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Adobe updates Lightroom to upload to Facebook

August 16, 2010 By

When one social website sees more photography traffic than any other on the web — well, a leading image management and enhancement application should upload directly to that site…

Now it does: Adobe has updated the just-released Lightroom 3 to upload shots directly to a FaceBook account.

The update also improves on several of the lens correction profiles, and adds more than 50 lens profiles to automatically correct for distortion and aberration.

Lightroom 3.2 and Camera Raw 6.2 also extend raw file support to 12 new cameras from Panasonic, Pentax, Samsung, and Sony.

Lightroom 3.2 is a free download for Lightroom 3 customers; Camera Raw 6.2 is free for Photoshop CS5 customers.

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

Fotopedia brings Heritage to iPhone and iPad

August 16, 2010 By

See historic sites on the iPad.

The Fotopedia Heritage iPad and iPhone application from fotonauts uses 20,000 photos to illustrate the real-world locations of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites project.

The free app “offers a beautiful way to navigate and discover World Heritage sites,” the organizations say. “This application helps raise awareness about our cause and encourages everyone to ensure our world’s heritage is here for the next generation.”

“It is a new generation coffee table book,” Fotopedia says, “with more photos than a book could hold, and much nicer navigation. It reuses all the work we are doing on the encyclopedia, to inspire travelers looking to choose their next destination, and to protect World Heritage Sites. There is no end to the journey proposed by Fotopedia Heritage — there is no last page in this book.”

Fotonauts launched its “Fotopedia” web service two years ago, and says it helps photographers organize, upload, synchronize, and share photos.

Referred to as a Wikipedia of pictures, it also lets users add to their shots data from Wikipedia, Google Maps, and other sources. Users can publish their albums as Web pages from the service, and also search for photos under Creative Commons licenses with similar tags and add them to their collections.

Paris-based start-up Fotonauts says its primary product is “is breathing new life into photos by building a photo encyclopedia that lets photographers and photo enthusiasts collaborate and enrich images to be useful for the whole world wide web.”

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

Depth-determined automatic photo painting

August 16, 2010 By

The depth in the image is read before the art strokes are applied.

Gertrudis Graphics says its GMX-PhotoPainter for Mac OS transforms any image into an original artwork.

The Buenos Aires, Argentina company’s program performs a topological analysis of the image’s content and builds a matrix of flow direction vectors. Users can then paint a few quick strokes across the desired features of their image. The program uses this information to generate something that “looks more like hand-drawn masterpieces” the company says.

Styles imitate traditional media such as watercolor, oil painting, crayon, and pen & ink. Also, users can create a custom style controlling the shape of the brush, texture, color sampling technique, width, length, and many more features. There are in fact more than 40 different parameters.

More information is here.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Bee’s Eye View

August 16, 2010 By

A new micro-camera might let micro-sized unmanned aerial vehicles see as bees do.

Researchers at Bielefeld University in Germany report they’ve developed bee-like optics “well suited for mobile robots, in particular on flying vehicles that need light-weight sensors.”

A curved reflective surface machined into acrylic glass is combined with lenses covering the frontal field that otherwise would have been obstructed by the mirror. Software remaps the camera images according to the spatial resolution of honeybee eyes.

New optics simulate a bee's perception.

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“Virtual dressing room” augments Seventeen.com

August 9, 2010 By

metaio adds new outfits to a webcam image.

An augmented reality online shopping application billed as a “virtual dressing room” lets teens “try on” clothes that automatically overlay their real-time video image through their webcam.

Hearst Magazines Digital Media and augmented reality application developer metaio say it is “the first instant online dressing room, where the fitting of the clothing happens automatically and within the live-video stream.”

Shoppers at the Seventeen.com website do not need a marker or an upload of a still image. They can try various outfits by pointing at the icons within the app to scan through the digital catalog of clothing pieces, enabled by motion capture technology.

The Flash-based system combines augmented reality, motion capture, social media, and eCommerce. It detects the shopper in front of her webcam at home. When she selects a piece of clothing, the tool overlays it on her onscreen image. With a simple wave of a hand, the companies say, shoppers can select, rate and share their top picks with friends via Facebook or email, and even purchase the items directly.

A video about “The Virtual Dressing Room” is here.

Founded in February 2003, metaio employs 60+ people; it is headquartered in Munich, with subsidiaries in San Francisco and Seoul.

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

Theme park ride uses 3D cameras

August 9, 2010 By

22 integrated 3D depth cameras are part of a new multi-million dollar ‘Space Fantasy’ attraction at Universal Studios Japan.

