Frequently used functions in the Python OpenCV

OpenCV (Open Source Computer Vision Library) is a powerful library used for a wide range of image and video processing tasks. The following are some of the most frequently used functions in the Python OpenCV library:

Basic Operations

1. cv2.imread()

   • Loads an image from a file.
   • cv2.imread(path, flag)
   • Example: img = cv2.imread('image.jpg', cv2.IMREAD_COLOR)

2. cv2.imshow()

   • Displays an image in a window.
   • cv2.imshow(window_name, image)
   • Example: cv2.imshow('image', img)

3. cv2.imwrite()

   • Saves an image to a specified file.
   • cv2.imwrite(filename, img)
   • Example: cv2.imwrite('output.jpg', img)

4. cv2.cvtColor()

   • Converts an image from one color space to another.
   • cv2.cvtColor(src, code)
   • Example: gray = cv2.cvtColor(img, cv2.COLOR_BGR2GRAY)

Image Processing

5. cv2.resize()

   • Resizes an image.
   • cv2.resize(src, dsize[, dst[, fx[, fy[, interpolation]]]])
   • Example: resized = cv2.resize(img, (100, 100))

6. cv2.blur()

   • Blurs an image using a specific window.
   • cv2.blur(src, ksize)
   • Example: blurred = cv2.blur(img, (5, 5))

7. cv2.Canny()

   • Edge detection.
   • cv2.Canny(image, threshold1, threshold2[, edges[, apertureSize[, L2gradient]]])
   • Example: edges = cv2.Canny(gray, 50, 150)

8. cv2.threshold()

   • Applies a fixed-level threshold to each array element.
   • cv2.threshold(src, thresh, maxval, type)
   • Example: ret, thresh = cv2.threshold(gray, 127, 255, cv2.THRESH_BINARY)

Geometric Transformations

9. cv2.warpAffine()

   • Applies an affine transformation to an image.
   • cv2.warpAffine(src, M, dsize)
   • Example: rotated = cv2.warpAffine(img, M, (cols, rows))

10. cv2.getRotationMatrix2D()

    • Creates a matrix for rotation.
    • cv2.getRotationMatrix2D(center, angle, scale)
    • Example: M = cv2.getRotationMatrix2D((cols/2,rows/2), 90, 1)

Feature Detection

11. cv2.findContours()

    • Finds contours in a binary image.
    • cv2.findContours(image, mode, method)
    • Example: contours, hierarchy = cv2.findContours(thresh, cv2.RETR_TREE, cv2.CHAIN_APPROX_SIMPLE)

12. cv2.drawContours()

    • Draws contours on an image.
    • cv2.drawContours(image, contours, contourIdx, color[, thickness[, lineType[, hierarchy[, maxLevel[, offset]]]]])
    • Example: cv2.drawContours(img, contours, -1, (0,255,0), 3)

These functions represent just a snapshot of what you can do with OpenCV in Python. Depending on the specific requirements of a project, you might use many other functions provided by this comprehensive library.