My name is Jiamin Bai, and I’m a research scientist at Light. I work on the computational imaging team, which develops the algorithms to combine images from the L16’s different camera modules. My role mostly focuses on calibrating sensors for de-noising and HDR, but I also get to do a lot of shooting with our L16 prototypes. Last month I took one to London; here’s what happened!

As one of the very first people to ever shoot with the L16 camera, either in the lab or in the field, I can tell you first and foremost that it’s a lot of fun, and second that the quality of the lenses is going to surprise you. I’m still amazed that plastic lenses have gotten this good. Another thing that really stands out is the zoom. Having a really great zoom without swapping out a lens is a totally new experience. Finally, I will say that the L16 is a great conversation starter. Some of the reactions I got on the street were really great.

For this shoot in London, I wanted to capture the frenetic pace of the city and the beauty at night. The L16 does really well in low light conditions and with movement. Also, being able to change bokeh and depth of field later gives you more artistic flexibility than you would have with a single-lens camera.

To me, London always seems like a dramatic clash of contrast and texture. It is simultaneously so grey and yet so colorful at the same time. It’s a bit gritty, as most cities are, but there are also places with a lot of natural beauty, like St. James Park or along the Thames. The L16 is very easy to shoot with in all of these situations. Our current prototype still requires some additional equipment, but we’re extremely close to having our first “pocket-ready” prototype!

I hope you enjoy my photos from London. We’ll be sharing more soon as we’re able to take the L16 on more field trips!