ImageFocus Alpha vs PlaneFuse

ImageFocus Alpha is microscope image capture and analysis software from Euromex. It supports measurements and annotations on live views and captured images, with tools for segmentation, counting, image stitching, and extended depth of focus. Fluorescence functions include combining captured fluorescence images. Images can be saved as.jpg,.tif,.bmp, or.dicom files, and videos as.avi files. Euromex provides installations for Windows, Mac OS, and Linux, as well as Android and iOS apps for Wi-Fi enabled devices. The full package includes DirectShow, Twain, and µManager drivers. The Alpha download is designed for compatible Euromex equipment, including USB-3 Pro and scientific cameras, cooled and Wi-Fi cameras, HD-Pro and other VC cameras, a digital bScope, and DC.2000L. The listed ImageFocus Alpha plan is free, and Euromex says software updates are available free from its website. The iOS app is available only through the App Store. Euromex describes the software as supplied with camera solutions for universities, laboratories, and industry, and directs customers to its downloads page for assistance.

PlaneFuse is free focus-stacking software for macro, product, and landscape photography. It combines frames captured at different focus distances using PMax, DMap, weighted average, or Slab methods. Alignment options include translation, similarity, and perspective; it can reject poorly aligned frames and thin redundant brackets. For RAW stacks, it fuses frames from the same camera and sensor mode in scene-linear RGB and exports a re-editable Linear DNG. The process requires irreversible demosaicing. Its local browser workspace has deep zoom, source and result comparisons, a live histogram, and a reorderable job queue. Non-destructive retouching can work with source frames or results; exports include TIFF, PNG, JPEG, Linear DNG, and depth maps. NVIDIA CUDA and Apple MPS acceleration are supported, with CPU fallback and tiled processing if GPU memory runs out. PlaneFuse also offers command-line and local HTTP and WebSocket interfaces for scripting and batch work. Processing stays on the computer without uploading photos. The software is free for personal and commercial use; initial setup requires Node.js and uv.