Performance analysis in Lytro camera: Empirical and model based approaches to assess refocusing quality

In this paper we investigate the performance of Lytro camera in terms of its refocusing quality. The refocusing quality of the camera is related to the spatial resolution and the depth of field as the contributing parameters. We quantify the spatial resolution profile as a function of depth using empirical and model based approaches. The depth of field is then determined by thresholding the spatial resolution profile. In the model based approach, the previously proposed sampling pattern cube (SPC) model for representation and evaluation of the plenoptic capturing systems is utilized. For the experimental resolution measurements, camera evaluation results are extracted from images rendered by the Lytro full reconstruction rendering method. Results from both the empirical and model based approaches assess the refocusing quality of the Lytro camera consistently, highlighting the usability of the model based approaches for performance analysis of complex capturing systems.