Fundus camera having scanned illumination and pupil tracking

An apparatus for illuminating an eye, comprising:

• (a) a light source for providing an illumination beam;
• (b) a spatial light modulator for positioning and cross-sectionally shaping the illumination beam according to a location and dimensions of a pupil;
• (c) an illumination beam partitioning mechanism for cross-sectionally segmenting the illumination beam directed toward the pupil of the eye into at least one light-bearing segment and at least one blocked segment;
• and
• (d) a scanner for scanning the at least one light-bearing segment of the illumination beam across the pupil of the eye.

A method for illuminating a human eye for obtaining an image comprising:

• (a) aligning the eye along an optical axis;
• (b) obtaining a dimensional profile of a pupil of the eye;
• (c) generating an illumination beam;
• (d) shaping a cross-sectional profile of the illumination beam according to the dimensional profile obtained of the pupil of the eye;
• and
• (e) directing the shaped illumination beam toward the eye, along the optical axis.

A method for illuminating a human eye for obtaining an image comprising:

• (a) aligning the eye along an optical axis;
• (b) obtaining dimensional information about a pupil of the eye;
• (c) generating an illumination beam;
• (d) shaping the cross-sectional profile of the illumination beam according to the dimensional information obtained about the pupil of the eye;
• (e) partitioning the illumination beam to block light from at least one partition of the beam, thereby forming at least one blocked segment of the beam not bearing light and at least one light-bearing segment of the beam;
• and
• (f) scanning the light-bearing segment of the illumination beam along the pupil of the eye to illuminate successive portions of the eye over time.