Gigamacro

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A gigapixel macro image is a digital image bitmap composed of one billion (109) pixels (picture elements), or 1000 times the information captured by a 1 megapixel digital camera. Creating such high-resolution images involves making mosaics (image stitching) of a large number of high-resolution digital photographs which are then combined into a single image.

A digital image is a numeric representation, normally binary, of a two-dimensional image. Depending on whether the image resolution is fixed, it may be of vector or raster type. By itself, the term "digital image" usually refers to raster images or bitmapped images.

In computing, a bitmap is a mapping from some domain to bits. It is also called a bit array or bitmap index.

Giga ( or ) is a unit prefix in the metric system denoting a factor of a (short-form) billion (109 or 1000000000). It has the symbol G.

Gigapixel macro images are made by 'stacking' a number of photographs together in order to increase the depth of field and then stitching the resulting images together in a technique known as 'stack and stitch'. Such images are usually very large in size and cannot be easily viewed. To make such images accessible, they are converted using tiled image techniques so that they may be viewed in a web browser. Such techniques are familiar in everyday use in e.g. Google Maps.

Macro photography photography genre and techniques of extreme close-up pictures

Macro photography, is extreme close-up photography, usually of very small subjects and living organisms like insects, in which the size of the subject in the photograph is greater than life size . By the original definition, a macro photograph is one in which the size of the subject on the negative or image sensor is life size or greater. However, in some uses it refers to a finished photograph of a subject at greater than life size.

Focus stacking

Focus stacking is a digital image processing technique which combines multiple images taken at different focus distances to give a resulting image with a greater depth of field (DOF) than any of the individual source images. Focus stacking can be used in any situation where individual images have a very shallow depth of field; macro photography and optical microscopy are two typical examples. Focus stacking can also be useful in landscape photography.

Depth of field Distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that are in focus in an image

Depth of field is the distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that are in acceptably sharp focus in an image. The depth of field is determined by focal length, distance to subject, the acceptable circle of confusion size, and aperture. A particular depth of field may be chosen for technical or artistic purposes. Some post-processing methods, such as focus stacking allow extended depth of field that would be impossible with traditional techniques.

Related Research Articles

Pixel a physical point in a raster image

In digital imaging, a pixel, pel, or picture element is a physical point in a raster image, or the smallest addressable element in an all points addressable display device; so it is the smallest controllable element of a picture represented on the screen.

Panorama wide-angle view or representation of a physical space

A panorama is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images or a three-dimensional model. The word was originally coined in the 18th century by the English painter Robert Barker to describe his panoramic paintings of Edinburgh and London. The motion-picture term panning is derived from panorama.

Panoramic photography is a technique of photography, using specialized equipment or software, that captures images with horizontally elongated fields of view. It is sometimes known as wide format photography. The term has also been applied to a photograph that is cropped to a relatively wide aspect ratio, like the familiar letterbox format in wide-screen video.

Digital camera back device that attaches to the back of a camera

A digital camera back is a device that attaches to the back of a camera in place of the traditional negative film holder and contains an electronic image sensor. This lets cameras that were designed to use film take digital photographs. These camera backs are generally expensive by consumer standards and are primarily built to be attached on medium- and large-format cameras used by professional photographers.

A gigapixel image is a digital image bitmap composed of one billion (109) pixels (picture elements), 1000 times the information captured by a 1 megapixel digital camera. A square image of 32,768 (215) pixels in width and height is one gigapixel. Current technology for creating such very high-resolution images usually involves either making mosaics of a large number of high-resolution digital photographs or using a film negative as large as 12" × 9" (30 cm × 23 cm) up to 18" × 9" (46 cm × 23 cm), which is then scanned with a high-end large-format film scanner with at least 3000 dpi resolution. Only a few cameras are capable of creating a gigapixel image in a single sweep of a scene, such as the Pan-STARRS PS1 and the Gigapxl Camera.

