Limits in High Dynamic Range acquisition as founding principles for vision and image processing

High-dynamic range (HDR) imaging is a significant improvement over conventional imaging. After a description of the dynamic range problem in image acquisition, this talk focuses on standard methods of creating and manipulating HDR images, replacing myths with measurements of scenes, camera images, and visual appearances. The talk presents measurements about the limits of accurate camera acquisition and the usable range of light for displays by human vision. It discusses the role of accurate vs. non-accurate luminance for the final appearance of a scene, presenting the quality and the characteristics of visual information actually available on the retina. The talk ends discussing the principles of tone rendering and the role of spatial comparison in the human vision system and in the tone rendering methods.