Dear Canon Software Development Team,
As an active Canon EOS R7 and RF 100mm f/2.8L Macro photographer, I heavily rely on in-camera Focus Bracketing and post-processing with Digital Photo Professional (DPP 4). I deeply appreciate Canon’s unmatched color science, Picture Styles, and especially the Digital Lens Optimizer (DLO), which handles optical aberrations and diffraction better than any third-party software.
However, the "Depth Compositing" (Focus Stacking) tool in DPP 4 requires urgent modernization to match modern hardware capabilities and professional workflows:
1. GPU Acceleration (CUDA / DirectCompute / Vulkan):
Currently, Depth Compositing runs almost exclusively on limited CPU threads. Modern workstations equipped with high-end GPUs (e.g., NVIDIA RTX 40-series) remain idle while a 50-frame stack takes 5 to 10 minutes. Implementing GPU-accelerated frame alignment and pixel blending would reduce this process to under 20 seconds.
2. 16-bit TIFF and Linear DNG Output (Most Critical):
Depth Compositing currently exports only 8-bit JPEG files. This severely degrades the 14-bit raw dynamic range captured by our cameras. Please allow users to save the merged composite as a 16-bit TIFF or a Linear DNG, enabling further color grading and exposure adjustments without posterization or banding.
3. Multi-Core & Hybrid CPU Optimization:
Please optimize the demosaicing and alignment pipeline for modern high-core-count processors (Intel 13th/14th Gen hybrid architecture, AMD Ryzen 7000/9000).
4. Basic Retouching Brush:
In complex macro compositions, foreground-background overlaps naturally produce minor halos. A simple in-app retouching brush to clone sharp pixels from individual aligned source frames onto the composite would make DPP 4 a complete, industry-leading stacking solution.
With these updates, DPP would easily surpass third-party tools like Zerene Stacker and Helicon Focus, creating a truly unified, professional workflow for EOS R users.
Thank you for your continuous dedication to imaging excellence.
Best regards,
Emrah
Canon EOS R7 User
