Study on contrast variations with depth in focused plenoptic cameras

International audienceA focused plenoptic camera has the ability to record and separate spatial and directional information of the incoming light. Combined with the appropriate algorithm, 3D scene could be reconstructed from a single acquisition, over a depth range called plenoptic Depth-of-Field. In this article, we study the contrast variations with depth as a way to assess plenoptic Depth-of-Field. We take into account the impact of diffraction, defocus and, magnification on the resulting contrast. We measure the contrast directly on both simulated and acquired images. We confront our simulations with acquired data. We demonstrate the importance of diffraction and magnification in the final contrast. Contrary to classical optics, the maximum of contrast is not centered around the main object plane, but around a shifted position, with a fast and non-symmetric decrease of contrast