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Simple 3D camcorder

June 21, 2010 By

With two lenses, this camcorder captures and creates 3D video.

Hammacher Schlemmer is offering a camcorder that “records video in three dimensions to provide a true stereoscopic viewing experience.”

The $600 model’s two lenses work with a 3 megapixel sensor to record slightly differing images as 640 by 480 AVI files, which are interlaced to create 3D video.

The camcorder has a 3.25 screen that displays in 3D without requiring glasses.

An included media player has a similar 7-inch screen, overlaid with a parallax barrier to display video in 3D.

The camcorder follows Fujifilm’s 3D point-and-shoot digital camera that debuted last year.

Filed Under: Cameras Tagged With:

Edit video — on YouTube

June 21, 2010 By

Google added basic video-editing tools to its YouTube video-sharing site.

The video editor is not a full featured application, but is instead hosted on YouTube’s servers.

The video clips also remain on YouTube’s server.

The cloud-based tool can trim clips and combine them into movies.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With: ,

TrafficLand awarded patent for video serving

June 21, 2010 By

TrafficLand received a U.S. Patent for its method for multi-camera live video feed over a network.

The company says its “Image Engine” video caching and serving software significantly decreases video transmission costs and improves the timeliness and reliability of the millions of frames of traffic video TrafficLand serves daily from over 8,000 traffic cameras nationwide to its media partners, government agencies, daily commuters and others.

Image Engine aggregates, standardizes and distributes real-time video from any number of cameras to millions of users simultaneously, the company adds , and provides distribution control options for video size and refresh rates, which expand its availability across technology platforms.

TrafficLand says it is the largest authorized aggregator and distributor of live traffic video in the U.S., with over 8,000 traffic cameras in more than 200 cities on its network.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With:

AutoStitch advances iPhone panoramic photography

June 21, 2010 By

Cloudburst Research’s AutoStitch Version 3 brings advanced image compositing techniques previously seen only on desktop computers to the iPhone, the company says, “to give the highest quality output ever seen on a mobile device.”

Blending and exposure compensation algorithms removes brightness differences while preserving the sharpness of the original images, giving seamless panoramas “that rival the results of the best desktop software.”

The $3 AutoStitch app combines multiple overlapping images to provide “two valuable capabilities: wide-angle photography and high-resolution imaging.”

Cloudburst Research is located in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and is a spin-off from the University of British Columbia.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With: ,

Sharing event photos

June 21, 2010 By

After an event where multiple photographers captured images, it can be difficult for everyone to get a copy of all the pictures.

The new free website LensFolder aims to fix that, allowing individual uploads to one private folder, and, once everyone has done so, letting anyone with the login download all the photos.

The first person to visit the site after the event creates an folder for all photos from the event, the company says, and distributes the username and password to other attendees. After a month’s inactivity, LensFolder purges the online copies.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet, Spotlight Tagged With:

PicScout removes friction from online image sales

June 21, 2010 By

Simplifying image licensing for designers, PicScout’s ImageExchange transforms every image encounter on any site “into an opportunity to license and use images in a single click,” the company says.

Currently online image ownership is not clear, and licensing can be difficult or impossible, PicScout adds. “ImageExchange solves the problem.” When it’s installed, users see an “i” icon to immediately identify images wherever they appear. One click reveals the creator’s name and the license type, and another connects them to license and use images immediately.

PicScout claims the largest index of fingerprinted and owner identified images. It protects and promotes images with proprietary and scalable image recognition fingerprinting technology.

PicScout says Corbis’ Veer company, Superstock, and Vivozoom Images are now working with its ImageIRC (Image, Registry, and Connection) platform.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With: ,

3D sans glasses

June 21, 2010 By

Microsoft tracks two heads to deliver 3D views.Microsoft’s Applied Sciences group developed a 3D display that does not require glasses or goggles.

LEDs along the screen’s bottom switch off and on, beaming at varying angles through a thin lens over the screen. Moreso, it can deliver a 3D image for two viewers at once — by tracking eyes to target the light to each individual.

However, the viewing angle is now limited to 20–40 degrees.

A demonstration video is here.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Vizio 3DTV to use low-cost polarized glasses

June 21, 2010 By

While most pricey 3DTVs require aprox. $200 glasses with electronic shutters, an upcoming model from Vizio will instead use simple — and cheap — polarized lenses.

