With the explosion in the number of digital images taken every day, the demand for more accurate and visually pleasing images is increasing. However, the images captured by modern cameras are inevitably degraded by noise, which leads to deteriorated visual image quality. Therefore, work is required to reduce noise without losing image features (edges, corners, and other sharp structures). So far, researchers have already proposed various methods for decreasing noise. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. In this paper, we summarize some important research in the field of image denoising. First, we give the formulation of the image denoising problem, and then we present several image denoising techniques. In addition, we discuss the characteristics of these techniques. Finally, we provide several promising directions for future research.

Image degradation caused by shadows is likely to cause technological issues in image segmentation and target recognition. In view of the existing shadow removal methods, there are problems such as small and trivial shadow processing, the scarcity of end-to-end automatic methods, the neglecting of light, and high-level semantic information such as materials. An end-to-end deep convolutional neural network is proposed to further improve the image shadow removal effect. The network mainly consists of two network models, an encoder–decoder network and a small refinement network. The former predicts the alpha shadow scale factor, and the latter refines to obtain sharper edge information. In addition, a new image database (remove shadow database, RSDB) is constructed; and qualitative and quantitative evaluations are made on databases such as UIUC, UCF and newly-created databases (RSDB) with various real images. Using the peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and the structural similarity (SSIM) for quantitative analysis, the algorithm has a big improvement on the PSNR and the SSIM as opposed to other methods. In terms of qualitative comparisons, the network shadow has a clearer and shadow-free image that is consistent with the original image color and texture, and the detail processing effect is much better. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is superior to other algorithms, and it is more robust in subjective vision and objective quantization.

Improper functioning, or lack, of human cone cells leads to vision defects, making it impossible for affected persons to distinguish certain colors. Colorblind persons have color perception, but their ability to capture color information differs from that of normal people: colorblind and normal people perceive the same image differently. It is necessary to devise solutions to help persons with color blindness understand images and distinguish different colors. Most research on this subject is aimed at adjusting insensitive colors, enabling colorblind persons to better capture color information, but ignores the attention paid by colorblind persons to the salient areas of images. The areas of the image seen as salient by normal people generally differ from those seen by the colorblind. To provide the same saliency for colorblind persons and normal people, we propose a saliency-based image correction algorithm for color blindness. Adjusted colors in the adjusted image are harmonious and realistic, and the method is practical. Our experimental results show that this method effectively improves images, enabling the colorblind to see the same salient areas as normal people.