Modeling Luminance Perception at Absolute Threshold

When human luminance perception operates close to its absolute threshold, i. e., the lowest perceivable absolute values, appearance changes substantially compared to common photopic or scotopic vision. In particular, most observers report perceiving temporally-varying noise. Two reasons are physiologically plausible; quantum noise (due to the low absolute number of photons) and spontaneous photochemical reactions. Previously, static noise with a normal distribution and no account for absolute values was combined with blue hue shift and blur to simulate scotopic appearance on a photopic display for movies and interactive applications (e.g., games). We present a computational model to reproduce the specific distribution and dynamics of scotopic noise for specific absolute values. It automatically introduces a perceptually-calibrated amount of noise for a specific luminance level and supports animated imagery. Our simulation runs in milliseconds at HD resolution using graphics hardware and favorably compares to simpler alternatives in a perceptual experiment.