MIT Scientists Discover How to Remove Reflections From Digital Images Shot Through Glass

We’ve all experienced the frustration of attempting to make a good photograph through a window or windshield without getting distracting reflections from nearby objects. Sure, polarizing filters help, but researchers at MIT will present a more sophisticated solution at next month’s Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Conference in Seattle.

Members of MIT’s Media Lab’s Camera Culture Group say they’ve hit on a unique method of automatically eliminating reflections from digital images shot through glass by employing a new algorithm that exploits the fact that images shot through windows often display two nearly identical reflections—one slightly offset from the other.

In simple terms, the new approach takes the foregoing into account and is able to distinguish reflection from transmission.

MIT collaborated with Microsoft Research to develop the Microsoft Kinect One camera that only emits light of specific frequencies and is able to gauge the intensity of the resulting reflections.

We’ll keep an eye on the progress of this project and keep you posted on future developments.

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