Multi-Layer Decomposition and Synthesis of HDR Images to Improve High-Saturation Boundaries

Abstract

Recently, high dynamic range (HDR) imaging has been used in many fields such as display, computer graphics, and digital cameras. Various tone mapping operators (TMOs) are used for effective HDR imaging. TMOs aim to express HDR images without loss of information and natural images on existing display equipment. In this paper, to improve the color distortion that occurs during tone mapping, multi-layer decomposition-based color compensation and global color enhancement of the boundary region are proposed. Multi-layer decomposition is used to preserve the color information of the input image and to find the area where color distortion occurs. Color compensation and enhancement are especially used to improve the color saturation of the border area, which is degraded due to color distortion and tone processing. Color compensation and enhancement are processed in IPT color space with excellent hue linearity to improve effective performance by reducing interference between luminance and chrominance components. The performance of the proposed method was compared to the existing methods using naturalness, distortion, and tone-mapped image quality metrics. The results show that the proposed method is superior to the existing methods.