My stack got shot out of order. What can I do? |
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| * [[#my_colors_changed_a_little_why_is_that|My colors changed a little. Why is that?]] | * [[#my_colors_changed_a_little_why_is_that|My colors changed a little. Why is that?]] | ||
| * [[#why_do_my_images_look_noisy_as_soon_as_i_load_them_into_zerene_stacker|Why do my images look noisy as soon as I load them into Zerene Stacker?]] | * [[#why_do_my_images_look_noisy_as_soon_as_i_load_them_into_zerene_stacker|Why do my images look noisy as soon as I load them into Zerene Stacker?]] | ||
| + | * [[#part_of_my_subject_looks_transparent_what_can_i_do|Part of my subject looks transparent. What can I do?]] | ||
| * [[#how_should_i_set_the_alignment_options|How should I set the Alignment options?]] | * [[#how_should_i_set_the_alignment_options|How should I set the Alignment options?]] | ||
| * [[#what_do_the_percentages_mean_for_alignment_parameters|What do the percentages mean for Alignment parameters?]] | * [[#what_do_the_percentages_mean_for_alignment_parameters|What do the percentages mean for Alignment parameters?]] | ||
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| * [[#why_did_the_software_reverse_the_order_of_my_images|Why did the software reverse the order of my images?]] | * [[#why_did_the_software_reverse_the_order_of_my_images|Why did the software reverse the order of my images?]] | ||
| * [[#can_i_directly_control_the_order_that_images_are_processed|Can I directly control the order that images are processed?]] | * [[#can_i_directly_control_the_order_that_images_are_processed|Can I directly control the order that images are processed?]] | ||
| + | * [[#my_stack_got_shot_out_of_order_what_can_i_do|My stack got shot out of order. What can I do?]] | ||
| * [[#why_do_my_saved_output_images_look_washed_out|Why do my saved output images look washed out?]] | * [[#why_do_my_saved_output_images_look_washed_out|Why do my saved output images look washed out?]] | ||
| * [[#what_does_retain_extended_dynamic_range_mean|What does "Retain extended dynamic range" mean?]] | * [[#what_does_retain_extended_dynamic_range_mean|What does "Retain extended dynamic range" mean?]] | ||
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| It's a common mistake to use File > Save Project and then notice that what gets saved are .zsj and .zsy files that can't be used by anything besides Zerene Stacker. File > Save Project is for tasks like coming back tomorrow to retouch an image that you generated today. It stores images in lossless formats and keeps track of alignment information so that you can resume work immediately, with no expensive computation. See [[http://zerenesystems.com/cms/stacker/docs/howtouseit#saving_work_in_a_project|Saving Work In A "Project"]] for more discussion about that. | It's a common mistake to use File > Save Project and then notice that what gets saved are .zsj and .zsy files that can't be used by anything besides Zerene Stacker. File > Save Project is for tasks like coming back tomorrow to retouch an image that you generated today. It stores images in lossless formats and keeps track of alignment information so that you can resume work immediately, with no expensive computation. See [[http://zerenesystems.com/cms/stacker/docs/howtouseit#saving_work_in_a_project|Saving Work In A "Project"]] for more discussion about that. | ||
| - | If you have used File > Save Project and then left Zerene Stacker, you can quickly recover your work by launching Zerene Stacker again, doing a File > Open Project, and selecting the project folder or the .zsj file inside it. After the project has been re-opened, then you can do File > Save Output Image(s) to create a TIFF or JPEG file. (Note: either the project folder or the .zsj file may show as a yellow smiling dog icon, depending on what operating system and program settings you're using. If neither one shows the icon, just select the .zsj file anyway.) | + | If you have used File > Save Project and then left Zerene Stacker, you can quickly recover your work by launching Zerene Stacker again, doing a File > Open Project, and selecting the project folder or the .zsj file inside it. After the project has been re-opened, you can select one or more images in the Output Images panel and use File > Save Output Image(s) to create TIFF or JPEG. (Note: either the project folder or the .zsj file may show as a yellow smiling dog icon, depending on what operating system and program settings you're using. If neither one shows the icon, just select the .zsj file anyway.) |
| ===== Is there some way to save EXIF and other metadata? ===== | ===== Is there some way to save EXIF and other metadata? ===== | ||
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| One exception occurs if your subject is liable to move away while you're shooting. In that case you should start at whichever end you consider most important, so that if the subject does leave you may still have something useful to work with. | One exception occurs if your subject is liable to move away while you're shooting. In that case you should start at whichever end you consider most important, so that if the subject does leave you may still have something useful to work with. | ||
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| ===== Do I need a focus rail? ===== | ===== Do I need a focus rail? ===== | ||
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| The effect can be worrisome when you first notice it. However, the screen display appearance does not affect the quality of output image files, so once you realize what's going on, the worry goes away. | The effect can be worrisome when you first notice it. However, the screen display appearance does not affect the quality of output image files, so once you realize what's going on, the worry goes away. | ||
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| + | ===== Part of my subject looks transparent. What can I do? ===== | ||
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| + | There's a whole separate page that addresses this problem. | ||
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| + | See [[https://zerenesystems.com/cms/stacker/docs/tutorials/stackselectedfortransparentforeground|"Using Stack Selected to Retouch Transparent Foreground"]] . | ||
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| ===== How should I set the Alignment options? ===== | ===== How should I set the Alignment options? ===== | ||
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| By removing the checkmark on "Automatic order" and adding files one at a time, you can set exactly any order that you want. | By removing the checkmark on "Automatic order" and adding files one at a time, you can set exactly any order that you want. | ||
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| + | ===== My stack got shot out of order. What can I do? ===== | ||
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| + | In many cases there's a simple trick that handles this problem. | ||
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| + | The trick is this: after you've processed the stack at least once, so that all the images have been aligned against each other, then do a File > "Re-order input files" > "Sort by Scale". If the files were originally not in strict focus order, chances are they will be in strict focus order after the sort is done. Then you can do another Stack operation to take advantage of the improved ordering. In especially difficult cases, it may help to do the steps of stacking and "Sort by Scale" a couple of times, to give the software the best opportunity to accurately calculate scale. | ||
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| + | To understand how the trick works, first note that with most optics, the image changes size along with focus. Depending on the lens, the image might get smaller or larger as focus moves back, but it's probably only going to do one of those, and it will do it consistently and by a large enough amount to be reliably determined by the computational alignment process. Fortunately, the alignment process can usually determine scale accurately even when the images are initially out of order, and then sorting by the recovered scale puts them back into order again. | ||
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| + | The nice thing about "Sort by Scale" is that it doesn't require much thinking or mouse-clicking. The alternative is to figure out by eye what the focus order was, then manually add files into the stacking software one at a time or in appropriate groups to get the correct ordering. Alternatively, some people rename their image files so as to be in focus order when sorted by name. | ||
| ===== Why do my saved output images look washed out? ===== | ===== Why do my saved output images look washed out? ===== | ||