Method for image designating and modifying process

• US 6,798,921 B2
• Filed: 03/16/1999
• Issued: 09/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kinjo, Naoto
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, Timothy M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kassa, Yosef
• Application Number:
  US09/268,316
• Publication Number:
  US 20030202715A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,023 Days
• Field of Search: 382/282, 382/199, 382/197, 382/164, 382/302, 382/303, 382/217, 382/218, 382/219, 345/778, 345/424, 358/453, 358/452
• US Class Current: 382/282
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/407 Control or modification of tonal gradation or of extreme levels, e.g. background level

Abstract

Images in a plurality of related images are processed such that a specific region of the image in the first frame is designated and a specific image in the specific region is modified while at the same time the information about the image characteristic quantity of the specific region and what was modified about the specific image are both stored. In the processing of the images in the second and subsequent frames, a similar region that is similar in the image characteristic quantity to the initial specific image is extracted and subjected to the same image modification as has been performed on the specific region of said first frame. Therefore, highly amusing images that have been finished to satisfy the customer'"'"'s request and other needs can be obtained by simple and efficient operations; as a result, prints of high quality that reproduce such images can be produced in high yield.

Claims

1. An image processing method for processing images in a plurality of related frames, in which the image data supplied from an image data source is subjected to specified image processing so as to produce output image data, comprising the steps of:

in the processing of an image in a first frame among the plurality of related frames, designating a specific region in the first frame;

calculating an image characteristic quantity of the specific region;

subjecting the specific region to image modification; and

storing the image characteristic quantity of the specific region and the image modification of specific region; and

, further comprising the steps of;

in the processing of the images in second and subsequent frames, extracting a similar region that is similar in said image characteristic quantity to the specific region without the image modification in said first frame; and

subjecting the similar region to the same image modification performed on the specific region of said first frame.

2. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein said specific region is at least one member of the group consisting of a human subject taken as a whole, his or her face, hair on the head, eyes, lips, trunk, clothing and accessories.

3. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein said image characteristic quantity is at least one member of the group consisting of position and shape characteristics, density characteristics, color tint characteristics, texture characteristics, and space frequency characteristics.

4. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the image characteristic quantity of the specific region before the image modification of said first frame is stored and later used as a criterion for determining as to whether similar regions extracted from the second and subsequent frames need be corrected or not.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said image modification comprises at least one of color adjustment, contrast adjustment, density adjustment and shading adjustment.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of related frames comprise frames of a photographic film.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of related frames comprise frames of a photographic film.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of related frames comprise frames related by a common geographic area.

9. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein said image characteristic quantity is at least one member of the group consisting essentially of density characteristics, color tint characteristics, texture characteristics and space frequency characteristics.

10. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the specific region designated in the first frame includes at least one of substantially continuous color and density data.

11. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the similar region is extracted from any location within the second and subsequent frames.

16. An image processing method according to claim 1, wherein said processing of the image in the first frame further comprises producing an output image of the first frame with the modified specific region, and said processing of the images in the second and subsequent frames further comprises producing output images of the second and subsequent frames with a modified similar region.

12. An image processing method for processing images in a plurality of related frames and for subjecting image data of the respective images in the plurality of the related frames supplied from an image data source to specific image processing so as to produce output image data of the respective images, comprising:

a step of processing an image in a first frame among the plurality of the related frames, comprising steps of designating manually a specific region having a specific image in the first frame, calculating an image characteristic quantity of the specific image in the specific region, modifying manually the specific image in the specific region, and storing the image characteristic quantity of the specific region and the image modification of the specific image; and

a step of processing of the images in second and subsequent frames, comprising the steps of extracting a similar region that is similar in said image characteristic quantity to the specific region of unmodified specific image in said first frame and subjecting an image in the similar region to the same image modification performed on the specific image in the specific region of the first frame.

13. The image processing method according to claim 12, wherein said specific image in said specific region is at least one member of the group consisting of a human subject taken as a whole, face, hair on the head, eyes, lips, trunk, clothing and accessories.

14. The image processing method according to claim 12, wherein said image characteristic quantity is at least one member of the group consisting of position and shape characteristics, density characteristics, color tint characteristics, texture characteristics and space frequency characteristics.

15. The image processing method according to claim 12, wherein the image characteristic quantity of the specific image in the specific region before image modification of the specific image in said first frame is stored and later used as a criterion for determining as to whether similar regions extracted from the second and subsequent frames need be corrected or not.

17. An image processing method according to claim 12, wherein said step of processing the image in the first frame further comprises producing an output image of the first frame with the modified specific image in the specific region, and said step of processing of the images in the second and subsequent frames further comprises producing output images of the second and subsequent frames having a modified image in the similar region.

18. An image processing method according to claim 12, wherein said step of extracting the similar region is performed automatically, and said step of subjecting the image in the similar region is performed automatically.