GestureTek says its depth-sensing technology provides “an innovative and exciting way for guests to interact in free space with dynamic multi-media imagery.”

85 feet of motion-driven ‘Harmony Walls’ use an array of 22 integrated 3D depth cameras, 13 projection systems, and 16 rack-mounted quad-core computers.

As part of the ride, riders can control content on the screens around them, simply by gesturing with their arms.

The 3D tracking system can be configured to respond to a broad range of one-handed or two-handed gestures, including swipes, circular motions, pokes, waves and more,” the company says. The heads of up to 66 guests and 132 hands are tracked.

GestureTek was founded in 1986 and has offices in Sunnyvale, California; Toronto and Ottawa, Canada; and Asia.

Filed Under: Cameras, Spotlight Tagged With: ,

Oregon Scientific gets tough

August 9, 2010 By

This HD camcorder is designed for outdoor action.

“Outdoor enthusiasts get extreme,” says Oregon Scientific, whose new high definition video camera “can be strapped to a helmet, handlebars, surfboard, or snowboard, so it can follow athletes places they wouldn’t dare bring a normal camera.”

The $300 camera is shock resistant, and waterproof to 65 feet.

The ATC9K All-Terrain is a five megapixel camera that captures 1080p resolution video with a fixed focus, fixed focal length lens. It has a 1.5-inch LCD and comes with an infrared remote control.

Also, holding a camera steady is a big challenge, the company says. The ATC9K’s built-in G-sensor measures the force of gravity during acceleration, deceleration and hang time, allowing users to record and review every detail of their performance. A laser pointer on the camera also helps users line up the camera’s view, “so they never miss a moment of the action.”

Founded in 1989, Oregon Scientific is headquartered in Tualatin, near Portland, Oregon. It is a division of electronics manufacturers Integrated Display Technology, founded in 1977 in Hong Kong.

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Logitech alerts video security

August 9, 2010 By
Logitech's security camera can send shots to a secure web site.

Logitech's security camera can send shots to a secure website.

Logitech bills its Alert as a complete video security system “that lets you keep an eye on what matters most.”

The camera has a 130-degree wide-angle lens, and captures 720p video when motion triggered.

The software can define up to 16 motion zones to pay attention to critical areas while ignoring others, and so reducing false recordings. The camera stores up to a week of video (based on the amount of motion-triggered recording in a typical home) on its 2GB MicroSD card.

Connecting it “is as easy as plugging in a toaster” the company says, as its HomePlug AV uses existing electrical wiring and outlets to connect cameras to a network.

The camera is $300, or $350 for a weather-proofed version — plus $80 per year for Logitech’s web and mobile service which are required if you want to watch live or archived video through a browser on a secure website, or through a smartphone application.

Filed Under: Cameras Tagged With: ,

Swann surveils out back

August 9, 2010 By

Tough, battery-powered security cam.

Swann Security is offering a battery-powered self-contained security camera.

The $150 OutbackCam has a weather-proof case, inside of which is a 2 megapixel camera that stores 640 by 480 video on a 2–32 gigabyte removable SD card.

Recording is triggered either by motion detection, or at pre-scheduled dates and times.

With 15 infrared LEDs, the camera’s night vision is capable of capturing images up to 32 feet away.

The camera runs on 4 AA batteries, and can be mounted to trees, posts or flat surfaces with the included strap.

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Uh oh — toy spycam sneaks stealthily

August 9, 2010 By

This kid's camera snakes up to spy sneakily.

Toymaker Jakks Pacific says its $50 Spy Net Video Watch is a real, working hidden video camera and audio system with onboard memory — with which ‘agents’ can record and save up to 20 minutes of video.

Kids can then play their ‘evidence’ on the 1.4 inch LCD.

What’s worse? This: “For missions requiring advanced stealth, the $25 flexible snake-like camera attachment gets into the most hard to reach places… to see around, below and above objects.”

Oh no, we can’t see this one being misused…

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Sanyo waterproofs Xacti

August 9, 2010 By

This pistol-grip camcorder goes down deep.

Want to capture HD video underwater? Sanyo’s VPC-CA102YL stays dry inside at depths down to ten feet underwater.

The $350 the compact camera has a vertical form factor. It has a 14 megapixel sensor for stills, a pivoting 2.7-inch LCD, and a 5x optical zoom that starts at a narrow 38mm equivalent.

Filed Under: Cameras

Samsung retracts USB cable

August 9, 2010 By

Like the Flip pocket camcorder, Samsung slips in a flip-out USB jack.

Samsung Electronics added a retractable USB jack in the body of its latest camera.

