Method of enhancing a nose area of an image and related computing device

1. A method of enhancing a nose area of an image containing a face with a nose visible on the face, the method comprising:

loading the image into a computing device having a processor, the processor executing the following steps:

defining the nose area on the image, the nose area comprising a highlighted region corresponding to a middle of the nose, a first shaded region being located on a left side of the nose and bordering the left side of the nose, and a second shaded region being located on a right side of the nose and bordering the right side of the nose;

performing an image enhancement process on the image to create an enhanced image, the image enhancement process comprising:

increasing the brightness of the highlighted region; and

decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region; and

outputting the enhanced image.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the image enhancement process further comprises:

defining an area of the highlighted region using at least one polygon to generate a first mask corresponding to the highlighted region;

defining an area of the first shaded region using at least one polygon to generate a second mask corresponding to the first shaded region;

defining an area of the second shaded region using at least one polygon to generate a third mask corresponding to the second shaded region;

increasing the brightness of the highlighted region while applying the first mask;

decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region while applying the second mask; and

decreasing the brightness of the second shaded region while applying the third mask.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein generating the first mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the first mask to create a smoothing effect for the first mask, generating the second mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the second mask to create a smoothing effect for the second mask, and generating the third mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the third mask to create a smoothing effect for the third mask.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein increasing the brightness of the highlighted region while applying the first mask, decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region while applying the second mask, and decreasing the brightness of the second shaded region while applying the third mask are all performed according to the equation

P new =[P orig *(255−mask val )+ P adj *mask val ]/255

wherein P new represents a new brightness level of a pixel being adjusted after a brightness adjustment, P orig represents an original brightness level of the pixel being adjusted before the brightness adjustment, P adj represents a recommended adjusted brightness level of the pixel being adjusted according to a brightness curve for the region undergoing the brightness adjustment, and mask val represents a value of the mask being applied, and P new , P orig , P adj , and mask val have values between 0 and 255, inclusive.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein increasing the brightness of the highlighted region is performed before decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region is performed before increasing the brightness of the highlighted region.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the highlighted region corresponds to the middle of the nose and extends vertically from the top of the nose to the bottom of the nose.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the first shaded region and the second shaded region extend vertically and are substantially parallel to the highlighted region.

9. A computing device for enhancing a nose area of an image containing a face with a nose visible on the face, the computing device comprising:

a memory for storing the image; and

a processor for loading the image and executing the following steps:

defining the nose area on the image, the nose area comprising a highlighted region corresponding to a middle of the nose, a first shaded region being located on a left side of the nose and bordering the left side of the nose, and a second shaded region being located on a right side of the nose and bordering the right side of the nose;

performing an image enhancement process on the image to create an enhanced image, the image enhancement process comprising:

increasing the brightness of the highlighted region; and

decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region; and

outputting the enhanced image.

10. The computing device of claim 9 , wherein the image enhancement process further comprises:

defining an area of the highlighted region using at least one polygon to generate a first mask corresponding to the highlighted region;

defining an area of the first shaded region using at least one polygon to generate a second mask corresponding to the first shaded region;

defining an area of the second shaded region using at least one polygon to generate a third mask corresponding to the second shaded region;

increasing the brightness of the highlighted region while applying the first mask;

decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region while applying the second mask; and

decreasing the brightness of the second shaded region while applying the third mask.

11. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein generating the first mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the first mask to create a smoothing effect for the first mask, generating the second mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the second mask to create a smoothing effect for the second mask, and generating the third mask further comprises performing a Gaussian blur on the at least one polygon of the third mask to create a smoothing effect for the third mask.

12. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein increasing the brightness of the highlighted region while applying the first mask, decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region while applying the second mask, and decreasing the brightness of the second shaded region while applying the third mask are all performed according to the equation

P new =[P orig *(255−mask val )+ P adj *mask val ]/255

wherein P new represents a new brightness level of a pixel being adjusted after a brightness adjustment, P orig represents an original brightness level of the pixel being adjusted before the brightness adjustment, P adj represents a recommended adjusted brightness level of the pixel being adjusted according to a brightness curve for the region undergoing the brightness adjustment, and mask val represents a value of the mask being applied, and P new , P orig , P adj , and mask val have values between 0 and 255, inclusive.

13. The computing device of claim 9 , wherein increasing the brightness of the highlighted region is performed before decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region.

14. The computing device of claim 9 , wherein decreasing the brightness of the first shaded region and the second shaded region is performed before increasing the brightness of the highlighted region.

15. The computing device of claim 9 , wherein the highlighted region corresponds to the middle of the nose and extends vertically from the top of the nose to the bottom of the nose.

16. The computing device of claim 15 , wherein the first shaded region and the second shaded region extend vertically and are substantially parallel to the highlighted region.