Add AR Effects to Faces

Introduction

Augmented reality (AR) is becoming one of the biggest technology trends nowadays. At its core, AR enables us to superimpose digital content like images, sound, text, and so on, over a real-world environment in real time. With the ascent of smart devices such as mobile phones, AR is taking the user experience to a new level in all the areas it touches by adding a new dimension. AR is poised to enter the mainstream and is actively being used in many of the following industries:

• Retail: AR enables e-shoppers to see how products will look before purchasing them.

• Education: AR reinforces traditional learning methods. For example, overlaying codes over textbooks allows readers to scan them using their smartphones and display additional content.

• Entertainment and social media: For example, TikTok recently introduced AR effects that users might add to their videos.

• Mapping and navigation: AR allows intuitive solutions in navigation that guide drivers while looking at a real scene.

Augmented reality vs. virtual reality

There are some significant differences between AR and virtual reality (VR) technologies even though they are often confused.

• VR implies a complete immersion experience where the user is transported into a new virtual world through supporting hardware, like VR headsets.
• AR overlays digital elements over a live view, often using the camera of a smartphone.

Unlike VR, where users are immersed in a new, digital world, AR augments the real world and allows users to continue interacting with their current environment.

Objective

There is a general opinion that the AR domain is easy to get into but difficult to implement and master. This lesson aims to change this common assumption by showing, in a straightforward manner, how to develop a Python utility geared toward adding AR effects to facial photos.