Vizio says its 3D television “produces stunning images thanks to less expensive polarized glasses, which offer greater style and comfort.”

Hedging its bets, another Vizio model will use more-standard a frame sequential display and active-shutter glasses.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With:

FlashFoto finds faces — and extracts them

June 21, 2010 By

FlashFoto says its technology “makes inserting people into scenes so easy it is practically automatic.”

The patent-pending system detects people in images, separates the subject from the background and enables the creation of new photo products in real time, the company says. “Before now, only expert users of high-end photo editing tools could compose someone into a scene.” With FlashFoto, users can “place friends and family into surprising, humorous, and fantastical situations with a simple point and click.”

The Oakland, Calif.-based company

Flashfoto extracts a person from one image to place them in another setting.

says its process “finds the face and hair to be substituted and extracts it from the photograph. That face and hair is then composited into the target photograph.”

It is coming out first in “Face and Hair,” an embeddable module that provides detailed face measurements with face and hair region masks, enabling easy integration into target applications. The multi-threaded library can be delivered either online or as a feature within a desktop application.

Mugshot, a waist-up background removal will be released in the third quarter; full body background removal will debut before the end of the year.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With:

Singular Software’s DualEyes improves audio on SLR video

June 21, 2010 By

Singular Software says it has “streamlined the task of replacing in-camera scratch audio with separately recorded high-quality audio.”

SLRs now capture great HD video — but their on-board microphones don’t deliver similar quality. For that matter, few if any on board mics do — and so pro shooters use an external microphone, and often, an independent audio recorder. However, all that results in tedious and difficult video editing.

Singular Software’s DualEyes provides audio replacement, with automatic synchronization of video and audio clips for dual-system audio production.

The beta is available for download.

Singular Software is in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Where no sensor has gone before

June 21, 2010 By

The microsatellite Picard launched this month on a mission to study the Sun. Its “Solar Diameter Imager and Surface Mapper” telescope uses a CCD from e2v.

The company says the 2048 x 4096 frame transfer matrice has back-thinned illuminated technology for optimum sensitivity. It works in UV light, and in a multi phase pin mode that reduces dark current to a low level. The sensor also has high quantum efficiency in the spectral range, e2v says.

The satellite, named for 17th Century French astronomer Jean Picard [not the starship captain], will study solar variability in order to improve knowledge of the Sun and to understand the influence of solar activity on Earth’s climate.

e2v is headquartered in the United Kingdom.

Filed Under: Components Tagged With:

Microsoft launches camera-based controller-free game device

June 14, 2010 By
The Kinect lets you control computer games with gestures.

The Kinect for Xbox 360 is a controller-free gaming device that Microsoft positions as “an entirely new way to experience entertainment in the living room.”

Previously code-named “Project Natal,” the slim black Kinect contains a camera, audio sensors, and motion-sensing technology that tracks 48 points of movement on the human body. It has the ability to recognize faces and voices.

The device plugs directly into any Xbox 360 gaming system. With Kinect, game-players no longer need to memorize different commands for a hand-held control. “You are the controller,” the company says. “You simply step in front of the sensor and Kinect sees you move, hears your voice, and recognizes your face.”

Kinect can perform full-motion tracking of the human body at 30 frames per second, Microsoft says, and is not affected by what a user is wearing, or surrounding furniture.

Also, a Video Chat application will reportedly use the device for video conferencing.

More information is here.

Filed Under: Cameras, Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

iPhone adds video calling, improved photography

June 14, 2010 By

Apple added improved photography and video functions to its iPhone — which is already one of the most popular cameras of all kinds, as measured by photo uploads to the Flickr sharing site.

The iPhone 4 has two cameras.

The 5-megapixel autofocus camera in the iPhone 4 has a backside illuminated sensor and LED flash that “allow you to take amazing pictures even in low light and dark environments,” the company says.

The camera also captures high-definition video. The tap-to-focus function  and LED flash work for both still photography and video recording. The new $5 iMovie app provides video editing on the iPhone, with added transitions, themes, photos, and music.

Apple's FaceTime video conferencing premieres on the iPhone 4.

