While camera’s continue to evolve, the one basic principle seems to remain among many, if not all, devices available on the market – the lense can capture an image of only what’s in front of it whether it’s facing towards you or flipped to face outwards.
Yes, the panormic shot lets us create one wonderful lengthy image out of many, but is it enough and what if a camera really could capture everything around it?
Well now it can with the Ricoh Theta camera officially announced yesterday (Thursday) by Ricoh Company Ltd. that describes the camera as “the world‘s first mass-produced imaging device that encapsulates fully spherical scenes with one shot”.
The camera is able to capture the scene around, above and below it with its proprietary ultra-small twin-lens folded optical system.
At 95g and with its slim shape, it can easily be taken with you where ever you go and once you’ve taken your shots, you can synchornise it with your smartphone using a dedicated app to view photos, edit them and share them via Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Microsoft‘s Photosynth.
The Ricoh Theta will initially be compatible with the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 running on iOS 6.0 or above with Android compatibility expected before the end of the year.
According to Noboru Akahane, president of Ricoh Imaging, “œThe Ricoh Theta is a groundbreaking device for general consumers of all ages and all photographic skill levels. Its unprecedented capability to capture fully spherical images, coupled with affordability and user friendliness, makes the Ricoh Theta a tool that anybody can use to discover and share their powers of creativity.“
With a price tag of $399, the device will be available to preorder this month in France, Germany, the UK and the US at theta360.com.
Source: Uncrate