Image stitching or photo stitching is the process of combining multiple photographic images with overlapping fields of view to produce a segmented panorama or high-resolution image. Commonly performed through the use of computer software, most approaches to image stitching require nearly exact overlaps between images and identical exposures to produce seamless results, although some stitching algorithms actually benefit from differently exposed images by doing high-dynamic-range-imaging in regions of overlap. Some digital cameras can stitch their photos internally.

Photosynth

Photosynth is a discontinued app and service from Microsoft Live Labs and the University of Washington that analyzes digital photographs and generates a three-dimensional model of the photos and a point cloud of a photographed object. Pattern recognition components compare portions of images to create points, which are then compared to convert the image into a model. Users are able to view and generate their own models using a software tool available for download at the Photosynth website.

Miniature faking photography genre

Miniature faking, also known as diorama effect or diorama illusion, is a process in which a photograph of a life-size location or object is made to look like a photograph of a miniature scale model. Blurring parts of the photo simulates the shallow depth of field normally encountered in close-up photography, making the scene seem much smaller than it actually is; the blurring can be done either optically when the photograph is taken, or by digital postprocessing. Many diorama effect photographs are taken from a high angle to simulate the effect of looking down on a miniature. Tilt–shift photography is also associated with miniature faking.

Gigapan global, privately held technology company

GigaPan Systems is a global, privately held technology company that provides hardware, software, and services to create and share high-resolution, interactive gigapixel panoramic images. The company is headquartered in Portland, Oregon.

Scanography technique of capturing still images using a flatbed scanner

Scanography, more commonly referred to as scanner photography, is the process of capturing digitized images of objects for the purpose of creating printable art using a flatbed "photo" scanner with a CCD array capturing device. Fine art scanography differs from traditional document scanning by using atypical objects, often three-dimensional, as well as from photography, due to the nature of the scanner's operation.

VR photography

VR photography is the interactive viewing of wide-angle panoramic photographs, generally encompassing a 360-degree circle or a spherical view. The results is known as VR photograph, 360-degree photo, photo sphere, or spherical photo, as well as interactive panorama or immersive panorama.

Digital microscope

A digital microscope is a variation of a traditional optical microscope that uses optics and a digital camera to output an image to a monitor, sometimes by means of software running on a computer. A digital microscope often has its own in-built LED light source, and differs from an optical microscope in that there is no provision to observe the sample directly through an eyepiece. Since the image is focused on the digital circuit, the entire system is designed for the monitor image. The optics for the human eye are omitted.

Image Composite Editor

Image Composite Editor is an advanced panoramic image stitcher made by the Microsoft Research division of Microsoft Corporation.

The Fujitsu Celsius is a line of laptop and workstation computers manufactured by Fujitsu. The brand name has also been used for graphic accelerators. The computers are intended for applications such as computer-aided design, digital content creation, geographical information systems work, architecture, engineering, financial forecasting, flux balance analysis, scientific simulation, electronic design, and virtual reality.

Brenizer Method

The Brenizer Method, sometimes referred to as Bokeh Panorama or Bokehrama, is a photographic technique characterized by the creation of a digital image exhibiting a shallow depth of field in tandem with a wide angle of view. Created by use of panoramic stitching techniques applied to portraiture, it was popularized by photographer Ryan Brenizer.

Epsilon photography is a form of computational photography wherein multiple images are captured with slightly varying camera parameters such as aperture, exposure, focus, film speed and viewpoint for the purpose of enhanced post-capture flexibility. The term was coined by Prof. Ramesh Raskar. The technique has been developed as an alternative to light field photography that requires no specialized equipment. Examples of epsilon photography include focal stack photography, High dynamic range (HDR) photography, lucky imaging, multi-image panorama stitching and confocal stereo. The common thread for all the aforementioned imaging techniques is that multiple images are captured in order to produce a composite image of higher quality, such as richer color information, wider-field of view, more accurate depth map, less noise/blur and greater resolution.

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