Carnegie Mellon researchers develop lens that focuses on multiple distances simultaneously

Imagine snapping a photo where every detail, near and far, is perfectly sharp—from the flower petal right in front of you to the distant trees on the horizon.

For over a century, camera designers have dreamed of achieving that level of clarity.

In a breakthrough that could transform photography, microscopy, and even smartphone cameras, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a new kind of lens that can bring an entire scene into sharp focus at once—no matter how far away or close different parts of the scene are.