An equivalent F-number for light field systems: light efficiency, signal-to-noise ratio, and depth of field

Abstract

The paper discusses the light efficiency and SNR of light field imaging systems in comparison to classical 2D imaging. In order to achieve this goal, I define the "equivalent f-number" as a concept of capturing the light gathering ability of the light field system. Since the f-number, in classical imaging systems, is conceptually also linked with the depth-of-field, I discuss an appropriate depth-of-field interpretation for light field systems.Keywords: light field imaging, light efficiency, f-number, equivalent f-number ¶ This can be seen by considering an equivalent light field system (LF) to the high-resolution standard system (St): Keeping the field-of-view and the image-side pixel size constant, requires an equivalent focal length of f /N .