“We want consumers to enjoy the entire photographic experience, with the ability to capture, connect, and share pictures instantly and even charge on the move,” the company says. “In this fast-paced world, we understand that our customers need to have these capabilities at their fingertips.”

The twelve megapixel PL90 has a 4x optical zoom lens that starts at 28mm, and a 2.7-inch LCD.

The $150 ultra compact camera measures 3.9 by 2.2 by 0.7 inches.

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Baseball fans choose their camera angle

August 9, 2010 By

Pick your own camera angle at a Cubs game.

A new TV offering “puts fans in the director’s chair to control how they watch the team compete at Wrigley Field.”

AT&T and WGN-TV launched “Chicago Cubs Multiview,” which lets viewers see four different camera angles of the Chicago Cubs home games at one time. Viewers choose from the main WGN-TV Chicago game broadcast, and six alternate camera angles. ”It’s like you’re sitting in the production booth and calling the shots,” the companies say.

Multiview works only on AT&T’s “U-verse” Internet Protocol TV system. The app is available at no extra charge.

AT&T first introduced its Multiview app in fall 2009.

Filed Under: Mobile & Internet Tagged With: ,

BlackBerry lights Torch

August 9, 2010 By

The latest Blackberry's video capture is only VGA.

Research In Motion call its new phone “one of the most significant launches in RIM’s history” — but we only look at the imaging aspects of phones here, and there’s not much to talk about with the BlackBerry Torch 9800.

The smartphone has a 5 megapixel camera with flash, continuous autofocus, face detection, and geotagging.

Video recording is at 640 by 480 resolution, not HD.

The 3.2-inch touchscreen has a 480 by 360 resolution

The $200 phone measures 4.4 x 2.4 x 0.57 inches.

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Kodak saves scanned pictures

August 9, 2010 By

Kodak says businesses can earn service-driven revenue when they help consumers digitize printed memories such as photo prints, picture collections and keepsake documents. Also, the digital images provide further monetizing opportunities for premium photo products and services available only for digital images and files.

“Retailers and service providers tell us these systems return the investment within a mere 3 – 4 months,” the company says.

Key to the Picture Saver Scanning System is the new “Gentle Photo Separation Module” that Kodak says optimizes the scanner’s transport module to protect the physical condition of photo prints.

The $3,495 PS810 scans 65 4-by-6 inch prints per minute from its automatic document feeder that holds up to 100 photos.

The PS410, at $1,995, scans 30 photos per minute.

More information is here: kodak.com/go/PictureSaver.

Filed Under: Industry Tagged With: ,

Pixim develops sensitive single-chip solution

August 9, 2010 By

Pixim says its Seawolf is the first single-chip, enterprise video camera solution — and it will let security camera manufacturers develop new cameras for all lighting conditions.

Seawolf provides 10 times the low-light performance of previous generation security camera chip sets, the company says, as well as a wide dynamic range and accurate color performance at half the hardware build cost.

Pixim says the pixels in sensors made with its Digital Pixel System technology “act like individual cameras constantly self-adjusting, to efficiently capture the whole picture, regardless of lighting condition or application – thus securing the highest resolution, natural color and clarity, while automatically eliminating image-compromising visual noise such as glare and reflections.”

The sensor has a global electronic shutter, progressive scan image capture, and D1 resolution at 30 frames per second.

Filed Under: Components Tagged With: , ,

“Frankencamera” programmable open-source camera free to try on phone

August 2, 2010 By


Anyone can now create new imaging applications with Stanford University’s open-source digital photography software platform, dubbed the “Frankencamera.”

The free download runs on Nokia’s N900 smart phone, which runs Linux. The camera’s metering, focusing, demosaicing, denoising, white balancing, and other post-processing algorithms are programmable.

“Over the past five years, the cameras in cell phones have improved dramatically in resolution, optical quality, and photographic functionality,” the researchers say. “Moreover, camera phones offer features that dedicated cameras do not: wireless connectivity, a high-resolution display, 3D graphics, and high-quality audio. Finally and perhaps most importantly, these platforms run real operating systems, which vendors have begun opening to third-party developers.”

With an open camera, computational photography techniques such HDR combinations of multiple exposures can be done in the camera. “Computational photography yields a photograph that could not have been taken by a traditional camera,” the researchers say. “Representative techniques include flash-noflash imaging, coded aperture and coded exposure imaging, photography under structured illumination, multi-perspective and panoramic stitching, digital photomontage, all-focus imaging, and light field imaging.”

Also, the researchers were awarded a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation, shared with colleagues at MIT, to begin making professional-style cameras with the software platform.