The phone also sports a front-facing low-res camera for Apple’s new video-calling program, FaceTime, which “makes the dream of video calling a reality,” Apple says. “FaceTime video calling sets a new standard for mobile communication. FaceTime is as mobile as your phone, so you can see your loved ones and friends anywhere there is WiFi. Using FaceTime is as easy as making a regular voice call, with no set-up required, and you can instantly switch to the rear camera to show others what you are seeing with just a tap.”

Also worth noting is the 3.5 inch “Retina” display, which Apple says has 960 by 640 pixels, “four times as many pixels as the iPhone 3GS and 78 percent of the pixels on an iPad.” Apple says the display’s 326 pixels per inch “is so dense that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels when the phone is held at a normal distance, making text, images and video look sharper, smoother and more realistic than ever before on an electronic display.”

The iPhone for is $199 and $299, depending on storage capacity.

Filed Under: Cameras, Mobile & Internet, Spotlight Tagged With: , , , ,

Kodak to print Facebook photos at retail

June 14, 2010 By

Kodak has friended Facebook, and its photo-printing kiosks will print photos from Facebook pages and other online photo services.

The NY Times reports that Kodak’s retail photo-printing kiosks at some CVS and Target stores now access Facebook accounts, as well as Picasa and Kodak Gallery online albums.

The Picture Kiosk Software v4 update, first announced in March this year at the PMA 2010 trade show, logs into Facebook with a tap on the touchscreen. The kiosk displays only photos, not status updates.

Facebook photos are heavily compressed for online viewing and low storage requirements, of course, and so when printed “were a bit flat with noticeable artifacts,” the Times says.

Kodak’s new kiosk software should be in all retail locations by September.

Filed Under: Industry, Mobile & Internet, Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

Shutterfly makes books from Facebook

June 14, 2010 By

Facebook users can now make photo books at Shutterfly.

Facebook users can now access their online photos – and those of their friends – to create photo books in minutes, Shutterfly says, “ensuring that these photos have a life beyond the daily news feed.”

Online photo service Shutterfly says the “four hundred million members of Facebook currently lack an easy way to transform their photos into lasting memories,” and its Simple Path photo book creation tool will let those users have “more ways to be creative with their 20 billion photos.”

The application automatically populates the photos onto pages, and then allows for quick customization including the ability to change styles, add captions and rearrange pictures and pages.

To account for Facebook’s lower resolution images, Shutterfly automatically detects image size and chooses the optimal layout for each photo.

As consumers store photos in multiple locations, Shutterfly says it is “offering a photo book solution that can access users’ photos wherever they might be stored.”

Shutterfly says its  Simple Path photo books can be created and ordered in less than five minutes.

Filed Under: Industry, Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

OmniVision 5MP chip captures video

June 14, 2010 By

OmniVision Technologies announced a 5-megapixel system-on-a-chip camera solution aimed at the “high-volume autofocus camera phone market.”

The company cites predictions that one-third of mobile phones will employ cameras with 5-megapixel resolution by 2012.

The ultra compact camera module is 8.5 x 8.5 mm with a height of less than 5 mm.

The 1.4-micron OV5640 has a backside illumination sensor that captures 720p or 1080p high-definition video, combined with an embedded AF control with voice coil motor driver. Also, an internal anti-shake engine stabilizes images.

A post-binning re-sampling filter function removes zigzag artifacts around slant edges and minimizes spatial artifacts to deliver sharper, crisper color images, the company says.

The OV5640 is set for mass production in the second half of 2010.

Filed Under: Components Tagged With: ,

Photoshop CS5 adds Knowledge Panel

June 14, 2010 By

After shipping Photoshop CS5, Adobe added a significant new function: the Knowledge panel, which  delivers interactive step-by-step guidance that walks the user through  70 tutorials written by expert authors. And unlike other tutorials, says Adobe product manager John Nack, “these can drive Photoshop: clicking links executes commands.”

Most large, powerful applications “simply throw the user into the deep end of the functionality pool,” Nack adds. “Very little in the interface suggests how pieces can or should be used in sequence to achieve a goal.” Now the Knowledge panel guides both new and experienced users through complicated tasks.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Small projector embeds in mobile devices

June 14, 2010 By

A new LED-based pico projector measures less than 4 cubic centimeters, while producing 854 by 480 pixel resolution.

