Consumer imaging II: Faces, portraits, and digital beauty

Abstract

In this second article, we explore some of these most recent technologies to make their way into today’s digital imaging devices. Photography is primarily about people andmost of our photographs feature our family and friends. Here we explain how today’s cameras can detect and track faces and even facial features in real time. We look at some of the ways that the growing computational power available in cameras can help analyze, evaluate, and enhance images based on information derived from the faces in a scene. We’ll also take a look at how sophisticated eye tracking and analysis are now feasible and an overview of the classic red-eye defects that occur when flash photography is used and how this became the first computational imaging solution to reach the mass market. Finally, we review the implementation of a range of subtler and more sophisticated enhancements that can be applied to improve our portrait images and enhance our personal appearance in both photographs and video clips.