The project began as a collaboration between the Stanford Computer Graphics Laboratory and the Nokia Research Center Palo Alto Laboratory. It also receives funding from Adobe Systems, Kodak, Hewlett-Packard, and the Walt Disney Company.

More information is here.

At the next 6Sight Future of Imaging conference, we’ll be examining the growing dichotomy between typical closed cameras [are they “dumb?”] and open smart cameras, i.e., camera phones. We hope you will join us in San Jose, CA this fall.

Filed Under: Cameras, Spotlight Tagged With: , , , ,

An even-bigger biggest photo

August 2, 2010 By

Zoom in on this 72 gigapixel pic of Budapest.

It was less than three months ago that the “world’s largest image” title was held by a 45-gigapixel panorama of Dubai, and, earlier this year, by a 26-gigapixel image of Paris — but both are now superceded by a 71-gigapixel photo Budapest.

The panoramic shot of the city in Hungary was shot two Sony A900 SLRs. The final image measures 156 by 31 meters at 300 ppi. It is the work of 360world, a European team of imaging enthusiasts.

The process was sponsored by Epson, Microsoft, and Sony,

More details are here.

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

3D models made from photographs

August 2, 2010 By

Autodesk automates making 3D models from photos.

“Project Photofly” from Autodesk aims to provide easier and more accurate tools for making a 3D model based on a photograph.

Now a “technology preview of a web service,” Photofly allows users to easily create 3D models from photographs using the cloud, Autodesk says. It “brings the possibility of reality capture to designers, creative artists and engineers who didn’t have the resources or expertise for image-based modeling, and expedites the process for those who are used to spending endless hours manually stitching together images to create a 3D model”

Autodesk claims Photofly “breaks the barrier to entry to image-based modeling because of its automatic calibration process.” Other techniques require complex manual calibration, the company says, while Photofly’s “Camera Factory” automatic calibration engine works on the web service through a Windows-based client called “Photo Scene Editor.”

Photofly “brings the possibility of reality capture to designers, creative artists and engineers” the company says, “and expedites the process for those who are used to spending endless hours manually stitching together images to create a 3D model.”

Reality capture gives designers and engineers the ability to better measure, analyze, document and plan for projects, Autodesk adds.

More information about Project Photofly is available here.

A demonstration video is here.

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Autodesk Fluid FX “Brings Hollywood Effects to iPad”

August 2, 2010 By

Edit images on the iPad Hollywood-style.

Autodesk Fluid FX “brings the fun and excitement of Hollywood visual effects to the iPad, iPod touch and iPhone by letting users play with a wide variety of digital effects such as smoke, fire and image warping,” the company says. The $2 App “empowers a wide audience to enjoy a beautiful and immersive visual experience based on sophisticated visual effects technology and complex physics.”

Users can interact in real time with up to 10 multitouch points to manipulate ultra realistic smoke and fire or create dry ice effects that fall and flow along the ground. Tilting or changing the orientation of the device influences the imagery, which behaves realistically as if affected by gravity.

Autodesk says the app’s “party mode” produces “kinetic art,” automatically displaying “stunning visuals, through fluid dynamic simulations, randomizing colors, settings and fading across presets.”

The new software is the work of Autodesk’s senior research scientist, two-time Academy Award winner Jos Stam, and is based on Autodesk’s high-end Maya “fluid effects” technology. Autodesk says Maya “enables digital artists to create near realistic animation of liquids and gases, using novel simulation techniques for accuracy and speed, as well as a unique scripting language for working with volumetric data.”

A video demonstration in here.

Filed Under: Industry, Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

Panasonic captures HD video in 3D; offers 3D lens

August 2, 2010 By
The new consumer-aimed 3D camcorder from Panasonic uses technology from the broadcast model offered earlier this year.

The new consumer-aimed 3D camcorder uses technology from the broadcast model offered earlier this year.

By taking its broadcast technology and “bringing it to an easy-to-use consumer model,” Panasonic says its latest camcorder “makes high-quality 3D video content a reality in the home.”

The HDC-SDT750 is billed as a “user-friendly consumer 3D camcorder that makes experiencing 3D at home easy and affordable,” the company adds. Users can play back 3D videos on 3D-capable televisions.

The $1400 camera comes with a 3D conversion lens that records right-eye and left-eye images simultaneously through its two lenses, yielding video that can be viewed in 3D. The right and left images each have a 960 by 1080 resolution.

The camcorder can also record 1080p HD video, with a high-sensitivity 7.59 million pixel image sensor, 3-inch touchscreen, and a 12x optical zoom.

