Nighttime image enhancement using a new illumination boost algorithm

Nighttime images are often obtained with low brightness, deficient contrast, and latent colours. Thus, it is important to improve such aspects in order to obtain acceptable quality images. Hence, a new illumination boost algorithm is proposed in this study, in which it can improve the brightness, ameliorate contrast and process the colours of nighttime images properly. Accordingly, the proposed algorithm utilises only a small number of steps and uses several processing concepts to achieve the desired results. Intensive experiments and tests with various natural‐degraded nighttime images are made to validate the performance of the proposed algorithm. In addition, it is compared with eight contemporary algorithms, and the obtained results from these comparisons are evaluated using two specialised image quality assessment metrics. Using the results of the achieved experiments and comparisons, it became evident that the proposed algorithm can provide satisfactory outcomes, in which it provided visually pleasing results and outperformed the comparison algorithms in terms of scored accuracy and visual quality.