D800E focus stacking issue

[GoogleCodeExporter]

What steps will reproduce the problem?
1. Connect D800E to Samsung Galaxy S3
2. Turn off autofocus (red AF symbol + off in settings)
3. Focus using Lv
4. Start focus stacking e.g. 5/10 steps a 50/100

What is the expected output? 
Focus to shift in small steps from the selected focus point - taking  pictures

What do you see instead?
Focus is shifted, then camera autofocus kicks in and moves focus point back 
sometimes while the picture is taken. 

What version of the product are you using?
0.30.18 Beta

On what operating system?
S3 - Android 4.1.2

Please provide any additional information below.
Don't know if it is related but I can not change focus settings in the gui. 
Camera does not respond. GUI reverts.

Original issue reported on code.google.com by tho...@gmail.com on 21 Feb 2013 at 11:20

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Hi
Red AF means the autofucs is on. To turn it on/off long press the AF button.
Please try the attached apk, this one contains some D800 changes regarding live 
view.

For focus stacking to work the AF button should not be red.
Also focus mode should not be MF as in MF mode the focus cannot be moved.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 22 Feb 2013 at 5:48

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I downloaded your app today and it is running well in a nexus 10 with a D800e 
camera, except for focus stacking.  I saw this thread so I installed the 
attached apk, but it did not help.  I focused on a ruler at 45 degree angle to 
the lens, and 3 shot brackets with steps ranging from 30 to 70.  I see a very 
tiny difference, but barely noticable. I am shooting at f2.8 and from a 
distance of 2-3 feet.  Also, LV does not reflect the depth of field.  It shows 
the DOF as if lens is wide open, even if I set to f18.  The pictures work - but 
the LV does not show the true DOF.  To me this is far more significant than 
stacking.

Original comment by glenndot...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 4:57

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Focus stacking step depends on the lens that is installed. You must find out 
your own step values, it can range from 1 - 32766.
You can show/hide the manual focus controls in the bottom of the live view 
display and experiment with them to see what steps you need.

On Nikon cameras there is no DOF display, if you change the aperture it will be 
not reflected on live view display, this is a camera limitation and not an 
application.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 5:09

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Thanks - still a problem. First, the D800e screen (on the back of the camera) 
automatically updates when you are in live view and change the aperture. What 
you see is the DOF you get.  So I am not sure what you mean that this is a 
problem with the camera.

The step value slider only goes from 1 - 100, so I keyed in  higher values and 
nothing changed.  All photos in the set are the same.  Eg. 5 photo set with 
25,000 step.  The AF button on your screen is not red (I even tried it both 
ways), I am set to AF-S single AF servo.  I have tried the focus before option 
both on and off.  All pictures in the set are the same every time.  

Also, how do I sow/hide manual focus controls as mentioned in your message?  
And does that matter given what I just told you.

Thanks for helping.  I would like to review this product but need to sort this 
out first.  Like I said earlier, its a great app.  But seeing dof change with 
aperture in LV is the most important to me, esp for macro.

Original comment by glenndot...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 6:26

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Thanks - still a problem. First, the D800e screen (on the back of the camera) 
automatically updates when you are in live view and change the aperture. What 
you see is the DOF you get.  So I am not sure what you mean that this is a 
problem with the camera. 
<- I mean that what you see in application is what you can get from camera 
while in USB PTP mode. On D5000 changing the aperture does not change the live 
view screen until I restart the live view.
But I'm in contact with a D800 user and when he changes the aperture while in 
live view his screen reflects the change and it goes darker/brighter.

Also, how do I sow/hide manual focus controls as mentioned in your message?  
And does that matter given what I just told you. 
<- while in live view, on live view screen in bottom right corner is a button 
that shows/hides the manual focus controls.

The step value slider only goes from 1 - 100 
<- yes, but in the edit box you can enter higher values.

Does your lens support autofocus? Is it in AF or MF mode?
If the focus mode is MF (manual focus) focus moving in live view and focus 
stacking will not work.
But as I wrote, best to check out with the manual focus controls while in live 
view.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 6:37

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Well, not sure what to tell you.  I have a d800e and when I change the aperture 
using your app, and viewing Lv on your app, nothing changes in real time.  Not 
the lighting or the DOF.  I have the latest firmware in the camera.

I am using a fully automatic 24-70 2.8 Nikkor lens, one of Nikons best.  It is 
set to AF as is the camera.  When I do a focus bracket, every photo is the same.

I purchased Dmitri's book and it is of no use.  Covers nothing about this issue 
other than a screen shot.

I also noticed that if I hold down the AF on your screen and turn it red, my 
camera does not change to Auto as it should.  That is in addition to the other 
things I reported above.  Also, when I choose the BKT button in your app, the 
dialog box title says "Focus Stacking" settings, and I believe it should say 
Exposure Bracket settings.

I am willing to spend time testing and working with you on this if you come up 
with anything.

