Say Cheese: New Tech Knows When You're Smiling
Wed Jan 16, 2008 9:10AM EST
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Great Aunt Elsie will never have that disapproving frown on her face again, at least not in the family reunion photo shot. FotoNation is the company behind digital photography technologies like red-eye reduction and face tracking. Its software is built into many of the top consumer digital cameras.
FotoNation's FaceTracker looks for faces in a photo and focuses the camera on them. SmileCheck, a new technology to make sure the folks in your photo all look happy, is an extension of FaceTracker. When you push the camera's shutter button down halfway to properly focus and frame your photo, SmileCheck first looks for faces in the scene. Once faces are detected, the software looks for facial features associated with smiles. Called the Smile Shutter, the photo isn't snapped until every person in the shot is smiling. Imagine weeding out the "nobody is going to make me smile" kid from the class photo.
You can see a demonstration of the technology at FotoNation.com. It's being demonstrated at PMA—a photo marketing show being held in Orlando at the end of the month and it's sure to make a bunch of group photo enthusiasts "smile."
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2 Posted by rgbernabe2002 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:38PM EDT Report Abuse
That is a good idea but how can you really smile on the camera especially if you just buried one of your love ones in the cemetery that day... I think smiling in the camera is a case to case bases...
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3 Posted by tinkerbellpixie26 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:10PM EDT Report Abuse
I agree with rgbernabe....I am disney nut...lol as you see by the name...and some of the "characters" don't smile, or their costumes faces don't smile...so apparently that camera would do no justice because it won't take a picture....definetly not for me... I am also a scrap booker, and seeing other people's work there are many people who have pics of their kids frowning or crying or something or making a funny face...I think these cams shoudl have a setting to switch it on and off thats for sure...
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4 Posted by hoy_shane on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:21PM EDT Report Abuse
Sony has been boasting of its SmileShutter since last year. it's practically the same feature as the one in this article. am i right?
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5 Posted by mps_resume on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:27PM EDT Report Abuse
I have the Sony DSC-T200 that has the same technology. People are amazed by how well it works. It also has an adjustment for how sensitive you want it to be. The best thing is that you don't have to have it on; it's optional.
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6 Posted by earnhardt8fan on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:51PM EDT Report Abuse
I take alot of pictures at concerts. The musicians and the singers cant stop and smile everytime there is a camera pointed at them. The whole point of the shots I'm getting is 'ACTION SHOTS' Hopefully there is a way to turn OFF this feature
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7 Posted by sparkmanconstruction on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:35PM EDT Report Abuse
What if cousin ed is in the picture, He ain't got no teeth. If he smiles it looks more like he's yawning. Can it tell if you're yawning? If I buy that camera, I'd have to leave out half my dern family.
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8 Posted by greeky152 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:12PM EDT Report Abuse
I've seen this smiling face detection in a Sony digital point-shoot camera. Its a great idea and a great option for group portrait shots. I wish I had the technology when I was the photographer for Santa's visits and family portraits...but how would it detect men with heavy beards that cover their mouths and face? But anyway its a great optional feature...
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9 Posted by ytech_robinraskin on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:58PM EDT Report Abuse
This stuff seems to get more and more precise. I talked to Kodak. They offered that the face detection/smile detection is a processor that can detect 2 eye, nose and mouth and say aha! I've got me a face. Fuji's new face detection can detect 10 faces in a photo --- even when some are at weird angles. And now GE announced Blink detection in their cameras for spring. As long as they don't start implementing age detection, I'm ok -- Robin
1 Posted by wwicks333 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:51PM EDT Report Abuse
That's amazing! I wonder if it says say cheese. XRFilm.com Has some amazing cameras for spring!! Hot Shots!