[Taxacom] increasing depth of focus & 3D images

[Ethan Bright]

Jerry Cooper wrote:
> The software packages which increase depth of focus - such as Helicon,
> CombineZ and Automontage - all use a stack of images taken at different
> focal planes through the object. It must be possible to use this same
> stack to create a pseudo-3D composite image that can be rotated in 3D to
> some extent. From superficial digging I think the image analysis folks
> even have a name for the technique - 'shape from focus'. However, I
> can't find any software that actually does it. Photosynth is a very cool
> piece of software but not quite what I'm after. Our image slices are
> generated against a known frame of reference using a stepper motor
> moving the focal plane. That extra information must surely make the task
> simpler and more precise.
> So, does anybody know of any software that does this? 
>   
Try the software from MediaCybernetics 
(http://www.mediacy.com/index.aspx?page=Home), Image-Pro Express or 
Image-Pro Plus. I think it will do what you want. Same thing with 
Automontage software 
(http://www.synoptics.co.uk/syncroscopy/automontageshort.asp). Pretty 
good stuff, but unfortunately it isn't inexpensive.

Cheers, Ethan

-- 
Ethan Bright
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