Introduction to Image Processing
Jacob Furst
DePaul CTI
What is an Image?
• A digital representation of a real-world scene. (Graphics is
the digital representation of an imaginary scene.)
• Composed of discrete elements generally called picture
element (or pixels for short)
• Pixels are parameterized by
– position
– intensity
– time
• In all combinations, these parameters define still images,
video, volume data and moving volumes
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 2
Digital Photographs
• Two spatial parameters
– x, or horizontal position
– y, or vertical position
• Three intensity parameters
– Red
– Green
– Blue
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 3
Ultrasound
• Two spatial parameters – x and y
• One intensity parameter –
ultrasound reflection
• One time parameter (ultrasound
printouts don’t show this, but the
exam does)
image
imagefrom
fromhttp://whyfiles.org/coolimages/images/csi/ultrasound.jpg
http://whyfiles.org/coolimages/images/csi/ultrasound.jpg
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 4
Digital X -ray
• Two spatial parameters – x and y
• A single intensity parameter – x-
ray attenuation
image
imagefrom
fromhttp://www.smm.org/heart/lessons/jpgs/full/xray.jpg
http://www.smm.org/heart/lessons/jpgs/full/xray.jpg
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 5
Digital Video
• Two spatial parameters
– x, or horizontal position
– y, or vertical position
• Three intensity parameters
– Red
– Green
– Blue
• One time parameter – frame #
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 6
Other Kinds of Images
• Computed Tomography – 3 dimensional x-ray images of the
human body
• Satellite images – 4 intensities – red, green, blue and
infrared
• Functional Magnetic Resonance Images – 3 dimensional
images of the human body over time
• Not all images represent visual phenomena but a
visualization can be a very effective way to understand the
phenomena
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 7
Talking about a Pixel
• Give the image a name; usually I or f
• Specify all the parameters (space, time) of your image
• The result is the intensity
• For example, a digital image I might have intensity (23, 23,
97) at pixel I(32,215)
- intensity 23 in red
- intensity 23 in green
- intensity 97 in blue
- at the 32 nd column
- at the 215th row
• A CT image f might have intensity 255 at f(67, 95, 13)
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 8
What is Image Processing
• Image processing typically attempts to accomplish one of
three things
– restoring images
– enhancing images
– understanding images
• Restoration takes a corrupted image and attempts to
recreate a clean original
• Enhancement alters an image to makes its meaning clearer
to human observers
• Understanding usually attempts to mimic the human visual
system in extracting meaning from an image
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 9
Image Restoration
• Image restoration is important for two main applications
– removing sensor noise
– restoring old, archived film and images
• Many sensors are subject to noise, thus producing corrupted
images that don’t reflect the real world scene accurately
• Old photograph and film archives often show considerable
damage
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 10
Restoration Example
Images
Imagesfrom
fromDigital
DigitalImage
ImageProcessing,
Processing,Gonzalez
Gonzalezand
andWoods
Woods
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 11
Restoration Example
Images
Images from
from http://www.screengenes.com/drest_3.html
http://www.screengenes.com/drest_3.html
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 12
Image Enhancement
Images
Imagescourtesy
courtesyof
of Tobey
TobeyThorn
Thorn
• Often used to increase the contrast in images that are overly dark or light
• Enhancement algorithms often play to humans’ sensitivity to contrast
• More sophisticated algorithms enhance images in a small neighborhood,
allowing overall better enhancement.
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 13
Image Understanding
• Image understanding includes many different tasks
– segmentation
– classification
– interpretation
• Segmentation involves identifying objects in an image
• Classification assigns labels to individual pixels
• Interpretation extracts some meaning from the image as a
whole
• Leads to such fields as image analysis, computer vision and
visual computing
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 14
Creating Images
• The creation of images involves two main tasks
– spatial sampling, which determines the resolution of an image
– quantization, which determines how many intensity levels are
allowed
• Spatial sampling determines what level of detail can be seen
– finer sampling allows for smaller detail
– finer sampling requires more pixels and “larger” images
• Quantization determines how “smooth” the contrast changes
in the image are
– finer quantization will prevent “false contouring” (artificial
edges)
– courser quantization allows for compressing images
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 15
Effect of Spatial Sampling
Images
Imagesfrom
fromDigital
DigitalImage
ImageProcessing,
Processing,Gonzalez
Gonzalezand
andWoods
Woods
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 16
Effect of Spatial Sampling
Images
Imagesfrom
fromDigital
DigitalImage
ImageProcessing,
Processing,Gonzalez
Gonzalezand
andWoods
Woods
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 17
Effect of Quantization
Images
Imagesfrom
fromDigital
DigitalImage
ImageProcessing,
Processing,Gonzalez
Gonzalezand
andWoods
Woods
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 18
Effect of Quantization
Images
Imagesfrom
fromDigital
DigitalImage
ImageProcessing,
Processing,Gonzalez
Gonzalezand
andWoods
Woods
Visual Computing Workshop 5/21/2004 19
