Patent Document ID: 8948468
Application ID: 10608784
Patent Status: 1

Claim One:
1. A method of generating on a processor-based digital image acquisition device one or more new digital still images using an original digitally-acquired still image including a face, comprising: using a processor of the device in performing the following: acquiring the original digitally-acquired still image on the processor-based digital image acquisition device that includes a lens and image sensor for capturing digital images; analyzing a luminance map of the digitally-acquired still image, including comparing the luminance map with patterns of luminance data that match face images; based on the analyzing of the luminance map, identifying one or more groups of pixels that correspond to a face within a foreground region of the original digitally-acquired still image which has a certain resolution, wherein the identifying comprises one or more of sub-sampling and weighted sampling of the resolution of the image, including reducing a resolution of at least one or more portions of the image on which computations are performed and wherein the identifying further comprises detecting the face in real time or near real time, calculating a degree to which exposure of the face in the foreground within said image differs from a desired exposure of said face within said image, including determining that said face lacks the desired exposure as being shadowed or shot with back light or otherwise insufficiently illuminated during acquisition; based on the identifying of the one or more groups of pixels that correspond to said face and on the degree as a result of the calculating, selecting a portion of the original still image for processing to include the one or more groups of pixels; and automatically generating values of pixels of one or more new still images based on the selected portion in a manner which always includes the face within the one or more new still images which differ from the original digitally-acquired still image by including at least one group of pixels modified at least in luminance of the face including applying a digital fill flash to add light and to boost the luminance of the face in the foreground, as compared with the one or more groups of pixels identified in the foreground of the original digitally-acquired still image.