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Cameras and Digital Imaging. (Some of this you can actually use in everyday life). An Important Number. The wider a camera lens opening (aperture), the more light enters. The greater the distance from lens to sensor (focal length), the more light is spread out and the fainter the image
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Cameras and Digital Imaging (Some of this you can actually use in everyday life)
An Important Number • The wider a camera lens opening (aperture), the more light enters. • The greater the distance from lens to sensor (focal length), the more light is spread out and the fainter the image • If (focal length)/(aperture) is constant, the image is always the same brightness regardless of the size of the camera • (focal length)/(aperture) = f-ratio
Diffraction • Any time light encounters an edge (lens, mirror, opening of any kind), diffraction occurs • Diffraction limits the resolution of optical instruments • Relatively unimportant for film but much more important for digital imaging • Film is a continuous recording medium • Digital imaging involves discrete pixels
Image Resolution • Two objects will not appear distinct unless their Airy disks are separate • Airy disk size = 2.4 x wavelength x f-ratio • 500 nm and f/4 = 5280 nm = 5.3 microns • About the size of retinal cells • Didn’t matter much for film • Does it pay to have pixels smaller than the Airy disk?
What is a Pixel? • Digital cameras use Bayer RGB filter for color rendition • ¼ of receptors are red sensitive, ¼ are blue sensitive and ½ are green sensitive • Matches color sensitivity of eye • Four receptors (1R 2G 1B) = a pixel
Super-Mega-Pixels • Pixels smaller than the Airy disk ( a few microns) contribute no resolution • Downside of mega-pixel cameras • Fewer photons per pixel = more noise • Bloated file sizes • Probably no harm • Biggest problem with tiny cameras is inferior lenses
More on Megapixels • HDTV = 2 megapixels • James Cameron filmed Avatar with 2.2 megapixel cameras • Anything over 5 megapixels probably unnecessary • More pixels don’t help, but don’t hurt either
Satellite Imaging • Old Old School • Shoot on film • Develop on board • Scan with oscilloscope and photocell • Reconstruct on ground • Examples • Luna III 1959 • Lunar Orbiter
Spacecraft Imaging • Photomultiplier tubes are extremely sensitive and reliable • Television-like technology used on spacecraft well into 1980’s • Galileo (launched 1989) was the first mission to use solid state imaging • 800 x 800 pixels