Method and system for generating shallow depth of field effect

1. A method for generating a shallow depth of field effect for a digitally captured image, at least one region of interest and at least one non-interest region being defined in the captured image, the method comprising:

retrieving a previously stored captured image from a memory, metadata having been stored with the captured image, the metadata containing focus information for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region;

calculating, for each non-interest region, a difference in focus between the at least one region of interest and the non-interest region using the focus information contained in the metadata;

determining, for each non-interest region, a degree of blur to be applied to the non-interest region, based on the calculated difference in focus;

applying the determined degree of blur to each non-interest region, to generate a blurred image; and

displaying the blurred image on a display.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least two non-interest regions are defined in the captured image, the calculated difference for a first non-interest region being greater than the calculated difference for a second non-interest region, wherein the determined degree of blur is greater for the first non-interest region than for the second non-interest region.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the degree of blur to be applied comprises determining the degree of blur based on a pre-selected desired amount of blurring.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, after generating a first blurred image:

receiving a selection of a desired amount of blurring;

further blurring each non-interest region according to the selected desired amount of blurring and the respective calculated difference in focus, to generate a second blurred image; and

displaying the second blurred image on the display.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the focus information includes at least one of:

respective optimal lens positions for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region; and

respective focus scores for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the focus information includes respective optimal lens positions, and wherein the calculated difference in focus is calculated as a difference in optimal lens position for each region.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the calculated optimal lens position of each region is calculated as part of an autofocus method.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metadata contains region definition information defining the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region.

9. An electronic device for generating a shallow depth of field effect for a digitally captured image, at least one region of interest and at least one non-interest region being defined in the captured image, the electronic device comprising:

a processor configured to execute computer-readable instructions to cause the electronic device to:

retrieve a previously stored captured image from a memory, metadata having been stored with the captured image, the metadata containing focus information for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region;

calculate, for each non-interest region, a difference in focus between the at least one region of interest and the non-interest region using the focus information contained in the metadata;

determine, for each non-interest region, a degree of blur to be applied to the non-interest region, based on the calculated difference in focus;

apply the determined degree of blur to each non-interest region, to generate a blurred image; and

display the blurred image on a display.

10. The electronic device of claim 9 , wherein at least two non-interest regions are defined in the captured image, the calculated difference for a first non-interest region being greater than the calculated difference for a second non-interest region, wherein the determined degree of blur is greater for the first non-interest region than for the second non-interest region.

11. The electronic device of claim 9 , wherein determining the degree of blur to be applied comprises determining the degree of blur based on a pre-selected desired amount of blurring.

12. The electronic device of claim 9 , wherein, after generating a first blurred image, the computer-readable instructions further cause the electronic device to:

receive a selection of a desired amount of blurring;

further blur each non-interest region according to the selected desired amount of blurring and the respective calculated difference in focus, to generate a second blurred image; and

display the second blurred image on the display.

13. The electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the focus information includes respective optimal lens positions for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region, and wherein the calculated difference in focus is calculated as a difference in optimal lens position for each region.

14. The electronic device of claim 13 , wherein the calculated optimal lens position of each region is calculated as part of an autofocus method.

15. A non-transient computer readable medium for generating a shallow depth of field effect for a digitally captured image, at least one region of interest and at least one non-interest region being defined in the captured image, the computer readable medium storing computer-readable instructions that are executable to cause an electronic device to:

retrieve a previously stored captured image from a memory, metadata having been stored with the captured image, the metadata containing focus information for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region;

calculate, for each non-interest region, a difference in focus between the at least one region of interest and the non-interest region using the focus information contained in the metadata;

determine, for each non-interest region, a degree of blur to be applied to the non-interest region, based on the calculated difference in focus;

apply the determined degree of blur to each non-interest region, to generate a blurred image; and

display the blurred image on a display.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 15 , wherein at least two non-interest regions are defined in the captured image, the calculated difference for a first non-interest region being greater than the calculated difference for a second non-interest region, wherein the determined degree of blur is greater for the first non-interest region than for the second non-interest region.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 15 , wherein determining the degree of blur to be applied comprises determining the degree of blur based on a pre-selected desired amount of blurring.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 15 , wherein, after generating a first blurred image, the computer-readable instructions further cause the electronic device to:

receive a selection of a desired amount of blurring;

further blur each non-interest region according to the selected desired amount of blurring and the respective calculated difference in focus, to generate a second blurred image; and

display the second blurred image on the display.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the focus information includes respective optimal lens positions for each of the at least one region of interest and the at least one non-interest region, and wherein the calculated difference in focus is calculated as a difference in optimal lens position for each region.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 19 , wherein the calculated optimal lens position of each region is calculated as part of an autofocus method.