Impact of tone-mapping operators and viewing devices on visual quality of experience

The development of HDR imaging is seen as an important step towards improving the visual quality of experience (QoE) of the end user in many applications. In practice, Tone-mapping operators (TMOs) provide a useful means for converting a high dynamic range (HDR) image to a low dynamic range (LDR) image in order to achieve better visualization on standard displays. Although mobile devices are becoming popular, the techniques for displaying the content of HDR images on the screens of such devices are still in the early stages. While several studies have been conducted to evaluate TMOs on conventional displays, few studies have been carried out to date to evaluate TMOs on small screen displays, such as those used in mobile devices. In this paper we evaluate, using subjective and objective methods, the most popular Tone-mapping-operators in different mobile displays and resolutions under normal viewing conditions for the end-user. Preliminary results show that small screen displays (SSDs) have an impact on the performance of TMOs compared to computer displays. In general, the larger the mobile resolution, the better the subjective results. We also found clear differences between SSDs and LDRs performances. The best TMO for mobile displays is iCAM06 and for computer displays it is Photographic Reproduction.