Toshiba Corporation launches highly sensitive CMOS image sensor with BSI

Applies world’s first 300mm wafer lines for BSI technology

TOKYO— Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO: 6502) today announced the launch of a new CMOS image sensor that will bring 14.6 million pixels (as in 14.6 megapixel) to digital still cameras and to mobile phones supporting video imaging. The sensor, the latest addition to Toshiba’s “Dynastron™” line-up, is also the company’s first to integrate the enhanced sensitivity offered by back-side illumination technology (BSI). Sampling of the new sensor will begin in December and mass production will follow from the third quarter of 2010 (July—September).

BSI brings new levels of responsiveness to CMOS imaging. Lenses are deployed on the rear of the sensor on the silicon substrate, not on the front, where wiring limits light absorption. This positioning boosts light sensitivity and absorption by 40% compared to existing Toshiba products, and allows formation of finer image pixels.

Toshiba has made full use of the advantages of BSI to realize image pixels with a pitch of 1.4 microns, and to pack 14.6 million of them into a 1/2.3-inch sensor that meets the high level imaging and processing requirement, and that will also bring a new level of image quality to mobile phones. Toshiba will use the new sensor to promote its full-scale entry to digital camera market, and will continue to develop BSI products as a mainstream technology.

The new sensor will be mass produced at Toshiba’s Oita Operations, on industry leading 300mm wafer lines deploying 65nm process technology. Initial production will be at a volume of 500,000 sensors a month.

CMOS image sensors are a focus product of Toshiba’s System LSI business. Until now, their main application has been in mobile phones, where Toshiba could leverage its high density integration and low power consumption technologies. With the introduction of BSI CMOS sensors, Toshiba will reinforce the sensor business by expanding application to include digital cameras.

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0910/09102701toshibabackilluminatedsensor.asp

Ready or not, the latest 3D technology is coming home

by Ben Drawbaugh

Now wait one second before you start on the whole “I’m not wearing any stupid looking glasses,” because no matter what you say, there are more people paying extra to go 3D movies than ever and the reason is simple; it’s because this isn’t like the crappy 3D you saw during the Super Bowl last year — or that our parents grew up with. No, the 3D that Sony, Panasonic, and others are promising next year is like nothing you’ve seen. We’ve come a long way since the old anaglyph red and blue glasses that come in cereal boxes, so before you knock the new technology before it’s even out, click through and read about the technologies that might bring us a real 3D revolution.
3D, the basics

We have two eyes for a reason and while we’ve enjoyed stereo sound since-like-forever, stereoscopic images haven’t quite arrived. At its core, 3D is as simple as using two cameras to capture the data that our eyes would, but it’s the display part that’s proven tricky. Ultimately, the technology has to find a way to present each eye with a different variation of an image, at that point our eyes and brain do the rest.

Circular polarized or active LCD shutter glasses

The one thing that hasn’t changed about 3D is the need for glasses — if you’re holding out for 3D on a big screen without glasses, you’re going to let this generation of 3D pass you by. The technology in the glasses varies by a lot and the main two types these days are circular polarized and active LCD shutter. Both serve the same purpose, to ensure each eye sees a different image, but in much different ways.

Circular polarized glasses are easily the most common used in 3D cinema today. If you’ve been to a 3D presentation of a Pixar movie, or maybe to Disney World and used what look like cheap sunglasses, you’ve probably tried the technology. Without going into too much detail, each lens is set to filter out different light, so for example in a polarized system like RealD’s, there can either be two projectors with different polarizing filters in front of each (pictured below) or a special ZScreen which can alternate the clockwise and counterclockwise polarization for each frame. In either case, the right and left frame alternate at about 144 times per second so that each of 24 frames per second of a movie is displayed 3 times per eye.

One of the problems with circular polarized 3D is that a special silver screen is required and some argue it can negatively affect the color accuracy. But what’s worse is that most of us don’t have a projector at home and so far only a few HDTVs like the ridiculously expensive JVC GD-463D10 LCD TV at $9,200 can pull off the same polarization trickery.

LCD shutter glasses

So in comes the LCD shutter glasses — the technology itself has actually been around for some time, in fact there were eight Sega Master Systems games that worked with shutter glasses dating back to the 80’s. But the technology was limited by the display technology of that era which could only show 480i at 30 frames per second, which worked out to about 15 FPS per eye in 3D — so yeah, the flickering could make you sick.

Basically the way shutter glasses work is each lens can be blacked out very very quickly to synchronize with a frame displayed on the HDTV. This way a different 1920 x 1080 progressive image can be shown to each eye.

