imaging your eyes with a webcam

I was really bored one day. So I decided to take a picture of my eye (for a facebook picture). Alas, the only camera I had was, well, a poor quality webcam. (I will keep its identity a secret to save embarrassment.) Anyways, here's the required materials.
-small white led light source
-webcam (dur!)
-eyes (yeah, you probably figured that one out already, too.)

Step 1: Light source

So, the problem with most webcams is that they just don't pick up light too well. Your eyes are recessed into a cavity in your head which makes a shade from the sun. A fix for that problem, without having to dremel your brow down, is to get a good light source that can get back there and give the webcam some help. I used one of those little two dollar flashlight/laser combos from wal-mart. You can use a different light source, of course, but you'll need something that has a bright white light (say that 3 times fast), preferably LED.

Comments

[Rockerx]

as soon as I saw this i thought of using it to login like a thumbprint can. but that may be hard with finding the right software to correspond with your webcam anyway good Instructable and idea.

[orangesrhyme]

I thought about it, too, but I don't know that it'd be time efficient (having to bust out your light source and image your eye every time you login), and then I realized that there was no way I could find Ubuntu-compatible software for that. I think they do sell specially made webcams to do just that, though. Still, a good idea. Maybe I'll try building the light into the webcam (a ring light around the lens, maybe?) and post an 'ible.

[foxtrot4697]

odd, software like that would probably be all programmed on linux

[Rockerx]

yeah id like to see that and i run into the same problem with my linux not having the right software