Shai Avidan
Adobe Systems
November 21, 2007
Abstract:
Effective resizing of images should not only use geometric
constraints, but consider the image content as well. We present a simple
image operator called seam carving that supports content-aware image
resizing for both reduction and expansion. A seam is an optimal
8-connected path of pixels on a single image from top to bottom, or left
to right, where optimality is defined by an image energy function. By
repeatedly carving out or inserting seams in one direction we can change
the aspect ratio of an image. By applying these operators in both
directions we can retarget the image to a new size. The selection and
order of seams protect the content of the image, as defined by the
energy function. Seam carving can also be used for image content
enhancement and object removal. We support various visual saliency
measures for defining the energy of an image, and can also include user
input to guide the process. By storing the order of seams in an image we
create multi-size images, that are able to continuously change in real
time to fit a given size.