Software focusing for pictures

Just noticed that comment scanning an old post, and NVidia just recently showed this exact thing off. It does require a special multi lens camera, and some heavy GPU lifting currently. Still a ways off from consumer level tech, but a fun glimpse at the possible future for photography.

Skip to 2:50 if you just want to see the demo instead of the discussion before it.

This isn't a new idea. Wavy fronted lenses combined with massive amounts of processing have been around for years. Slashdot had a story about it but the company got bought by Omnivision and I can't find the gallery. It was similar to what is shown in your clip though.

I think the new part here (and the reason it was at an NVidia conference) is that the computing power needed is now at a level to be able to do it real time, with a common GPU.

Very cool.