Can blurry images be enhanced like they show on TV?

Question

I'm watching 24 again, and in a lot of the episodes, they "enhance" blurry images to make them clear. Can computers really do this? Is it possible? Some of the pictures they show are so blurry, you can't see any of the facial features at all, then someone says "enhance it", they push a few buttons on the computer and the picture suddenly becomes clear and you can see everything in perfect detail...

Answer 1

NO. It cannot be "enhanced". That junk you see on tv is total BS and in no way relates to the real world of photography and software. Unfortunately, many people see that garbage and are unknowledgeable enough to believe it.



steve

Answer 2

Not really ... Adobe has something in the lab but even they admit it won;t be usefull for much other than forensics (trying to clear up text) and the only type of blur their algorythm can deblur is camera movement blur.



It can;t really deal with blur caused by the subject moving or blur caused by being out of focus or having a shallow depth of field.



The algorythm is useless for actually deblurring a picture. It creates alot of ghosting and artefacting on most images.



Here is a link to their presentation on the software.

http://blogs.adobe.com/photoshopdotcom/2011/10/behind-all-the-buzz-deblur-sneak-peek.html



It's an interesting technology but little practicle application for now.





You shouldn't beleive anything tech related on these shows ... they kind of lost all credibility with this:



Read #8. NCIS -- Two People Sharing a Keyboard

http://www.cracked.com/article_19160_8-scenes-that-prove-hollywood-doesnt-get-technology.html#ixzz1q6CayOQD



Actually the whole series is pretty awesome.

Answer 3

Images can be "enhanced" to make it easier to see detail, but:



1) It is not as dramatic as it is on TV



2) The enhanced imaged may not be admissible as evidence because so much of the enhancement is left to the interpretation of the techs.

Answer 4

images enhanced easier detail 1 dramatic tv 2 enhanced imaged admissible evidence enhancement left interpretation techs

Answer 5

No...When there's no detail in the original image, it is impossible to enhance, creating a sharp image.



Adobe are developing software that removes some motion blur from images... but it isn't available yet.

Answer 6

Oh I see what you are talking about.......

Like when a character is blurry then all of a sudden becomes clear?



haha, that is just the focus. Videographers just change when the subject is going to be clear and sharp and blurry.



But enhancing a photo that is blurry is impossible. No one is capable of doing that.

Answer 7

No, not really. That's just on tv. You can sharpen images, but it really doesn't bring back any detail.

Answer 8

How to Make Fake Photos | eHow.com