(More pictures and video) – http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/26/ready-or-not-the-latest-3d-technology-is-coming-home/

PhotoTrackr Mini Brings GPS Geotagging To Any Camera

by Shawn Oliver

For those with cameras that use Secure Digital cards, all that’s needed to add geotagging support is an Eye-Fi Geo card. But for everyone else, there’s the PhotoTrackr Mini. The original PhotoTrackr was released back in 2007, and while it also added geotagging support to any camera whatsoever, this new version is way, way smaller and easier to tote around to various shooting spots.

Equipped with an internal GPS chip, the PhotoTrackr Mini DPL900 is both smaller and faster than the original. Rather than just shrinking down, GiSTEQ also added two huge new features: Mac support and compatibility for RAW files. Given that quite a few pro photographers shoot in RAW and edit on their Mac, we’d say this is pretty important.

The thumb-drive like device is supposed to travel along with you while you shoot, and so long as your camera clock is synced with the bundled software, your shots can later have GPS information attached them in post-processing. The software makes the whole process a cinch, and for athletes, the SportTracks application allows them to track their exercise progress via GPS. Pre-orders are open now, with the $69 device set to ship next month.

http://hothardware.com/News/PhotoTrackr-Mini-Brings-GPS-Geotagging-To-Any-Camera/

Epson’s P-6000 And P-7000 Photo Viewers Gain DSLR Tethering

by Shawn Oliver

Like to toy around with your entry level DSLR? If so, Epson’s Multimedia Photo Viewers are probably a bit much for you, but if you manage to make ends meet with your lens, they just might be exactly what the doctor ordered. The P-6000 and P-7000 viewers have just been updated in a pretty major way, and professional photographers are bound to take notice.

You see, both of these are designed to be real-time backup drives for pro shooters, enabling them to store their shots on both the camera’s flash card and on the Epson hard drive. Think of it as instant redundancy. The update, which will be available to download for free in the near future, adds tethering capabilities, which means that users can actually shoot while having this plugged in via USB. The result? Dual capturing of shots, just in case anything goes awry.

The photo viewers each have a 4″ LCD display as well, so that images can be viewed on a larger-than-usual screen for instant proofing. Finally, the forthcoming firmware update includes a remote shutter release function for added convenience. The P-6000 ($599.99) has an 80GB hard drive within, while the P-7000 ($799.99) gets a 160GB drive; both of which should be plenty for most shoots.

Epson multimedia photo viewers are ideal companions for the digital SLR. Epson’s exclusive Photo Fine® LCD technology has advanced to a new benchmark in screen quality with Photo Fine Premia which encompasses 94 percent of Adobe RGB color space for superior color accuracy. With 80GB (P-6000) and 160GB (P-7000) hard drive capacities, thousands of RAW image files can be backed up wherever images are captured for peace of mind and security. Other features include:

• Large 4-inch LCD with exclusive Epson Photo Fine Premia technology displays over 16.7 million colors
• Convenient jog dial to quickly scroll through images
• Wide LCD viewing angle
• Zoom function to confirm image focus and fine detail
• RAW and JPEG file support
• Built-in CompactFlash and Secure Digital memory card slots with many other cards supported via third-party adapter
• Compatible with high-speed UDMA CompactFlash cards
• Rechargeable lithium-ion battery lasts up to three hours for extended shoots
• High-speed USB 2.0 interface for device to device backup
• Audio/video output to present customized slideshows
• Travel Pack with dual battery charger, car adapter and more (P-7000 only)

http://hothardware.com/News/Epsons-P6000-And-P7000-Photo-Viewers-Gain-DSLR-Tethering/

Cameraphone Photographer of the Year

World View cameraphone photo competition

(Joanne Frances Hanna)

The Times Picture Editor has chosen A very British afternoon as his overall winner

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The Times are the Sony Ericsson World View 2008 competition media partner, so enter here to avoid missing out on your shot of a lifetime

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/specials/cameraphone_photographer/

5 Tips for Taking Better Photos with Your Camera Phone

By Dave Johnson

Cameras are so ubiquitous that they’re built into everything these days, including pocket calculators and toaster ovens. Unfortunately, the image quality from camera phones can be somewhat lackluster. Fight back by reading Chase Jarvis’s tips to improve your iPhone photos.

Sure, his post is iPhone centric, but much of his advice applies to any camera phone. Here are the highlights:

• Hold the camera still. Camera phone photos are notoriously blurry, in part due to sluggish shutters that take their sweet time getting started, and in part slow exposures that can make a snail appear to have motion blur.
• Keep your finger on the shutter release. The iPhone (like many phones) takes the picture when you lift your finger, not when you press down. Take that into account.
• Avoid fast-moving subjects. Remember my comment about the snail? Camera phones crave light and work best when shooting absolutely static images under the blaze of a twin-sun system going supernova. Photos in dark rooms or of moving objects are likely to fail.

