Focus-Pocus: Tripping with the Light Field Fantastic Lytro Camera
May 17, 2025
David Prochnow
Our resident “how-to” project editor, David Prochnow, lives on the Gulf Coast of the United States in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. He brings his expertise at making our photography projects accessible to everyone, from a lengthy stint acting as the Contributing How-To Editor with Popular Science magazine. While you don’t have to actually build each of his projects, reading about these adventures will contribute to your continued overall appreciation of do-it-yourself photography. A collection of David’s best Popular Science projects can be found in the book, “The Big Book of Hacks,” Edited by Doug Cantor.
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What looks like a gigantic lipstick from the prop department of the movie “Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman” is, in reality, a camera. But not just any camera; oh, no. This is the cutting edge, futuristic Lytro camera–a camera with an endearing trait that very few photographers ever experienced.
Initially called ReFocus Imaging, Lytro, Inc. was founded in 2006 by Dr. Ren Ng. It was Dr. Ng’s thesis work on light-field technology that formed the foundation for Lytro, Inc. In a nutshell, light field technology captures all of the light rays traveling throughout a scene from the foreground to the background. This ability to take light rays and selectively shift the image from foreground to background is the fundamental concept that the Lytro camera encapsulated. Harnessing these light rays with some impressive computational work enabled the Lytro camera to alter its focus within the final photograph. Yes, this was the ultimate photographer’s camera -shoot now and refocus, re-zoom, and re-expose later, after “developing” the photograph in a computer.
Lytro called this concept “living pictures.” In this context, a static photograph is “alive” because the photographer can change and re-change the depth-of-field, focus, and exposure inside the proprietary Lytro Desktop computer program. That is, once you’ve been able to extract the .lfp (LightField Picture) format files (also known as .RAW in Lytro Desktop) from inside the fixed onboard camera memory. And downloading your files represents one of the first of several “gotchas” that prevent the Lytro camera from being an unrivaled camera.
In itself, the Lytro camera hardware is a true photographic work of art. Its aluminum rectangular prism is trimmed with a rubber grip that holds the power button, shutter button, a zoom slider, and a micro-USB port. The instant on power accompanied with a zero shutter lag exposure makes the Lytro a great point-and-shoot compact digital camera.
In fact, the eponymous light-field camera shipped in 2012 with 8GB and 16GB models. The price for a Moxie Pink 8GB model in 2012 retailed for $399. Today, I discovered a similar Moxie Pink model at a thrift store in North Hollywood, California for $50. This particular item was in the original retail box with all accessories including the rare tripod mount adapter.
The specifications for this Lytro include a 35mm – 300mm zoom f/2 lens with an ISO range of 80 – 3200 coupled with shutter speeds ranging from 8s – 1/250 that produces a 1080- x 1080-pixels JPG. Controlling the Lytro is accessed via a 1.52-inch touchscreen LCD.
Basically, Shoot Now, Focus Later, Sorta
Once you’ve taken some light field photographs, it’s time to review your “living pictures.” Unfortunately, it’s at this point that the remaining “gotchas” will come cascading down to rain on your pixel parade. First of all, if you’re a MacOS owner with a modern Macintosh computer, just forget it. Yes, you’ll be able to plug the camera into your computer, but when clicking on Lytro.htm Web link that is contained on the camera drive, your browser is directed to raytrix 3D light-field vision, instead of the now defunct Lytro.com. All is not lost, however.
There are two excellent Lytro archives that contain the Lytro Desktop software for both MacOS and Windows:
- Lytro Meltdown
- LightField Forum – Lytro Archive
Unfortunately, even though the provided Lytro Desktop Version 4 MacOS will work on a modern Macintosh, it will not connect with the Lytro camera for importing LFP files. Yes, it’s game over for MacOS. On the other hand, the Windows v5.0.1 (151215.109) software from Lytro Meltdown will work on a PC. In order to install this software properly, however, you must configure the Lytro Desktop executable program to use Windows 7 compatibility.
Once your PC is connected to the Lytro camera, the onboard files must be individually imported and processed. This is a labor of love with 39 images, for example, taking approximately 55 minutes for completion. Inside the Lytro Desktop is where you can try to change focus and exposure and export a processed JPG or a short video animation with the focus shifting between foreground and background.
Forget megapixels, inside the Lytro we’re talking megarays, specifically, an 11 megaray sensor underneath a microlens array. Yes, you’d be forgiven thinking that this resolution sounds a little, err, weak, but the proof is in the photographs. And the photographs produced by the Lytro can be divisive. Please judge for yourself and see if Lytro is an amazing technology or overblown hype.
What began with such high hopes and aspirations ended in 2018 for Lytro, Inc. Thankfully, rumors suggest that Google hired some of its employees. However, the fate of the Lytro camera was sealed and its technology relegated to thrift store shelves with very few interested buyers.
Enjoy.
David Prochnow
Our resident “how-to” project editor, David Prochnow, lives on the Gulf Coast of the United States in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. He brings his expertise at making our photography projects accessible to everyone, from a lengthy stint acting as the Contributing How-To Editor with Popular Science magazine. While you don’t have to actually build each of his projects, reading about these adventures will contribute to your continued overall appreciation of do-it-yourself photography. A collection of David’s best Popular Science projects can be found in the book, “The Big Book of Hacks,” Edited by Doug Cantor.
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2 responses to “Focus-Pocus: Tripping with the Light Field Fantastic Lytro Camera”
I own an Illum, their later, more capable camera. when Lytro went under, they took their hosting site for these images away. this was the only place you could upload the original files and let end users – which is to say your photos’ viewers -adjust the depth of field and focus themselves. this means the only way you can really use it today is if you use it to create a video file, or you make all the focusing and field decisions yourself before your viewer ever sees it, and therefore has no control over it.
I really expected flickr or some other hosting site to be able to host the raw images, which would have kept the flexibility for allowing your viewers to explore a space themselves in your photograph. but it never happened, and mine’s been collecting dust for many years now.
incidentally the Illum was also a physically gorgeous piece of kit.
its stubborn refusal to be just another camera. It’s a beautiful dead end on the roadmap of tech, and I’ve loved walking that road for a decade. It’s a reminder that what makes something “good” isn’t always market success, but the unique way it makes you feel and see.