Original comment by glenndot...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 7:15

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Did you try manual focus movement in live view? Does it work?

 Also, when I choose the BKT button in your app, the dialog box title says "Focus Stacking" settings, and I believe it should say Exposure Bracket settings.
<- cosmetic error, will be fixed.

Nikon cameras do not have a DOF function in live view, at least not while in 
USB PTP mode.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 7:19

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Yes, sorry I forgot to mention that I did use the manual focus movement in live 
view and it was odd.  If I use the begin and end arrows (<< and >>) then the 
image goes out of focus.  But if I use the incremental arrows (< and >) nothing 
happens. Once again the slider scale is only 0-100 and in this case, I don't 
see a way to enter a number.  Is this what you wanted me to do?  Should I have 
seen focus changing just by moving the slider?

Original comment by glenngil...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 7:22

[GoogleCodeExporter]

No, the slider is for selecting the focus movement step, and you use the '<' 
and '>' for moving the focus.
'<<' and '>>' will move the focus to closes and infinity.
Will see in next version to increase the step.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 7:25

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OK - so if the slider is set for 20, for example, than each time I press "< or 
>" it will move 20. This really requires documentation.  I wrote to Dmitri and 
suggested he give this a little more attention (just trying to help - lol)

Right now the Nexus 10 battery is spent and I can't hook up the camera while it 
is charging (same micro-usb port for both).  So when it is back up, I will play 
with that.  Too bad about the LV DOF in realtime.  Nice to have.

Original comment by glenngil...@gmail.com on 26 Feb 2013 at 7:29

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Hi

Just to let you know.  
I solved my problem above (1st post) by switching from focus priority to 
release priority in the D800 menu. 

BR
Mikael 

Original comment by tho...@gmail.com on 27 Feb 2013 at 6:44

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Ok, thanks for noting.
Soon there will be a new version, I added the higher focus step, but not sure 
if then it is needed.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 27 Feb 2013 at 6:47

[GoogleCodeExporter]

I tested the release priority in both AF-S and AF-C and both work.  What seemed 
to stop working in this mode though, was the "focus first" option.  If I threw 
the lens out of focus and tried this, it never worked.  When shooting a ruler 
at a 45 degree angle at f2.8 with 50mm a step of 100 was quite effective at a 
distance of about 2 feet. 

My primary purpose in using this app is to inspect focus and dof when doing 
landscape work. That means the viewer must be very crisp.  The current viewer 
is fast, but low res. Is there a way to link in a different viewer or do I need 
two separate apps?

Original comment by glenngil...@gmail.com on 28 Feb 2013 at 3:01

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Are you refering to the live view image or the viewer for images?
For live view this is the best you can get.
For image view try the attached version. This is a work in progress version 
with UI changes, fixes for D800 that I managed to make with a help of another 
D800 user, new image viewer that uses OpenCV/OpenGL and does not downscale the 
images.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 28 Feb 2013 at 3:12

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Nicely done -  LV now dynamically changing as aperture is changed.  This is 
great.  

The new viewer is better.  Not as clear as looking at the back of the camera 
and zooming, but much closer.  Not sure how much is possible there.

One minor glitch. When return to LV is checked OFF in settings, you do not 
return to LV in your app, but the camera itself is not released from LV until I 
press LV on your app one or two more times.  IOW, the app does what it is 
supposed to do on your screen, but I cannot see out my viewfinder because LV 
has not been released inside the camera.

Thanks for the changes.  

Original comment by glenngil...@gmail.com on 28 Feb 2013 at 5:01

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Thx for reporting, will fix it. D800 automatically returns to LV, while D5000 
does not (not sure for other models but probably the new ones auto return to LV 
after capture). 

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 28 Feb 2013 at 5:11

[GoogleCodeExporter]

After you report I checked again the D800 documentation and there is a Exposure 
Preview in Live view. So I integrated it.
You can find the Live view Exposure Preview button in the live view right 
layout (press the small LV button in bottom right while in live view), it is 
the topmost button.
I also added the Live view White balance property, that should only affect the 
live view image that is displayed.
Also added the live view selector button.
In live view windows (only in OpenCV/OpenGL mode) there is now a zoom button in 
upper left corner. That will bring up the zoom ratio dialog.
Bellow it is a BLV button. After pressing the BLV it will save the 
aperture/shutter speed/iso values, so those values can be changed according the 
light conditions (to lighten or darken the live view). After the capture button 
is pressed the application will restore the saved values and make the capture 
with those. If 'return to live view' is enabled the it will change back to BLV 
values.

Also the image gallery and viewer got some changes.
Please report back after you got time to test it.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 3 Mar 2013 at 2:48

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I use a nexus 7 and a d800 and the application keeps crashing and when it's not 
crashing the focus stacking does not work and the bracketing does not work 
either. The earlier version was working better with the exposure bracketing and 
it did not crash. I downloaded DslrDashboard_v0.30_d800.apk and it's not 
working either. I also changed focus priority and there is no changes. 

