High-Quality Reverse Tone Mapping for a Wide Range of Exposures

Abstract

Reverse-tone-mapping operators (rTMOs) enhance low-dynamic-range images and videos for display on high-dynamic-range monitors. A common problem faced by previous rTMOs is the handling of under or overexposed content. Under such conditions, they may not be effective, and even cause loss and reversal of visible contrast. We present an rTMO based on cross-bilateral filtering that generates high-quality HDR images and videos for a wide range of exposures. Experiments performed using an objective image quality metric show that our approach is the only technique available that can gracefully enhance perceived details across a large range of image exposures.