After you master your camera phone’s idiosyncracies, be sure to read Rick’s clever tips on ways to unexpectedly use a camera to make your life easier.

http://blogs.bnet.com/businesstips/?p=2658&tag=content;col1

Five Killer Cell-Phone Camera Tricks

By Rick Broida

Smile! You’re about to learn five fantastic ways to get the most from your cameraphone. Yes, we’re talking about that crummy, low-resolution point-and-shoot that’s built into your cell. It’s a lot more useful than you think, provided you point it at the right things:

• Where you parked Now where’d you leave the car? G7? F4? If only you’d taken a photo of the nearest signpost, and maybe a few landmarks to boot. Take it from us: Losing your car in a crowded airport lot — especially when it’s 10 degrees out — is not fun.
• Your passport and/or driver’s license If one of these documents goes missing while you’re traveling, you’re potentially screwed. Before you embark, take a snapshot of your license and/or passport, making sure the numbers are legible. If nothing else, you’ll have an easier time proving your identity and getting your documents replaced.
• Your hotel room number Sounds nuts, I know, but remember: Hotels no longer put room numbers on room keys. If you’re the forgetful type, this beats stopping at the front desk to ask for your own room number.
• The label on the wine bottle A client raves about the bottle of wine you shared over dinner. Snap a photo of the label (when he/she’s not looking, of course) so you can match it later, then send along a bottle (or even a case, if it’s a big client) to help seal the deal.
• Evernote, Qipit, ScanR Snap a photo of business card, cocktail napkin, whiteboard, or whatever, then send it to one of these free information-management services. From there you can organize, share, publish, or even fax your “digital copy.”

What’s your favorite cameraphone trick? Hit the Comments and share your snapshot secrets. Photo by Thomas Rockstar.

http://blogs.bnet.com/businesstips/?p=2217&tag=col1;post-2658

Camera Phone Photo Enhancer

http://www.softwaregeek.com/camera-phone-photo-enhancer/p1.html

A Sample of Some of the software

Advanced Photo Recovery 1.0

Recover Lost Photographs that have been deleted or lost from your memory card, mobile phone or other removebale media , Advanced photo recovery uses various methods to scan the media for deleted photos and gives you a preview so you can select the photos that you wish to recover. Advanced Photo recovery does not write anything to the media and stores the photos on your hard drive which ensure maximum recovery.
Advanced Photo Recovery is a free to try software. You can free download and try it for an evaluation period.

• License Shareware
• Date Added 22 November, 2008
• Price: $20.00
• Category Utilities / File & Disk Management
• Filesize 4.2 MB
• Author Advanced Media Recovery

Magic Enhancer Lite 1.0

Magic Enhancer Lite is a free Photoshop-compatible plug-in for Windows. Using Magic Enhancer you can essentially improve your photos: adjust lightness, contrast and color balance. Magic Enhancer is perfect for enhancement image and photo with lack of lightness or uneven illumination, silhouetted images on dark background. You can adjust local contrast of your photos, emphasize fine details and make your photos more expressive. Convenient color temperature control allows fixing color balance defects easily. Plug-in has attractive and user-friendly interface, when in use you can keep an eye result histogram. Magic Enhancer has simple installation procedure; installer detects more popular graphic hosts automatically. The shareware version Magic Enhancer Pro has addition features like camera noise suppression, script (action) feature, presets feature and 16-bit RGB and Grayscale image mode support. Requirements: Requires Photoshop-compatible graphic host program
Magic Enhancer Lite is a completely free software. You can free download and use it as long as you like.

• License Freeware
• Date Added 21 January, 2009
• Category Multimedia & Design / Image Editing
• Filesize 1.6 MB
• Author ImageSkill

Ansel Adams Meets Apple: The Camera Phone Craze in Photography (iPhone)

Wade Roush 9/25/09

[Corrected 9/28/09: Chase Jarvis is based in Seattle, not San Francisco. I regret the error and apologize to our Seattle readers!] Seattle-based commercial photographer Chase Jarvis is known for his arresting, color-saturated images of people in motion—skiing, swimming, somersaulting. He’s also known for (literally) trademarking the phrase “the best camera is the one you have with you.” His point is that you don’t an expensive SLR to take great pictures. You can do a lot with the camera in your pocket or purse—which more likely than not is a camera phone.

