Bump map compositing for simulated digital painting effects

Abstract

A method of compositing multiple images together so as to produce realistic effects is disclosed. The method comprises defining an image canvas bump map approximating a surface to be painted on; defining a painting bump map of a painting object to be painted on the surface; combining the image canvas bump map and the painting bump map to produce a final composited bump map. The step of combining utilises a stiffness factor, the stiffness factor determining a degree of modulation of the painting bump map by the image canvas bump map. The combining process can comprise low-pass filtering the image canvas bump map with the stiffness determining the degree of low-pass filtering. The application is particularly suited for utilization in a hand held camera device to produce instant images on demand having a brushed artistic interpretation.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.