Lytro, the new camera that can focus after taking pictures
The Lytro camera has gone on sale with a unique new feature that will make it stand out from the rest. When this camera captures an image, it does not just record a single version of it. It also captures data relating to the intensity and direction of light that enters its lenses. This facility means that the first image which has been captured does not have to be the final one. The user has the option to alter the focus of the picture and change which parts are blurred and which are in focus.
This is a feature that is set to create a stir among photography fans. While there are many different types of camera available, from digital SLRs to the small camera on the O2 – Samsung Galaxy and other mobile phone, the photography world is not very familiar with this particular type of technology. There are ways in which photographs can be altered after they have been taken, such as with Photoshop, but making the image more focussed has been something of a mystery.
The “light field” technology that is used here was developed by Ren Ng, the company founder, while he was at Stanford University. The Lytro records the light field that passes through many tiny micro-lenses. All of these can then me merged after the photograph has been taken to create a single, flat image. The company that created the Lytro has claimed that the camera can capture 11 megarays of data which is a very impressive amount for a small device like this. A feature that will be added at a later date will be that of producing 3D Images, something which seems to be on the rise nowadays and should help its overall popularity.
