Nokia has recently made efforts to distinguish its smartphones with advanced photographic capabilities, introducing the PureView 808 with a 41MP rear camera. Now, Nokia’s long-time head of imaging and photography Damian Dinning, who has been with the company since 2004, is confirmed to be departing as of November 30. Dinning was also said to have been instrumental in the development of Windows Phone imaging software, through Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft.
Nokia also recently touted the Lumia 920’s low-light image capture prowess. And indeed, the 920 does take much brighter, better images in low-light situations thanks to optical image stabilization features built into the camera module. Camera quality and features have been promoted by Nokia as key differentiators for its Windows Phone 8 handsets versus competition from Apple and Android hardware OEMs.
Dinning’s background includes roles at Minolta and Eastman Kodak, and Nikon. In September he released a paper detailing Nokia’s plans regarding PureView technology and how it would be employed in the 920. In it, he described improved methods for making the most of the pixels available from that smartphone’s 8 megapixel shooter, rather than trying to cram more megapixels into a small form factor, as Nokia had done with the 808 PureView.
Amateur Photographer reports that Dinning’s departure “came as a blow” to Nokia higher ups, and indeed, losing the man responsible for one of their smartphone’s key features can’t be easy. We’ve reached out to Nokia for additional comment on this shift, and will update this story as needed.
Update: Nokia provided the following statement, which seems to be the same one they’re giving every outlet regarding this staffing change:
Following the relocation of key strategic roles to Finland,and with great reluctance, Damian Dinning has made a personal decision to leave the company effective November 30, 2012. During the past nine years, he has made many innovative and valuable contributions to Nokia, most recently as a lead program manager in our Smart Devices business. We thank him for his service to the company and certainly wish him the best.