Composite group image

1. A method of generating a composite group image from subgroup images, the method comprising:

accessing the subgroup images, each of the subgroup images having a common background;

determining boundaries of a subgroup area within each of the subgroup images;

determining at least one horizontal shift factor and at least one vertical shift factor using the determined boundaries;

determining a gap distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images using the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor;

generating an arrangement for the subgroup images based on the at least one horizontal shift factor, the at least one vertical shift factor, and the gap distance; and

generating the composite group image by blending the subgroup images arranged in the arrangement.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein accessing the subgroup images further comprises:

arranging a subgroup image capture station with a common background and background lighting;

capturing subgroup images using a camera positioned to take images of subgroups within the image capture station;

loading the subgroup images into a memory; and

processing the subgroup images such that each subgroup image is in landscape format with the subgroup upright.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the boundaries of the subgroup area within each of the subgroup images further comprises:

determining a top crop height, comprising:

determining a height based on a brightest line of the common background above the subgroup within each of the subgroup images;

determining a highest of the determined heights; and

adding a predetermined crop height margin to the highest of the determined heights;

cropping each of the subgroup images based on the top crop height;

generating grayscale images of each of the cropped subgroup images;

blurring the grayscale images;

generating comparison images based on the grayscale and blurred grayscale images;

determining the edges of the subgroups based on the comparison images; and

adding a predetermined margin to the determined edges of the subgroups.

4. The method of claim 3 , further comprising normalizing the brightness levels of each of the subgroup images based on the common background by:

determining the brightness differences between the brightness of brightest lines of each of subgroup images and maximum brightness;

brightening each of the subgroup images by the determined differences; and

flooding the common background of each of the subgroup images in the vertical and side directions from the determined boundaries.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the at least one horizontal and the at least one vertical shift factor using the determined boundaries further comprises:

for each of a plurality of vertical offsets:

arranging the subgroup images horizontally at a predetermined minimum separation distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images; and

determining the average gap distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images; and

determining the at least one horizontal and the at least one vertical shift factor based on an aesthetic criterion.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the aesthetic criterion is based on the minimum determined average gap distance.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating an arrangement for the subgroup images based on the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor further comprises:

determining a bottom crop height, comprising:

determining a bottom height based on a lowest point of the determined boundaries for each of the subgroup images;

determining a lowest of the determined bottom heights; and

reducing the lowest of the determined bottom heights by a predetermined bottom margin;

cropping each of the plurality of subgroup images based on the bottom crop height; and

shifting each of the subgroup images based on the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein blending the subgroup images arranged in the arrangement comprises adding overlapping pixels of the subgroup images as a weighted sum.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the subgroup within each of the subgroup images includes one or more subjects.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising generating a product by printing the composite group image on photographic paper.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the common background has a uniform background color.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the background color is white.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the subgroups within each of the subgroup images comprise a first subgroup and a second subgroup, and wherein the arrangement of the subgroup images results in a portion of a first subgroup being positioned above a portion of a second subgroup.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composite group image preserves shadows contained in the subgroup images.

15. At least one computing device comprising:

at least one processing device; and

at least one computer readable storage medium storing data instructions that, when executed by the at least one processing device, cause the at least one processing device to:

access the subgroup images, each of the subgroup images having a common background;

determine boundaries of a subgroup area within each of the subgroup images;

determine at least one horizontal shift factor and at least one vertical shift factor using the determined boundaries;

determine a gap distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images using the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor;

generate an arrangement for the subgroup images based on the at least one horizontal shift factor, the at least one vertical shift factor, and the gap distance; and

generate the composite group image by blending the subgroup images arranged in the arrangement.

16. The at least one computing device of claim 15 , wherein the instructions that cause the at least one processing device to determine the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor using the determined boundaries further cause the at least one processing device to:

for each of a plurality of vertical offsets:

arrange the subgroup images horizontally at a predetermined minimum separation distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images; and

determine the average gap distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images; and

determine the at least one horizontal shift factor and the at least one vertical shift factor based on the minimum determined average gap distance.

17. The at least one computing device of claim 15 , wherein the instructions that cause the at least one processing device to generate the arrangement for the subgroup images based on the at least one horizontal and at least one vertical shift factor further cause the at least one processing device to:

determining a bottom crop height, comprising:

determining a bottom height based on a lowest point of the determined boundaries for each of the subgroup images;

determining a lowest of the determined bottom heights; and

reducing the lowest of the determined bottom heights by a predetermined bottom margin;

cropping each of the plurality of subgroup images based on the bottom crop height; and

shifting each of the subgroup images based on the determined at least one horizontal and at least one vertical shift factor.

18. The computing device of claim 15 , wherein blending the subgroup images arranged in the arrangement comprises adding overlapping pixels of the subgroup images as a weighted sum.

19. The computing device of claim 15 , wherein the composite group image preserves shadows contained in the subgroup images.

20. At least one non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing data instructions that, when executed by at least one processing device, cause the at least one processing device to:

access the subgroup images, each of the subgroup images having a common background;

determine boundaries of a subgroup area within each of the subgroup images;

determine at least one shift factor using the determined boundaries;

determine a gap distance between the determined boundaries of the subgroup areas of the subgroup images using the at least one shift factor;

generate an arrangement for the subgroup images based on the at least one shift factor and the gap distance; and

generate the composite group image by blending the subgroup images arranged in the arrangement.