Aimed at professional photographers, the new Leaf Aptus 22 and Leaf Aptus 17 camera backs offer photo resolutions of 22 million and 17 million pixels respectively. Along with fast processors and a variety of convenient storage mechanisms, the lossless data compression implemented by CAST’s cores makes the large data files generated by these cameras significantly more manageable.

The cores use the same compression technology recently adopted by Adobe for the Digital Negative (DNG) RAW format standard: Lossless Huffman JPEG (LJPEG). This quality standard is typically used in applications where lossless, high resolution images are critical, such as in medical applications. Added to the JPEG standard in 1995, this little-used but efficient technology is seeing a resurgence because it enables high-performance, bit-by-bit accurate image reproduction using significantly fewer resources than required for other lossless techniques such as JPEG 2000.

“Leaf customers demand absolute image fidelity, and CAST’s cores helped us deliver that in our new Aptus line,” said Dr. Daniel Seidner, senior project manager at Creo/Leaf. "They also helped us achieve faster image processing, with smaller files and no loss of information. The cores were well documented and easy to implement, and we enjoyed a fruitful and smooth relationship working with CAST.”

The Leaf Aptus camera backs use CAST’s Lossless JPEG encoder core to quickly compress images for storage, and the decoder core to decompress them for viewing on the camera’s high-resolution built-in display. Their compact, high-performance architecture mean these cores achieve fast compression times with relatively little silicon area, making them suitable for ASICs and many FPGAs. Developed by CAST’s long-time multimedia partner Alma Technologies, these are the first commercial cores to implement the LJPEG compression algorithm. See the CAST web site at www.cast-inc.com for more information.

About Creo Leaf

In 1992, Leaf introduced the world’s first digital camera back, the Leaf DCB. Since then Leaf has continuously led the professional digital photography market by developing innovative, award-winning solutions. Visit www.creo.com/leaf for more information on Leaf and the Aptus product line.

Leaf is a part of Creo Inc. a global company with key strengths in imaging, software, and digital printing plate technology. The company is based in Vancouver, Canada, and reported fiscal 2004 revenue of US$636 million. Creo trades on NASDAQ (CREO) and the TSX (CRE). See www.creo.com for more information.

About CAST Incorporated

CAST provides about 100 popular and standards-based IP cores for ASICs and FPGAs. Privately owned and operating since 1993 with a focus on making IP practical and affordable, CAST has established a reputation for high-quality IP products, simple licensing, and responsive technical support. The company is headquartered near New York City, partners with IP developers around the world, and works with select sales consultants and distributors throughout Europe and Asia.