This work presents recent advancements in the Self-Aligned Focusing Schlieren (SAFS) technique for quantitative flow visualization and introduces HORUS, a predictive modeling tool developed to support the design and optimization of SAFS systems. The study pursued three main objectives: (i) to develop practical expertise for the effective implementation of SAFS in compressible-flow facilities, (ii) to establish and validate HORUS for predicting key optical parameters and system performance, and (iii) to experimentally assess SAFS capabilities in representative flow environments. Two experimental campaigns were conducted at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics. The first involved a supersonic ogive configuration and demonstrated close quantitative agreement between HORUS predictions and measured optical performance. The second was performed on a linear transonic turbine cascade and confirmed the model’s accuracy in predicting field of view, depth of field, vignetting effects, and cutoff-level behavior. The experiments also validated a revised cutoff formulation for opposite-side Rochon prism–Ronchi ruling configurations. Overall, the strong correlation between model and experiment establishes HORUS as a reliable predictive framework for SAFS design, facilitating the application of the technique to complex compressible-flow investigations.