Photometric Stereo and Oil Paintings: Techniques and Applications
Author(s): G. McGunnigle, M. J. Chantler.
Technical Report: Heriot-Watt University, Department of Computing & Electrical Engineering, No. RM/02/1, Edinburgh, Scotland, April,
2001.
[BibTeX] 
Abstract:
We present a technique that enhances an existing algorithm for painterly rendering. The technique models the topography of the painted surface and incorporates it into the rendering. Photometric stereo (PS) is used to estimate the shape of the painted surface. The statistics of real samples painted with different brush strokes are measured. The analysis was used to improve a non-photorealistic rendering algorithm. We found PS to be an effective method of surface recovery. Different stroke styles were found to have distinctive point statistics. We conclude that PS is an effective way to recover topography of oil paintings; that the point statistics distinguish the types of brush stroke in concise and meaningful way; and that a surface model based on the power spectrum can be used to improve the performance of a painterly rendering algorithm.