This shooting system includes a plurality of cameras capable of capturing a subject that moves on a course from different directions, and a controller that receives a setting made by the user regarding a switch order of the plurality of cameras that temporally share continuous shooting of the subject that moves on the course, and switches output videos of the plurality of cameras in accordance with the set switch order.

There is provided a method performed in a multi-sensor video camera having a first and a second sensor with partly overlapping fields of view. A first and a second received video frame being simultaneously captured each has a non-overlapping portion and an overlapping portion. A frame of a first video stream is generated by joining together image data from the non-overlapping portions of the first and the second video frame with image data from the overlapping portion of the first video frame only, and a frame of a second video stream is generated to include image data from the overlapping portion of at least the second video frame. The frame of the first video stream and the frame of the second video stream are processed in parallel, wherein the processing of the frame of the second video stream includes preparing an overlay based on the image data from the overlapping portion of at least the second video frame. The overlay is added to the processed frame of the first video stream at a portion thereof corresponding to the overlapping portion of the first video frame. Image data from the overlapping portion of the first video frame is blended with image data from the overlapping portion of the second video frame in at least one of the steps of preparing the overlay and adding the overlay.

There is provided a method and an arrangement for generating a combined image having an enhanced transition between image areas each representing a different type of image information. The method may include: determining a set of pixel coordinates, wherein the set of pixel coordinates partly overlaps at least one area in the combined image wherein the pixel values represent image information according to a first type of image information; and/or wherein the set of coordinates partly overlaps at least another area in the combined image wherein the pixel values represent image information according to a second type of image information, dependent on a selection rule; and generating a new combined image by assigning pixel values to the pixels having coordinates comprised in the determined set of pixel coordinates dependent on a mixing rule and the pixel values of the corresponding coordinates of the combined image.

Methods and apparatus for performing a zoom operation are described using multiple optical chains in a camera device. At least one optical chain in the camera device includes a moveable light redirection device, said light redirection device being one of a substantially plane mirror or a prism. The moveable light redirection device is moved to a position in accordance with a zoom setting, and a portion of a scene area of interest in captured. Different discrete zoom setting values correspond to different positions of the moveable light redirection device resulting in different capture areas. In some embodiments, multiple optical chains with moveable light redirection devices are used to capture different portions of a scene of interest. A composite image is generated from a plurality of captured images corresponding to different optical chains. A higher zoom setting corresponds to more overlap between captured images of different optical chains.

Methods and apparatus relating to capturing images of a scene area in a synchronized manner using a plurality of optical chains are described. In various embodiments image sensors corresponding to the plurality of optical chains of a camera are operated in rolling shutter mode to read out rows of pixel values corresponding to a current scan position when the image sensors have a row of pixel values corresponding to the current scan position. In some embodiments a scene area of interest is captured by initiating a scan and thus image capture of the scene area by one or more optical chains which are operated in a coordinated manner. In some embodiments a controller controls the plurality of image sensors to perform a read out of pixel values in a synchronized manner, e.g., with rows of pixel values being read out sequentially in accordance with operation of a rolling shutter implementation.

Methods and apparatus relating to controlling optical chains (OCs) of a camera device to scan a scene area of interest, thereby capturing images of the scene area, in a synchronized manner are described. In various embodiments a synchronized rolling shutter read out of two or more image sensors included in two or more corresponding OCs is implemented controlling the sensors to read out rows of pixel values corresponding to a portion of the scene at the same time, e.g., concurrently. While two or more of the OCs are controlled to read out at the same time, some other OCs in the camera maybe controlled not to read out pixel values while other image sensors are reading out. In various embodiments the read out rate of the two or more sensors corresponding to two or more optical chains is controlled as a function of the focal lengths of the corresponding OCs.

Disclosed are a method and a system for video stitching. After it is determined that initial mounting of cameras in a MN video stitching scene is completed, a reference image is selected from MN images corresponding to MN cameras; where both M and N are positive integers, at least one of M and N is larger than 1, and a rotating mirror is set in front of a camera lens of each camera; an image whose position does not meet a requirement among respective images except for the selected reference image is adjusted by controlling a rotating mirror corresponding to the image to rotate according to the selected reference image; and video stitching is performed according to an adjustment result.

An imaging apparatus includes an imaging unit, a first image processor, and a second image processor. The imaging unit sequentially acquires image frames whose photography conditions have been changed. The first image processor generates moving image data by performing image processing to maintain continuity between the image frames obtained by changing the photography conditions. The second image processor composes the image frames whose photography conditions have been changed, to generate condition-changed still image data.

Provided is a parallax minimization stitching method and apparatus using control points in an overlapping region. A parallax minimization stitching method may include defining a plurality of control points in an overlapping region of a first image and a second image received from a plurality of cameras, performing a first geometric correction by applying a homography to the control points, defining a plurality of patches based on the control points, and performing a second geometric correction by mapping the patches.

Systems and methods are provided for capturing visual data for virtual reality systems. The systems and methods include acquiring visual data captured by visual sensors, storing the acquired visual data in the memory, and providing the visual data stored in the memory for combining into a combined visual representation of the visual data. The disclosed systems and methods can combine visual representation based on synchronizing the visual data, determining matching portions of the fields of view contained in the visual data, and matching portions of the fields of view.