

Correcting these defects usually requires additional lenses, which add weight and cost to the viewfinder. Some objects can look warped and distorted, while others may be ringed or fringed in color. These produce aberrations in the final image. Typically, the camera’s design locates the eyepiece apart from the camera’s lens and uses lens elements that refract light. Credit: Aaron Bauer, University of Rochesterĭigital video cameras capture motion with an imaging sensor and present it to the cinematographer on a small electronic display viewed through an eyepiece. Rolland and her team say their new all-reflective electronic viewfinder could have wide-ranging applications outside of the film industry, from health to military to space.Ĭonvetional viewfinder design whose volume is filled with glass. CeFO is an Industry-University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) funded by the National Science Foundation to advance research, education and development of freeform optics in science and engineering. “The technology can open up a space for new art and better experiences at the movies,” says Jannick Rolland, professor of optical engineering at the University of Rochester and the Director of the Center for Freeform Optics (CeFO). The new design is the first of its kind to employ special mirrors - five in this case - in a comfortable eyebox that measures 200 cm3. Unlike conventional optics, where mirrors and lenses are symmetrical and have flat, smooth surfaces, freeform optics employ elements that lack symmetry and may have surfaces shaped like potato chips. To achieve this, researchers created a new design, rooted in freeform optics.
Virtual viewfinder free#
In lab experiments, the prototype exceeded strict industry-specific performance requirements for accuracy, resolution, and contrast and was completely free of color and light aberrations across a wide field of view. New All-Reflective Electronic Viewfinder Offers Cinematographers Best Picture YetĪ new high-fidelity electronic viewfinder made with a unique optical design offers cinematographers the highest image quality to date. Credit: Aaron Bauer, University of Rochester 2D raytrace of the five-mirror freeform viewfinder design superimposed on a 3D model of the system housing.
