FOCUS projects 4 professional vs Open Galileo
FOCUS projects 4 professional
franzis.deOpen Galileo
opengalileostacker.blogspot.comSide by side
| Figure | FOCUS projects 4 professional | Open Galileo |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · Focus Stacking Software | 8.0 (#7) | 7.5 (#17) |
| Alignment | The product advertises precise alignment of all images in a stack. | It automatically aligns images using correlation algorithms (ECC) and compensates for focus breathing and small shot variations. |
| Intended users | FRANZIS describes its photography and video products as suitable for beginners and professionals. | The maker names microscopists, laboratories, scientists, students, macro and nature photographers, astrophotographers, educators, and science communicators as intended users. |
| Purpose | FOCUS projects 4 professional creates macro photographs with extended depth of field and detailed results. | Open Galileo combines images for focus stacking and advanced signal integration, aimed at scientific photography, microscopy, macro photography, astrophotography, and technical documentation. |
| Support | FRANZIS directs software questions to its contact form and asks customers to provide the product version and operating system. | The maker invites voluntary donations to support the project's maintenance and improvement. |
Plans
In their own words
FOCUS projects 4 professional
FOCUS projects 4 professional is a standalone FRANZIS application for creating macro photographs with extended depth of field. Its HQ stacking uses 64-bit calculation, Focus-Boost technology increases sharpness, and stacks can contain up to 1,000 focus planes. The software advertises precise alignment and includes automatic alignment, batch processing and manual retouching. It supports RAW input and outputs RAW, TIFF, JPEG and other formats, with a bracketed HDR merge mode. An Adobe Lightroom plug-in is included. FRANZIS lists the application for Mac OS X 10.7 and Windows 10, 8.1, 8 and 7; the product page also presents it for macOS and Windows. The full version is an immediately available download, and a demo version is linked. The listed Vollversion plan costs €20 as a one-time purchase, with an offer price of €20,00 including VAT and a stated UVP of €99,00. The pricing note says from €69. There is no free plan, but a free trial is available. FRANZIS describes its photography products as suitable for beginners and professionals.
Open Galileo
Open Galileo is free, open-source Windows software for focus stacking and signal integration in scientific photography, microscopy, macro photography, astrophotography, and technical documentation. It automatically aligns image sets with correlation algorithms, compensating for focus breathing and small shot differences. Focus fusion options include PMax multiband, weighted average, and depth-map methods. Astronomy mode combines signals using mean, median, sum, or sigma-clipping integration. Processing uses Laplacian, Difference of Gaussians, and variance focus measures, plus multiscale fusion with Laplacian pyramids. Optional tools provide contrast normalization, CLAHE, Unsharp Mask sharpening, and noise reduction including BM3D and approximate Noise2Void. Folders can be processed and saved automatically. JPG, PNG, TIFF, and RAW files are supported. The interface includes live previews, progress bars, parameter sliders, and a large-screen layout. It is released under CC BY-NC 4.0; commercial use needs the author's prior permission.