Thank for your help!

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 1 Apr 2013 at 3:12

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If you send me the logcat I could see where is the problem, but with only 
saying that it crashes I can't help.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 1 Apr 2013 at 4:37

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How do i do that?
Thank you

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 3:18

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[deleted comment]

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the latest version seems to have fixed the crashing issue. It only crashed once 
when the camera have been unplugged without turning it off. I've put a (crappy) 
video on youtube to show you my problem. Sorry for my english ...this is not my 
first language! Thank you for your help, I really appreciate this. FYI the lens 
used is the latest 50mm F1.8 AF-S G. it's a little dark on the video but I 
think you'll get the idea :P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0EenIrMyyg

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 4:03

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the focus is moving but it always goes to the same exact spot. Sorry for that!

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 4:04

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Hi checked the video, your English is for sure much better then my. :)
I think the problem with the focus is a camera settings. The application try to 
change the focus but the camera is restores to prior focus. I'm not sure what 
is the settings name but with a D7000 we had the same problem. 

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 5:15

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I speak like a robot! Thank you for your fast answer. If you know what i can 
change in my settings, let me know. I tried to change the focus priority but it 
did not work :( 
Thank you again!

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 6:06

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I check with a friend and on D7000 it was the a8 setting 'Live view/movie AF' 
with setting AF-F and AF-S. In AF-F the camera was always trying to focus. Not 
sure if there is such setting on D800, I check on D7100 and it does not have 
such setting.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 2 Apr 2013 at 11:48

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i checked on my d800 and no sign of the a8 setting :(

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 8 Apr 2013 at 6:41

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Can you try to enable 'host mode' and then try focus stacking ?

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 8 Apr 2013 at 6:56

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I can't turn the host mode OFF

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 8 Apr 2013 at 8:06

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In top row there is a button that is initially 'camera mode'.
When you press it, it will change to 'host mode'.
You can't change the camera mode while in live view, so you must change it 
before you enable live view.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 8 Apr 2013 at 8:18

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Even with live view disabled, i cant turn off the Host Mode. It's always 
highlighted even if I press/hold the button. I use a Nexus 7 with a OTG cable.

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 8 Apr 2013 at 8:44

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Can you try the attached apk. I did some small modification.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 9 Apr 2013 at 9:35

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It is still not working :(

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 9 Apr 2013 at 6:48

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Try this version.
Enter live view.
Switch to live view properties (bottom right corner while in live view)
Find the property that is the live view focus mode property, it values can be 
S-AF (single AF), C-AF continuous AF and MF). If it is in C-AF switch it to 
S-AF.
Try the focus stacking.

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 10 Apr 2013 at 5:55

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I must do something wrong because nothing changes. I can live without this 
feature, thank you for trying :)

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 12 Apr 2013 at 1:06

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Can you try the focus stacking in SDRAM saving mode.
Long press the capture button to enable it (the capture button will turn red)
Probably it would be better to switch to JPG capture as the files will be 
transferred to Android device.
Try the focus stacking.
Also you can try to enter live view. In live view move the focus with the focus 
buttons in bottom and finally take a picture and observing if the focus was 
changed or remained the one that you set

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 12 Apr 2013 at 2:14

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It works! ...almost! It's doing some bracketing but I can barely see it move 
only when I put the step at the highest setting. 

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 12 Apr 2013 at 10:02

[GoogleCodeExporter]

The focus step depends on the attached lens. It can have a value from 1 to 
32767.
Best you first test in live view the focus step that suits your needs.
I made some more changes so if you have time please try it.
Try it in 'host mode' and 'camera mode' and also try it with the recording 
destination set to camera (white capture button) and set to Android device (red 
capture button).

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 13 Apr 2013 at 7:03

Attachments:

• DslrDashboard_V0.30.20_d800_fs_2.apk

[GoogleCodeExporter]

It works! :) The problem was the slider that goes only to 100 and when I change 
the number manually I can set it to a higher value and it fixes the problem! 

Thanks alot for you time! :)

Original comment by yannickm...@gmail.com on 14 Apr 2013 at 9:15

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Sorry, I am too stupid to use that feature.
1. Connected the D600 via WU-1b
2. Clicked on LV
3. Turned off AF (nto red anymore)
4. Switched to A mode
5. Switch to AF-S
6. Focus via LV
7. Clicked on Fokus BKT with settings 2 images and 55
8. Camera takes one image, Status reads: Capture comlete and blelow I can see 
the text "Focus stacking image 1 of 2"
...and then the application does not do anything else...
9. I click on Stop Focus stacking in the middle of the screen
10. Still no button works, only thing I can do is use the back-button and turn 
off the WU-1b to end the application

Original comment by Werner.D...@gmail.com on 17 May 2013 at 2:00

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Try enabling 'host mode' before you enter LV.
I tested it with D7100 and WU-1a and it worked (2 images with 55 step).

Original comment by hub...@gmail.com on 20 May 2013 at 6:17