LONDON – Queen Elizabeth II (search) has posed for many artists in her time, but she stepped up the technology ladder for her latest portrait.
The 3-D laser-light hologram, titled "Equanimity," was commissioned by the Jersey Heritage Trust. Designer Chris Levine's blue monochrome portrait shows the monarch wearing a crown, pearls and ermine cape.
Levine, who has previously designed high-tech laser representations for rock stars such as Liam Gallagher of Oasis (search), took more than 10,000 images of the queen.
"She took to it very well," he said of the photo shoot. "We were able to chat about how far technology had moved on. She was surprisingly well informed."
The process of hologram design is complex and time-consuming with a high resolution and 3-D computer scanner used to capture the figure.
Levine said the queen had to stay perfectly still for eight seconds to get a usable image.
"It was quite nerve-racking," he said recently. "She was really obliging given that a strange man was telling her what to do."
The official high-tech portrait was unveiled by Prince Charles (search) while on a visit to the Channel Islands. A copy of the laser-light portrait will be on display in The Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace (search) July 17-Oct. 3.
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