It also sports a time lapse recording feature which captures a scene such as a sunset or a blooming flower to play at an accelerated speed, similar to a fast-forward.

Its five directional microphones capture 5.1-channel audio.

More information is here.

Panasonic will also offer before the end of the year an interchangeable twin-lens with which to shoot 3D on its Lumix G cameras.

Panasonic says current panorama 3D lens systems combine two lenses and two CCDs, but “have difficulty capturing moving objects.” Its new design features two optical systems installed within the diameter of the lens mount, creating stereo images from the left and right lenses that are then processed with a 3D image processing system. The company says its optical technology, image processing systems, and lens barrel design yield a compact 3D lens that will be easy to handle, “and allow instant 3D shooting, without distortion or time lag between left and right images – even when shooting moving objects.”

Panasonic says the twin-lens provides consumers with a way to capture their own 3D content. “Panasonic is dedicated to evolving the 3D ecosystem, letting consumers create and display lifelike 3D images in their homes.”

Panasonic offers 3D-capable televisions and Blu-ray players.

Filed Under: Cameras Tagged With: , ,

Lightest full HD camcorder from Panasonic

August 2, 2010 By

Weighing in at just under 0.41 pounds, the SDX1 is the world’s lightest full HD camcorder, claims Panasonic.

The $500 compact camcorder has a 16.8x zoom lens.

And while the company bills that model as having “an ultra-compact body,” its next model is even smaller, measuring 2.09 by 0.70 by 4.09 inches, and weighing 0.25 pounds. [Admittedly, it can’t fit an optical zoom, let alone a 16x one, in such a thin frame.]

Panasonic enters the pocket camcorder competition.

Those are the stats for the HM-TA1, Panasonic’s first entry into the pocket camcorder market now dominated by Flip with its Mino and other models, and in which Kodak has strong offerings such as the PlaySport.

Panasonic says its $170 model has “pocket-sized dimensions for ultimate portability and ideal for on-the-go shooting opportunities.” It captures 1080p HD video with a 3-megapixel backside illumination sensor. It also has a 2-inch LCD, removable battery, SDXC card, and an LED video light the company says “comes in handy when shooting in dimly-lit situations, such as indoors.”

The camcorder can also, in-camera, cut still images out of a video clip.

Filed Under: Cameras

Samsung sends shots via WiFi

August 2, 2010 By

Samsung's 14MP camera has built-in WiFiThe ST80 compact camera from Samsung Electronics will upload directly to Facebook, Picasa, Photobucket, and YouTube via its built-in WiFi transceiver.

“Connectivity is everywhere, and we are committed to bringing these wireless capabilities to the digital imaging world by developing innovative cameras that satisfy the distinct needs of our consumers,” the company says. “The ST80’s wireless connectivity makes it easy for users to upload or share digital images or videos with others directly from the camera without the need to be connected to a computer.”

The 14-megapixel camera has a 3x optical zoom lens and 3-inch touchscreen for $250. It measures 3.6 by 2.2 by 0.7 inches.

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Samsung swivels

August 2, 2010 By

Samsung's compact camcorder has a touchscreen and swiveling lens.

The new compact camcorder from Samsung has a 270-degree swiveling lens to record from just about any angle, and gives users the ability to “step out from behind the camcorder and put themselves in the frame with their friends and family,” the company says, and become part of the action.”

The $200 HMX-E10 camcorder captures 1920 by 1080 HD video or 8-megapixel still images. It has a 2.7-inch touchscreen.

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Smoother street views

August 2, 2010 By

Microsoft's new street view presents a more natural view.

“Systems such as Google Street View and Bing Maps Streetside enable users to virtually visit cities by navigating between immersive 360° panoramas, or bubbles,” write researchers at Microsoft. “The discrete moves from bubble to bubble enabled in these systems do not provide a good visual sense of a larger aggregate such as a whole city block.”

What’s the solution to this problem? The researchers have refined Streetside with “Street Slide,” which combines “the best aspects of the immersive nature of bubbles with the overview provided by multiperspective strip panoramas” for a continuous view.

The researchers say they’ve developed seamless transitions between bubbles and multi-perspective panoramas, and a dynamic construction of the panoramas which overcomes many of the limitations of previous systems.

“As the user slides sideways, the multi-perspective panorama is constructed and rendered dynamically to simulate either a perspective or hyper-perspective view. This provides a strong sense of parallax, which adds to the immersion. We call this form of sliding sideways.”

More information in the from of a PDF research paper is here.

A demonstration video is here.

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