Date: Monday, August 13, 2007
The end of bad photos?
In a new, exciting development, researchers have been working on an algorithm which can locate images on the web that have similar elements to a photo you wish to edit, in order to replace unwanted parts.
Bad photos could soon be a thing of the past if the new research project by teams at Carnegie Mellon University is launched on to the open market. Researchers have developed an algorithm which scans millions of images from sites such as Flickr to locate similar images to the one you are editing. Using light sources, camera position and composition the tool locates the closest 200 for deeper analysis and then examines them for elements such as hillsides or buildings of the appropriate size and colour of the deleted object. The nearest twenty matches of these 200 images are then gleaned of their usable parts, cropped and added to the image. A further format being developed is the use of web-based image libraries to create a clip-art of objects that look realistic when inserted in to a photo.
Research has shown that the added parts of the picture are virtually unnoticeable. This could mean that a building jutting out of someone’s head or an old boyfriend appearing in your old holiday snaps could be long-forgotten problems. The research teams have promoted their new development at the Siggraph computer graphics conference in San Diego, and there are plans to develop the algorithm further. The leader of the research has said that the difficulties lie in creating image elements which are highly realistic and intricate, whilst still being able to access them in the form of a clip library for easy use. If this tool comes on to the open market, it will mean that we never have to delete another photo with unsightly elements again.
Source: BBC News
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