# camera (visual)

a device that records light as image

- Computed level: L12 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: everyday  ·  Arena: thing

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [device](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-device.tool), [glass](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-glass.material), [image](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-image.visual), [light](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-light.visual), [records](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-records.document)

**Through:** the device uses glass to make light into image by recording it

**Novel properties:**
- image recording
- light preservation
- visual documentation

## Examples
- The Hubble Space Telescope captured the Pillars of Creation image using a 2.4-meter mirror and digital sensors. *(astronomy)*
- The Leica M3, released in 1954, recorded street scenes on 35mm film using a coupled rangefinder. *(photography)*
- A traffic enforcement camera in London recorded a vehicle's license plate at 33 km/h in a 30 km/h zone. *(urban)*

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-camera.visual*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-camera.visual.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*