US Patent 7804508 Viewing digital images on a display using a virtual loupe

A method and apparatus for viewing digital images is provided. A digital image may be viewed using a digital image system that employs a virtual loupe. A virtual loupe comprises a lens region and a target region. The lens region and the target region may each be a bounded area displayed on a display. A user may position the target region over a digital image displayed on the display to cause a depiction of visual information associated with the target region to be displayed in the lens region. The user can configure the virtual loupe to display visual information in the lens region at different levels of magnification. The lens may automatically move and change in orientation with respect to the target region as the target region moves on the display to ensure that the display of the lens region on the display is always unobscured.