Tone reproduction for high-dynamic range imaging based on adaptive filtering

Abstract

A tone reproduction algorithm with enhanced contrast of high-dynamic range images on conventional low-dynamic range display devices is presented. The proposed algorithm consists mainly of block-based parameter estimation, a characteristic-based luminance adjustment, and an adaptive Gaussian filter using minimum description length. Instead of relying only on the reduction of the dynamic range, a characteristic-based luminance adjustment process modifies the luminance values. The Gaussian-filtered luminance value is obtained from appropriate value of variance, and the contrast is then enhanced through the use of a relation between the adjusted luminance and Gaussian-filtered luminance values. In the final tone-reproduction process, the proposed algorithm combines color and luminance components in order to preserve the color consistency. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm achieves a good subjective quality while enhancing the contrast of the image details.