Lytro Illum Light Field Digital Camera

Description

The Illum Light Field Digital Camera from Lytro is their second-generation light field camera and offers not only an upgraded 40 megaray sensor but a traditionally-styled camera body and lens barrel with touchscreen LCD control, large grip and hot shoe mount. The Illum is a point-and-shoot camera that utilises the unique Light Field sensor and the Light Field Engine 2.0 for image capture and processing. With a micro-lens array on the sensor it records the colour, intensity and direction of light travelling in every direction throughout a scene and creates "living pictures" in which the focus point can be determined after you have shot the image. In addition to adjusting focus points and depth of field on an image, you can change the point of perspective slightly to the left, right, up or down.

Touchscreen technology allows you to determine the point of focus with just a tap on the camera's LCD monitor or, after the image is transferred to your computer, by clicking on the spot in your image where you want focus. If you decide that you prefer focus on another part of the image, click on that spot in the original image (.lfp file) and save. There is no limit to the adjustments you can make. When exported as a 2D image, the resolution of a 40 megaray image is approximately 4MP. 

An 8x optical zoom lens with the 35mm focal length equivalent of 30-250mm and constant f/2 aperture provide precise control over image capture and the lens barrel features a soft silicone rubber zoom ring and focus ring. Focus range for the Illum is from 0 mm to infinity, it can actually focus on a subject touching up against the lens. The dedicated "Lytro Button" next to the shutter release enables a colour-coded overlay to appear on the live view LCD image which demonstrates the relative focus and depth of field of your image in order to better recognise the "re-focusable" range.

As the Lytro has a constant f/2.0 aperture, you can control light intake by adjusting ISO sensitivity and shutter speed up to a maximum of 1/4000th of a second. Adjustments are made via 2 customisable buttons, the command dial and on the touchscreen LCD. Exposure and focus lock buttons are provided and Region AF and manual focus are supported.

The Illum features a sleek and spartan unibody form factor with a minimum of buttons and dials. Most camera functions and adjustments are made via the 4.0" touchscreen LCD which can tilt up and down for optimal odd-angle shooting. The camera's back is angled which provides an improved view of the LCD as well as a large hand grip for comfortable and stable usage. An integrated hot shoe mount is compatible with most standard flashes and offers manual and TTL control and an external shutter release port is supported. Images are captured to SD, SDHC or SDXC memory cards and a USB 3.0 port enables fast image transfer. It is powered by a removable, rechargeable lithium-ion battery. The camera itself is handsome with an aluminium and magnesium alloy build with a silicone rubber hand grip and lens barrel rings for comfort.

Built-in Wi-Fi enables wireless transfer of images to iOS smart devices and living pictures can be easily posted on the Lytro gallery and to Facebook where they can be viewed and adjusted in the same interactive manner as on your own computer or device. With the free Lytro desktop software you can repeatedly adjust the zoom, depth of field, focus and perspective.

Key Features

Refocus and Change Perspective

• The Illum captures an entire light field without a specific point of focus. After image capture, with either a tap on the LCD or a click on your computer, you can set the point of focus for your image. You are able to continuously and repeatedly change the focus point. Aperture, zoom and perspective can also be changed using the Lytro Desktop application.

Light Field Sensor and Light Field Engine 2.0

• The Light Field Sensor is uniquely built for the Lytro cameras and places a micro-lens array on top of a CMOS sensor, thus diverting the light rays to different pixels on the sensor, capturing the angular variation among the rays. The sensor records megarays as opposed to pixels. The Lytro Light Field Sensor in the Illum camera captures 40 megarays-or 40 million rays-per picture. The Light Field Engine 2.0 is the integrated software to process light fields, producing interactive re-focusable pictures. When a 40 megaray light field image is converted to 2D the export resolution is approximately 4MP.

Snapdragon 801 Image Processor

• The Snapdragon processor provides fast capture and computational speeds and supports the complicated post capture processing of the Illum.

Lens

• The lens on the Lytro is a 8x optical zoom lens with 9.5-77.8mm focal length which is equivalent to 30-250mm in the 35mm format. It provides a constant aperture of f/2.0. Manual and Region AF are supported and comfortable zoom and focus rings are featured on the barrel. The focus range runs from 0 mm to infinity with a macro ratio of 1:3.

Lytro Button

• A dedicated "Lytro Button" located next to the shutter release provides a live view colour-coded overlay that accurately displays the depth of field of objects within the frame to better understand what objects are within the "re-focusable" range.

LCD Monitor

• A 4.0" back-lit LCD display provides image composition and review with touchscreen menu navigation and the ability to select the focus point after shooting. The LCD features dual hinge tilting to tilt up to 90º and down 10º.

Shutter

• A focal plane shutter provides shutter speeds up to 1/4000th of a second and both single and continuous shooting drives are supported. A self-timer is also available.

Exposure

• The Illum provides a Scene Evaluative metering system with Programme, ISO Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual exposure control modes. Exposure compensation, bracketing, exposure lock and clipping warning are all supported.

Camera Body

• Unlike the first-generation Lytro camera, the Illum has a traditionally designed camera chassis and lens barrel form factor. It offers an aluminium and magnesium alloy build with a large silicone rubber hand grip. It supports a hot shoe mount compatible with most flash units, a 1/4"-20 tripod socket, SD card slot and a USB 3.0 port. Two customisable buttons and a control dial adjust settings and Focus and Exposure Lock buttons are provided.

Storage

• Images are stored on a separately purchased SD, SDHC or SDXC memory card.

Import, Upload, Share and Comment

• Refocus and edit your images by importing them to your computer with the free Lytro Desktop application via an included USB cable. You can then post your Lytro images to your own personal page on Lytro Web where your pictures will be stored for free and you can also have Lytro Desktop automatically post to Facebook at the same time. Your friends can refocus your images on Facebook. You and others can post comments on living pictures shared publicly in the Lytro galleries.

Built-In Wi-Fi and Lytro Mobile App for iOS

• The Lytro Mobile App provides a convenient way to instantly share your living pictures from your iOS device. Built-in Wi-Fi and the free companion app provide sharing to Lytro.com, Facebook, and more. Any picture can also be saved as an auto-playing animated GIF, allowing light field pictures to be emailed or sent via SMS. Camera owners and non-camera owners alike can download the app to view living pictures on their iOS device, including refocusing and perspective shift capabilities. Photos uploaded to Lytro.com can also be viewed on your iPhone or iPad.

Specifications