Helicon focus stacking vs. just stopping down more for macro shots

I keep seeing people say Helicons the only way to go for sharp macro work but I tried stopping my 105mm down to f/22 on a Pentax bellows setup last week and the results looked better than any stack Ive done. Anyone else find the pure optical route gives you more natural depth than software can fake?

2 comments

2 Comments

robinson.holly17d ago

Tbh f/22 on a bellows setup? That's insane, I thought diffraction would kill it.

faithb7816d ago

Huh, in my experience bellows actually handles f/22 pretty well depending on the lens.