An intriguing patent made by Olympus indicates the possibility of allowing photographers to expose different areas of one image for different lengths of time

Images via Egami

Olympus’s newly patented system would essentially allow photographers to get a correct exposure across an entire image, irrespective of the situation.

It looks as though users would be able to display separate histograms for individual areas of an image and judge multiple exposures accordingly.

Images from the Olympus patent show a scenario where a photographer is attempting to capture fireworks but is unsure exactly when they’re going to go off.

The solution is to leave the shutter open, but this creates the danger of overexposing the buildings in the foreground, as shown:

With the newly patented technology, the user ‘paints’ the portion of the image, in this case the foreground, that is in danger of being overexposed.

With the technology only just patented it’ll be a while before we’re in a position see anything from it, but the possibilities are certainly exciting.

(Via 43 rumours. Source Egami)