Experiment in Slit-Scan Photography Using Moving Vehicles to Capture Images

Slit-Scan Photography Concept

The core idea involves a camera pointed out of a moving vehicle, continuously capturing a single vertical line of an image. As the camera moves, the scene changes, and these rapidly captured lines are then stitched together to produce a complete image. This technique is analogous to how a flatbed scanner works, where the scanning head moves across a document.

Background and Inspiration

This experimental approach draws inspiration from digital scanning backs developed in the 1990s. These devices captured high-resolution images by moving a single line of pixels across a frame, compensating for the limitations of digital sensor technology at the time. While modern sensors are larger, this method remains a cost-effective way to achieve large-format imaging.

Initial Experimentation

The concept was first tested by scanning a sofa indoors, as an immediate outdoor experiment with a train was not feasible. This initial trial aimed to validate the basic principle of moving the camera past a stationary subject to generate an image.