Google's gigapixel camera is a work of art
A high tech super camera created by Google captures every brushstroke and detail in works of art in ultra high resolution.
The Google Cultural Institute has unveiled its new ultra high resolution Art Camera which is capable of taking gigapixel images which are made of over 1 billion pixels.
A number of these high tech cameras were created to digitise the world's greatest works of art.
The #GoogleArtCamera is now ready to meet the world! Discover more here: https://t.co/7VHa2KK2Sb (with @Boijmans) pic.twitter.com/iGr5kOrm9c
— Google Arts&Culture (@googlearts) May 17, 2016
Once it's placed in front of a painting, it takes thousands of ultra high resolution close-ups of it.
After each detail is scanned, Google's software takes these shots and brings them together into one final image.
The Google Cultural Institute has digitised over 1,000 paintings in the past year using the camera.
With older methods, it took five years to archive the first 200 artworks in high resolution.
We took the #GoogleArtCamera to @Boijmans and digitized this enchanting poppy field by Monet https://t.co/akU5Xrte3f pic.twitter.com/bVx7RWnezH
— Google Arts&Culture (@googlearts) May 17, 2016
... and this Portrait of Armand Roulin, by Van Gogh @Boijmans #GoogleArtCamera https://t.co/ZagILOPVA0 pic.twitter.com/ApBgioOgoM
— Google Arts&Culture (@googlearts) May 17, 2016
The Art Camera allows people to see every brushstroke, to read what is unreadable by the naked eye and to find hidden nuances in the artworks.
4. You can read the unreadable #GoogleArtCamera @boijmans https://t.co/u2QngHL95a pic.twitter.com/FzODane1Qg
— Google Arts&Culture (@googlearts) May 17, 2016
This is a painting, right? Guess again! This Federico Pietrella work is made of date stamps https://t.co/cCdydGwrmh pic.twitter.com/gBRA1n2P08
— Google Arts&Culture (@googlearts) May 10, 2016
A number of these cameras will now be sent to museums around the world in order to create a digital archive.
Click here to experience some of the images captured from works by famous artists including Picasso, Signac, Rembrandt, Monet and Van Gogh.