This week, Jarvis took his slogan to the next level, launching a trio of products—a book, an iPhone application, and a photo-sharing community on the Web—intended to encourage all photographers, pro and amateur alike, to get more creative with their camera phones. This cross-media campaign is a brilliant concept—both as a digital-arts-education project and as a piece of self-promotion for Jarvis and his studio—and it also happens to fit in really well with the theme I’ve been writing about in this space throughout September in “Seven Projects to Stretch your Digital Wings,” Parts 1, 2, and 3. So, if you’ve got an iPhone, go spend $2.99 on Jarvis’s app, called “Best Camera,” and consider today’s column Project #8.

There are more than 1,300 photography-related apps in the iTunes App Store, but as far as I know, Best Camera is the only one that comes with a dedicated community of other iPhone users. The app allows you to take a picture with the iPhone’s built-in camera, apply a range of cool digital filters and effects, and then upload your finished photo to a gallery that’s constantly being updated, in real time, with new photos from other Best Camera users. You can give the photos you like best a thumbs-up, and browse photos either by popularity or recentness.

In addition to introducing you to a bunch of other creative souls, Best Camera will let you play with your own images and perhaps invent your own new styles. That’s thanks to a surprisingly flexible interface for applying various filters to your raw images and changing the order in which the filters are “stacked.” The filters themselves go well beyond the typical gray-scaling, contrast-enhancing, or redeye-reducing algorithms you’ll see in other iPhone image editing apps: working with Übermind, a Seattle software development firm that specializes in photography-related applications for desktops and mobile phones, Jarvis dreamed up a dozen effects altogether, including four “signature filters” inspired by his own photographic styles.

It’s hard to describe the signature effects in words, but one filter, called “Jewel,” gives photos a warm, rich, almost antique look, while another called “Candy” creates an intense, high-contrast, caffeinated feeling reminiscent of Jarvis’s advertising photography. At left, I’ve lined up examples of the same photo from my own iPhone album, altered using the “Jewel,” “Paris,” “Slate,” and “Candy” filters, respectively.

As someone who loves to spend time looking at other people’s photos and trying to understand their styles—I could spend hours using the “Explore” feature at Flickr—I think the community feature of Best Camera is especially fun. It’s a nice feeling to upload a picture and then see it appear in the public gallery, which is accessible right from the app. You can browse the gallery from a desktop browser, too, at www.thebestcamera.com; the bonus, if you go there, is that the “recipe” used for each photo—that is, the combination and order of digital effects the photographer chose—shows up right alongside the image. (You can see all of my Best Camera photos here.)

Jarvis certainly isn’t the only professional photographer singing the praises of camera phones. Shawn Rocco, a staff photojournalist at the News & Observer in Raleigh, NC, shoots with a long-since-obsolete Motorola E815 mobile phone. In fact, the American art world seems to be developing a bit of a fetish for …Next Page »

Wade Roush is Xconomy’s chief correspondent. You can e-mail him at wroush@xconomy.com, call him at (617) 252-7323, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/wroush.

http://www.xconomy.com/national/2009/09/25/ansel-adams-meets-apple-the-camera-phone-craze-in-photography/

How to Improve Your Camera Phone Photography

Written By: admin

As any camera phone photographer will tell you, talent beats equipment almost every time in photography. A talented photographer can produce a stunning image with a pinhole camera given enough time, whereas many amateurs struggle to produce even average photographs using top of the line camera gear. These days, there is a growing movement of camera phone photographers who are out to show that talent combined with a camera phone can produce some incredible photos. Given some of the images they come up with, we are certainly not going to argue.

In fact, the stunning examples of camera phone photography that we have seen led us to investigate how camera phones can be used to produce such incredible images. And so, here is out online guide to camera phone photography!

Camera Phone Photography Guide

http://www.lightstalking.com/camera-phone-photography

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV announced: 16.1 megapixels, 45-point autofocus, and extreme ISO ranges of its own

Looks like Canon isn’t skipping the number “four” after all. While initially unveiling what looked to be a half-complete website with two teaser videos, the company has now gone official with the EOS-1D Mark IV. So what’s new to the table? For starter’s there’s a 16.1 megapixel APS-H CMOS sensor, ISO range of100 to 12,800 native, up to 102,400 (hello, Nikon), 45-point area customizable autofocus with 39 high-precision cross-type focusing points, dual Digic 4 processors, 1080p HD video, and an option WFT-E2 IIA wireless file transmitter for connectivity over 802.11a/b/g and ethernet. Launch date is sometime in December, and body-only price is estimated at about $4,999 but subject to change. Press release after the break.

Update: Care to see what all the fuss is about, or want a better explanation of the new features? Canon’s released a pair of first-look videos, follow the link.  http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/20/canon-eos-1d-mark-iv-announced-16-1-megapixels-45-point-autofo/