Hasta La Gadget!

It seems we can never be content with how sensitive our camera sensors are to light. Scientists in Singapore are working on a new camera sensor technology made from graphene that will supposedly make future cameras 1,000 times more sensitive to light and uses 10 times less energy than current camera sensors.

In turn, this will produce way better low-light photos, to the point where we hopefully don’t even have to bother with ISO. Plus, the scientists working on the new technology say that these new sensors will be the fifth of the cost of current camera sensors, meaning that we could see camera prices drop significantly in the future.

The sensor works by trapping light-generated electron particles far longer than current sensors can, while only being made from a single sheet of graphene. The sensor will be able to be used in a number of different cameras, including infrared cameras, traffic cameras, as well as satellite imaging cameras, thanks to the wide spectrum of light that the new sensor can capture.

Plus, Assitant Professor Wang Qijie from Nanyang Technological University says that the research team is keeping “current manufacturing practices in mind,” which means the camera industry “can easily replace the current base material of photo sensors with the new nano-structured graphene material.”

Obviously, it’s too early to tell when we’ll be seeing these new sensors in consumer cameras, but they’ll ultimately hit the enterprise and government first, being used in security cameras, traffic cameras, etc. Of course, graphene is already set to be used in new flexible OLED screens, so the technology will definitely be on its way to the mainstream soon.

VIA: CNET

SOURCE: Science Daily

Graphene camera sensor 1,000 times more sensitive to light is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Remember those photo memes that recently went viral? The one that features a classic Dragon Ball or Street Fighter inspired pose where someone blasts everyone off to kingdom come, and the one that’s inspired from Darth Vader’s signature force choke?

These photos are already fun as they are, but an app that can add even more to these shots that are intended to go viral has been released. It’s called the Kame Camera app and it’ll breath some Manga-inspired life into your photo memes.

The Kame app enhances these photo memes by letting users add swirling flames and shock and lightning effects to their images with a few quick taps.

From Hadokening and Quiddiching to Vadering, this app has got most of these photo memes covered.

The Kame Camera app can be downloaded from Google Play and the iTunes App Store.

[via Laughing Squid]

There’s a mysterious new Leica coming next month, and now we know what it looks like. The German camera maker teased its new model, dubbed the Mini M, with an image of a generic black box posted last week. It looks like a French iPad app spilled the beans a bit early, though, and Mirrorless Rumors managed to snag a screen grab. The new cam (in the foreground above) will reportedly sport a 16.1-megapixel APS-C sensor and a fixed 28-70mm f/3.5-6.4 lens — not the interchangeable mount some fans were expecting. The camera is said to be manufactured from aluminum, and includes support for an optional electronic viewfinder. Specs are fairly light, but there’s supposedly HD video recording (that’s a safe bet) and a copy of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom that ships in the box. Leica is scheduled to introduce the Mini M on June 11th, at which point all of the above, along with the rumored €2,450 (about $3,150) price tag, will likely be confirmed.

Filed under: Cameras

Comments

Via: PetaPixel

Source: Mirrorless Rumors

It may be time to dust off that Canon 50D you purchased back in 2008. The folks behind the Magic Lantern firmware add-on have pulled yet another rabbit out the proverbial hat (or is it lantern?) by enabling RAW video recording on the APS-C-based DSLR. What’s even more impressive is that the 50D lacks video support out of the box, so this new-found functionality is truly magical. This hack comes hot on the heels of the Magic Lantern team coaxing the Canon 5D Mark II / III into capturing 24 fps RAW video. With the firmware add-on installed, the 50D is capable of shooting video up to 1592 x 1062 pixels at 30 fps. There are some caveats, though. First, there’s no audio recording since the camera lacks a microphone input and associated electronics. Second, capturing RAW video requires fast CF cards (at least UDMA 6). Third, we now fully expect to see the 50D skyrocket in value on the used market. Hit the break for a few sample videos.

Filed under: Cameras, Canon

Comments

Via: No Film School

Source: Magic Lantern Forums

Insects have some pretty amazing eyesight. Unlike humans, where we only have two single-lens eyes, insects have a larger array of eyes that offer a wider field-of-view. Scientists have obviously been studying these kinds of eyes for a long time, and now that we’re at a certain point with technology, engineers are wanting to artificially replicate insect eyes using cameras.

European researchers have developed what they call the Curved Artificial Compound Eye (CurvACE), which is a camera system of sorts that replicates what most insects see, providing a full 180-degree view from side to side, as well as a 60-degree view from top to bottom. These sorts of camera systems could be used in security cameras and drones in the future, but their main use will be detecting surroundings rather than capturing surveillance footage.

Of course, this isn’t the first camera inspired by insect eyes. Just earlier this month, we reported on a group of scientists building an insect-inspired camera system that consists of a half-dome of multiple camera lens that provide one high-resolution image when combined. However, that one only provides a 160-degree field of view, rather than the complete 180-degree viewpoint.

As you can see from the photo above, the CurvACE is a U-shaped camera consisting of multiple strips of camera lens, with approximately 15 lenses on each strip. Below this array of camera lenses is an array of photodetectors, which will give drones the detection power they need to monitor their surroundings and detect incoming threats.

You can also see that the camera system is smaller than a coin, so it’ll be able to fit in a variety of smaller areas without taking up space, so it shouldn’t be a burden adding these on to drones. But taking a closeup look at one of these makes you wonder how in the world it could possibly be smaller than a coin, but science can do some pretty amazing things.

VIA: Gizmag

SOURCE: CurvACE

CurvACE insect eye camera gives drones 180-degree view is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.