Lenses and Distortion
How do we see the world?
• Let’s design a camera
– Idea 1: put a piece of film in front of an object
– Do we get a reasonable image?
Slide by Steve Seitz
Pinhole camera
• Add a barrier to block off most of the rays
– This reduces blurring
– The opening known as the aperture
Slide by Steve Seitz
Pinhole camera model
• Pinhole model:
– Captures pencil of rays – all rays through a single point
– The point is called Center of Projection (focal point)
– The image is formed on the Image Plane
Slide by Steve Seitz
Shrinking the aperture
• Why not make the aperture as small as possible?
– Less light gets through
– Diffraction effects…
Slide by Steve Seitz
Shrinking the aperture
The reason for lenses
Adding a lens
• A lens focuses light onto the film
– Rays passing through the center are not
deviated
Slide by Steve Seitz
Adding a lens
focal point
• A lens focuses light onto the film
– Rays passing through the center are not deviated
– All parallel rays converge to one point on a plane located
at the focal length f
Slide by Steve Seitz
Adding a lens
“circle of
confusion”
• A lens focuses light onto the film
– There is a specific distance at which objects are “in focus”
• other points project to a “circle of confusion” in the image
– Changing the shape of the lens changes this distance
Slide by Steve Seitz
Lenses
focal point
optical center
(Center Of Projection)
• A lens focuses parallel rays onto a single focal point
– focal point at a distance f beyond the plane of the lens
• f is a function of the shape and index of refraction of the lens
– Aperture of diameter D restricts the range of rays
• aperture may be on either side of the lens
– Lenses are typically spherical (easier to produce)
– Real cameras use many lenses together (to correct for aberrations)
Thin lens formula
D’ D
f
Frédo Durand’s slide
Thin lens formula
Similar triangles everywhere!
D’ D
f
Frédo Durand’s slide
Thin lens formula
Similar triangles everywhere! y’/y = D’/D
D’ D
f
y
y’
Frédo Durand’s slide
Thin lens formula
Similar triangles everywhere! y’/y = D’/D
y’/y = (D’-f)/f
D’ D
f
y
y’
Frédo Durand’s slide
Thin lens formula
1 +1 =1 Any point satisfying the thin lens
equation is in focus.
D’ D f
D’ D
f
Frédo Durand’s slide
Thin lenses
• Thin lens equation:
– Any object point satisfying this equation is in focus
– What is the shape of the focus region?
– How can we change the focus region?
Thin lens assumption
The thin lens assumption assumes the lens has no
thickness, but this isn’t true…
Object Lens Film
Focal
point
By adding more elements to the lens, the distance at which a
scene is in focus can be made roughly planar.
Depth of Field (DOF)
Concept: The depth of field is the range of distances where objects appear sharp in the
image.
Factors Affecting DOF:
o Aperture Size:
Small aperture: Larger DOF, sharper across a broader range.
Large aperture: Smaller DOF, isolating the subject (common in portraits).
o Focal Length:
o Focal length is the distance between the lens's optical center and the camera's
sensor. It's measured in millimeters (mm). Focal length is a key factor in
determining the angle of view and magnification of a camera lens
o In a pinhole camera, focal length is distance between aperture and sensor
o In a lens camera, focal length is distance where parallel rays intersect
Longer focal lengths reduce DOF.
Shorter focal lengths increase DOF.
: Field of View (FOV) and Focal Length
Concept: FOV is the visible area captured in the image and is inversely related to the focal
length:
o Small fff: Wide-angle (large FOV).
o Large fff: Telephoto (small FOV).
Applications:
o Short focal lengths for landscapes.
Long focal lengths for wildlife or portrait photography
Depth of Field
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/depth-of-field.htm
Slide by A. Efros
How can we control the depth of field?
• Changing the aperture size affects depth of field
– A smaller aperture increases the range in which the
object is approximately in focus
– But small aperture reduces amount of light – need to
increase exposure Slide by A. Efros
Varying the aperture
Large aperture = small DOF Small aperture = large DOF
Slide by A. Efros
Depth of field
Aperture Film
f / 5.6
f / 32
• Changing the aperture size affects depth of field
– A smaller aperture increases the range in which the
object is approximately in focus
Flower images from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depth_of_field
Focal length
• Can think of as “zoom”
24mm 50mm
• Related to field of view
200mm 800mm
Field of View
f
f
FOV depends on focal length and size of the camera retina
Smaller FOV = larger Focal Length
Slide by A. Efros
Field of View / Focal Length
Large FOV, small f
Camera close to car
Small FOV, large f
Camera far from the car
Sources: A. Efros, F. Durand
Field of View (Zoom)
Slide by A. Efros
Field of View (Zoom)
Slide by A. Efros
Same effect for faces
wide-angle standard telephoto
Source: F. Durand
Lens systems
• A good camera lens may
contain 15 elements and cost a
thousand dollars
• The best modern lenses may
contain aspherical elements
Radial Distortion
– Caused by imperfect lenses
– Deviations are most noticeable for rays that pass through the
edge of the lens
No distortion Pin cushion Barrel
Correcting radial distortion
from Helmut Dersch
Other Types of Distortion
Lens Vignetting Chromatic Aberrations
Lens Glare
[Slide adapted from Srinivasa Narasimhan]
Lens Flaws: Chromatic Aberration
• Lens has different refractive indices for different
wavelengths: causes color fringing
Near Lens Center Near Lens Outer Edge
Chromatic Aberration:
Different colors (wavelengths) focus at slightly different points due to
varying refractive indices.
• Creates color fringing around edges
Lens flaws: Spherical aberration
• Spherical lenses don’t focus light perfectly
Rays farther from the optical axis focus closer
Spherical lenses fail to focus all rays perfectly, causing
blurriness.
Lens flaws: Vignetting
o Vignetting:
Edges of the image appear darker than the
center due to reduced light reaching the sensor.
Radial Distortion
Dr.S.Padmavathi, 19CSE435