Aimed at mobile phones and cameras, the module is described as “a viewing gateway that enables a large screen experience from hand-held devices… with vivid saturated colors.” However, no information on its brightness or other imaging capabilities was announced.

It’s built on an SYL2030 panel from Dallas-based Syndiant, working with Foryou Multimedia Electronics and the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute of Hong Kong.

The companies expect to ship the projector module before the end of 2010.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

NEC claims brightest’ LED projector

June 14, 2010 By

NEC Display Solutions showed a projector it claims is the world’s brightest LED-based model, with 2,000 lumens.

The device also projects a wide color gamut displays 98 percent of the Adobe RGB standard.

However, Nikkei Electronics reports NEC is not yet planning to commercialize the projector technology.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Samsung sees big picture with pico projector

June 14, 2010 By

Samsung's tiny portable projector.

Samsung Electronics bills its SP-H03 as a “self-contained personal media device.”

The $300 palm-sized pico projector has built-in hardware for playing videos, photos, and even Word documents.

Samsung says its LED output is “ideal for sharing images, videos, music, and documents on a variety on surfaces in business or personal settings.”

Samsung cites its “unparalleled brightness” in the pico category, with 30 lumens and a 854 by 480 resolution. The projected image size ranges from nine to 80 inches.

The device measures 2.5 x 1.5 x 2.5 inches and weighs 6 ounces.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Sony shows 3DTVs

June 14, 2010 By

Sony debuted a line of seven 3D TVs, including a 60-inch screen that costs $5,000, and a 52-inch unit for $4,000 – both of which come with 3D shutter glasses and a transmitter.

However, the five other models, priced from $3,400 to $2,100, do not come with the glasses and transmitter that are required  for 3D viewing.

Sony is also now selling 3D games for the PlayStation 3, reports IDG News Service.

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Adobe ships better, faster Lightroom 3

June 14, 2010 By

Adobe Systems is providing a significant upgrade to Photoshop Lightroom, its photography workflow solution that allows photographers to quickly organize, enhance and showcase their images from one application.

Lightroom 3 introduces a completely redesigned performance architecture that better handles growing image libraries, the company says, and provides an unrivaled raw processing engine with noise reduction and sharpening tools to achieve the highest image quality.

The 64-bit capable Lightroom 3 includes new features that optimize workflows and allow images to be shared in creative ways, including support for DSLR video files, and tethered shooting on select cameras.

More than 600,000 beta versions were downloaded, “which has supplied us with a huge amount of valuable feedback from a passionate community of professional and advanced amateur photographers,” says Adobe vice president of product management Kevin Connor.

Adobe says its luminance and color noise reduction tools are “unrivaled,” and help produce a clearer picture from high ISO or underexposed images while still preserving details.

The Automatic Lens Correction feature can dramatically improve the results possible with any lens by allowing users to apply profiles that correct for undesirable geometric distortions, chromatic aberrations, and lens vignette effects that most lenses introduce to the image, Adobe says.

Lightroom 3 for Windows and Macintosh is available for $299.

For complete details on Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5, please see the new edition of The 6Sight Report, available now.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With:

HP prints from the Cloud

June 14, 2010 By

The ePrint platform from HP aims to enable printing from devices that have no built-in support for printing, without requiring drivers or apps.

Every ePrint printer will have a unique simple email address that allows the sender to deliver a print the same way they would send an email message, HP says.  The web-enabled printers can receive and print from any email device: iPad, Android phone, you name it.

The e-printers start at $100

Among the new printers is the Photosmart Premium e-All-in-One, which features a 4.3-inch touchscreen, and is $200.

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Motorola flashes Android

June 14, 2010 By

Motorola claims its Milestone XT720 is the first Android smartphone with a Xenon flash.

The phone has an 8-megapixel camera, and a 3.7-inch touchscreen with a 480 by 854 pixel resolution.

The phone was announced in the U.K. with no word on U.S. availability.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With: , , ,

Sony offers low-end Alphas

June 14, 2010 By

Sony introduced two new SLRs, the Alpha A290 and A390, priced at $500 and $600 respectively, with an 18-55mm lens included.

Both have a redesigned handgrip, and a 14 megapixel sensor.

Sony introduced two entry-level Alpha SLRs.

Filed Under: Cameras Tagged With: ,
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