One image three cameras

This started out as a simple enough project, I wanted to make a new screen wallpaper for my wife's computer. I am into things that self reference, like fractals and most things that people think of as complex. Today I had the opportunity, I was stuck inside on a nicer day, but with three cameras. I decided that the challenge would be to get the images from the three cameras into one photo. It was easy, I'd take a photo of the computer, with photo(s) of itself as its screen wallpaper

It did not take me long at all, but I had to press some extra technology into play. A tripod, a second computer (my notebook with a wireless link, a network (to get the image onto the LCD screen), picasa (to do the cropping and and resizing), my Nokia 540i cameraphone, my Olympus C-4000 and a borrowed Pentax Opti, all got used at various steps.

First I used my phone to talk the first generation image of the computer with a blank screen. I sent this to my notebook using the Nokia PC suite over an infrared link. Where I cropped it and sent it onto the desktop and saved it there as a background wallpaper.

Next, for the second generation image. I got out my tripod and set my trusty old Olympus ontop and zoomed to get as close as I could to the same limits as the first photo. I took a bracketed range of photos. (I wanted to make sure the tone of the images didn't vary to much, so I took 5 ranges using plus & minus 0.3 EV steps). This time I had to take the card out of the camera and load it into my notebook that way. I selected the best match (which was - 0.3EV) and sent that to the desktop and saved that as the new background.

Finally, for the third generation image, I used the tiny Pentax Opti, again mounted on the tripod. The image in viewfinder looked pretty right so this time I didn't bother with the bracketed series. Again I took out the memory card and transferred to my notebook and then onto the desktop. Within 5 minutes of nutting it out it was finished. (it has taken be longer to write and upload this)

My wife's verdict: "Hmmm clever, but can I have my daffodils back?" (Her background was a photo she had taken of some bright daffodils she grew in a pot, so I guess that is deep enough self reference also! Such is life!)