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StackCheck (Beta)

A focus bracket often has a few frames that hurt the result. One went soft because the rig moved. One caught different light. Or the first or last few frames miss the subject. These frames can pull detail out of the finished image.

StackCheck looks for them after every stack. If it finds any, an amber notice appears above the canvas, with a button to stack again without them.

It stays quiet

Section titled “It stays quiet”

Most stacks get no notice at all. StackCheck only speaks when it has something specific to point at. No notice doesn’t mean every frame passed. It can also mean StackCheck couldn’t tell.

What it looks for

Section titled “What it looks for”

StackCheck uses measurements made while stacking, so it adds no extra time. It points out:

  • Unused frames: a frame that added almost nothing, while the frames on both sides added plenty.
  • Unused frames at either end, reported together, such as “the last 12 frames look unused”.
  • Weak frames: a frame that added far less than both neighbors. It’s often soft.
  • Frames out of line: a frame whose alignment jumps away from its neighbors. It was usually knocked.
  • Frames that couldn’t be aligned, when this cost detail.
  • A failed alignment step that put a whole run of frames out of place. See When alignment failed.
  • Frames lit differently: a frame much brighter or darker than its neighbors, such as when a flash didn’t fire.

It doesn’t point out a quiet stretch in the middle of a bracket, where the frames around it also added little. Dropping one there wouldn’t change anything. And when most of the bracket looks bad, it gives no list. That usually means the whole set failed to align, or the frames don’t belong together.

When alignment failed

Section titled “When alignment failed”

Sometimes the frames are fine, but one step of the alignment went wrong. Frames whose alignment built on that step land in the wrong place too. The result often shows a long smear or a ghosted second copy of the subject.

StackCheck says where it happened, for example: “StackCheck found that alignment failed at frame 50. That puts 16 frames out of place. It is an alignment problem, so StackCheck suggests no frames to leave out.”

This notice has no Restack without them button. Leaving out the frame where it failed would only move the same failed step to the next frame. If you see it, please report it and say which stack, so the alignment can be improved.

Stacking again without them

Section titled “Stacking again without them”

Restack without them stacks the remaining frames, as if you’d selected them in the Library. A camera-raw stack stays in camera-raw mode. The new stack appears as its own entry in the history strip. Your original stays as it was, so you can compare the two and keep the one you prefer.

The new stack gets no notice of its own (see It only asks once per stack).

Stacks you didn’t just make

Section titled “Stacks you didn’t just make”

StackCheck also reads stacked DNG files on disk. Click one in the Library, or open it in the Editor, and the same notice can appear. This is how it checks Autostack results. Nothing pops up during a batch. Instead, the stacks with a suggestion get an SC badge.

StackCheck only speaks about a file when:

  1. It’s a DNG. A Macro Studio DNG or Raw DNG works. A JPEG doesn’t, and neither does a Raw DNG saved by an earlier version.
  2. Its source frames are still where they were.
  3. StackCheck is turned on. Asking it directly works either way.

From a file, Restack without them opens the new stack in the Editor. It’s not saved for you, so save it if you prefer it.

The notice may name a file as well as a number, like “frame 2 (IMG_8942.JPG)”. Go to the named file. In some older stacks, StackCheck can’t spot frames lit differently. Stack them again in a current version to get every check.

The SC badge on thumbnails

Section titled “The SC badge on thumbnails”

A stack with a suggestion, or an alignment notice, gets a small blue SC badge on its thumbnail. Hover the badge to read what StackCheck found. Click the thumbnail for the notice.

No badge doesn’t prove the stack is fine. Usually StackCheck read it and found nothing. But it may not be able to read the file, may not have reached it yet, or you may have closed its notice. Closing a notice with the ✕ removes the badge until you quit Macro Studio. So you can close each notice when you’re done, and the badges left show what you haven’t looked at.

After a restack, the original keeps its badge but shows no notice, because you’ve already acted on it. To see the notice again, use Run StackCheck. With StackCheck turned off, no badges are shown.

The notice belongs to one stack

Section titled “The notice belongs to one stack”

The notice is about the image on the canvas. Click another stack in the history strip, and you see that stack’s notice, or none. A stack that finishes in the background stays quiet until you click it. Close the notice with the ✕, and it stays closed for that stack.

In the Library, the notice belongs to the selected file.

Asking it to run again

Section titled “Asking it to run again”

Run StackCheck asks StackCheck directly, and it always answers. You’ll find it in three places:

  1. The StackCheck button in the Editor toolbar, left of Compare.
  2. Right-click a result in the Editor’s history strip → Run StackCheck.
  3. Right-click a photo in the Library → Run StackCheck.

Use it to:

  • Bring back a notice you closed.
  • Ask while StackCheck is turned off.
  • Get a fresh answer on an old stack after an update improves StackCheck.

The answer is instant.

When it has nothing to say

Section titled “When it has nothing to say”
  • “StackCheck looked at this stack and found nothing to suggest.” The frames all look fine. This is the only reply that means the stack passed.
  • “It needs a stack of at least 4 frames, with the per-frame measurements…” The image has too few frames, is a single image, or is an older stack without these measurements.
  • “It needs a stack saved as a DNG…” (from the Library). The file is a JPEG, a camera RAW, a DNG from another app, or a Raw DNG saved by an earlier version.
  • “Leave Compare to run StackCheck on a stack.” The notice can only cover one image.
  • “StackCheck has no new suggestions for this stack.” It has already advised on this stack. This doesn’t mean the stack is fine.

It only asks once per stack

Section titled “It only asks once per stack”

StackCheck won’t review a stack it asked you to make. That includes a - StackCheck file from an Autostack batch. This stops it from stripping a good stack one frame at a time: drop the weakest frame, and the next one becomes the weakest. For a second opinion, stack those frames again from the Library.

A dot on the button

Section titled “A dot on the button”

When the stack on the canvas has a suggestion or an alignment notice, a small blue dot appears on the StackCheck button. It stays after you close the notice, and it shows even with StackCheck turned off.

Turning it on and off

Section titled “Turning it on and off”

Use Preferences → General → Enable StackCheck (Beta) (see Preferences). It only controls the notice and badges. It doesn’t change how stacks are made.

You can also click Don’t show again on a notice. That turns the same setting off, and the badges go away too. Turn it back on in Preferences any time. Run StackCheck still works while it’s off.

See also

Section titled “See also”