An adaptive tone mapping algorithm for high dynamic range images

Abstract

Real world scenes contain a large range of light intensities which range from dim starlight to bright sunlight. A common task of tone mapping algorithms is to reproduce high dynamic range(HDR) images on low dynamic range(LDR) display devices such as printers and monitors. In this paper, a new tone mapping algorithm is proposed for the display of HDR images. Inspired by the adaptive process of the human visual system, the proposed algorithm utilized the center-surround Retinex processing. The novelty of our method is that the local details are enhanced according to a non-linear adaptive spatial filter (Gaussian filter), whose shape is adapted to high-contrast edges of the image. The proposed method uses an adaptive surround instead of the traditional pre-defined circular. Therefore, the algorithm can preserve visibility and contrast impression of high dynamic range scenes in the common display devices. The proposed method is tested on a variety of HDR images, and we also compare it to previous work. The results show good performance of our method in terms of visual quality. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.