I am working on a dissertation about self-documentation and social media and have decided to take on theorizing the rise of faux-vintage photography e.g., Hipstamatic, Instagram. From May 10-12, 2011, I posted a three part essay. This post combines all three together. Part I: Instagram and HipstamaticPart II: Grasping for AuthenticityPart III: Nostalgia for the Present

via The Faux-Vintage Photo: Full Essay Parts I, II and III » Cyborgology.

Lytro lets you take pictures like never before. Unlike a conventional camera that captures a single plane of light, the Lytro camera captures the entire light field, which is all the light traveling in every direction in every point in space.

via Lytro.

It looks like the wait for plenoptic cameras to hit the market is shorter than we thought when we reported earlier today on Adobe’s interesting demonstration on the technology. In fact, there is no wait — you can already purchase a plenoptic camera. German company Raytrix is the first to offer plenoptic cameras that allow you to choose focus points in post processing and capture 3D images with a single sensor.

Their “entry-level” R5 camera shoots at 1 megapixel, while the high-end R11 shoots at 3 megapixels. They can also convert any existing digital camera into a plenoptic camera, creating a lens array for it within 6-8 weeks.

Processing the resulting images is done through proprietary software written by Raytrix. How much these cameras cost isn’t published on their website, and is only provided on request. If you have any idea, leave a comment letting us know!

via The First Plenoptic Camera on the Market.

The BigShot, still in testing, is a super-simple digicam from the Computer Vision Lab at Columbia University. It comes in parts, ready to be assembled (by kids, but I can’t wait to get my hands on one), and teaches you along the way how these things work. It’s not quite the transparent view you get from making an old analog camera, where you can see how everything works, but it’s as close as you can get from a machine that uses circuit boards.

via BigShot Kit Camera, Like Crack for Kids | Gadget Lab | Wired.com.

That’s not true. In most cameras, lenses still form the basic image. Computers have only a toehold, controlling megapixel detectors and features like the shutter. But in research labs, the new discipline of computational photography is gaining ground, taking over jobs that were once the province of lenses.

via Computational Photography May Help Us See Around Corners – NYTimes.com.

This video is showing the work “The Space Beyond Me” by Julius von Bismarck at Transmediale 2010. the video is shot by Andreas Schmelas and Julius von Bismarck and edited by Julius von Bismarck. The sound is the original sound in the exhibition space, so it is effected by other pieces in the exhibition. more information at: JuliusVonBismarck.com

via The Space Beyond Me on Vimeo.

Suggested by Blackili Rudi Milhose

Technically, the Image Fulgurator works like a classical camera, though in reverse. In a normal camera, the light reflected from an object is projected via the lens onto the film. In the Image Fulgurator, this process is exactly the opposite: instead of an unexposed film, an exposed and developed roll of slide film is loaded into the camera and behind it, a flash. When the flash goes off, the image is projected from the film via the lens onto the object. 

Also see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAX_3Bgel7M

Suggested by Blackili Rudi Milhose

MIT Media Lab researchers have created a new imaging system that can acquire visual data at a rate of one trillion frames per second. That’s fast enough to produce a slow-motion video of light traveling through objects. Video: Melanie Gonick.

via Visualizing video at the speed of light — one trillion frames per second – YouTube.

The Computational Photography class for this term will be doing an exhibition to showcase their final term projects. Come join us to see the creative and technical abilities of our students as they showcase their creative photography projects powered with computing technologies. See digital image and video artifacts that include efforts in high dynamic range imaging, photomosaics, panoramas, tilt-shift photography, image morphing, color manipulation, photo and video montages, interactive video manipulation, model building,  photo/video tourism, subliminal imaging and painterly rendering. Some students are exploring technical and developmental issues, others are using existing tools to explore newer creative aspects with photography.

For further information on the class, topics covered, and other projects done by students during the course of the term, see the class website at http://compphotography.wordpress.com/.

The spring term offering of Computational Photography (CS 4475HP) is offered under the Georgia Tech Honors Program. Some graduate students are also participating with a special graduate offering of CS 8803CP.  This term’s class has many majors from all over GA Tech, with one common interest, photography.

This showcase is hosted by the GVU Center, RIM @ GT Center, and the School of Interactive Computing of the College of Computing at GA Tech.

Suggested by Abraham D.