Lytro's New 'Light-Field' Illum Debuts, Listed For $1,599

Apr 23, 2014 04:50 PM EDT | Matt Mercuro

Lytro Inc. unveiled a bigger, more expensive camera compared to its current pocket flashlight-sized device, which the company feels will make a "do-over" a reality instead of just a photographer's dream.

The Lytro Illum debuted on April 22, and will be sold for a base price of $1,599, according to Reuters.

The camera is marketed as a "legitimate tool" for commercial photographers and "advanced amateurs" who are looking to differentiate their work, said Lytro founder Ren Ng.

Lytro's original camera was priced at $399, though the device was mainly designed to establish viability of light-field photography, according to Reuters.

"With Lytro Illum, creative pioneers, ranging from artistic amateurs to experienced professionals, will tap into a new wave of graphical storytelling," said Lytro chief executive Jason Rosenthal, according to The Guardian. "By combining a novel hardware array with tremendous computational horsepower, this camera opens up unprecedented possibilities to push the boundaries of creativity beyond the limits inherent in digital or film photography."

The company has not provided sales numbers for the smaller device.

Ng's cameras feature a number of components, including high-powered digital single-lens reflex cameras (DSLRS) and sensors.

The company was founded in 2006 after Ng pursued light-field imaging research as a Stanford University graduate student. He has previously called light-field pictures "photography 3.0," believing it will surpass film and traditional digital images sooner rather than later.

"It's targeted to creative pioneers, the people who embraced color technology when it came out, when many people felt photography was about black and white," Ng said in an interview, according to Reuters.

Ng added that he feels "this transition from digital to light-field" technology will help change photography.

A decade ago, Ng and his college computer graphics team showed that light-field cameras could appeal to consumers due to its high-powered graphics processors that let users refocus images.

Lytro's software gives the new device the ability to correct optical aberrations inside the camera, essentially solving some flaws that have hurt lens designs for a long time.

See Now: OnePlus 6: How Different Will It Be From OnePlus 5?

© 2024 Auto World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Get the Most Popular Autoworld Stories in a Weekly Newsletter

Join the Conversation

Real Time Analytics