MOE350

Automation:

Before we start i would like to show you my work:

Here are some examples of what my code do:

original BMW M4 Competition photo from colored to B&W:

edited black and white BMW M4 Competition photo

original Mercedes AMG E63 S photo from colored to B&W:

Check the rest of the Colored images at my directory: Colored_Images

Check the rest of the Gray images at my directory: Gray_Images

Introduction:

I encountered a challenge with my collection of colored images — they simply weren’t meeting my preference. In pursuit of a solution, I decided to automate the process of converting these colored images to black and white. This not only addressed my aesthetic preferences but also offered a more cohesive visual style for my image repository. Below is the script I devised to seamlessly transition from colored to black and white images.

Code Explanation:

Let me explain the code step by step:

1. Importing Necessary Modules:

    from PIL import Image
    import os
    import time
    from watchdog.observers import Observer
    from watchdog.events import FileSystemEventHandler
   

   • PIL: This is the Python Imaging Library that provides the Image class for handling images.
   • os: This module provides a way to interact with the operating system, like working with file paths and directories.
   • time: This module is used for adding a short delay to the script.
   • watchdog: This library is used for monitoring file system events.
2. Defining a FileSystemEventHandler:

    class ImageHandler(FileSystemEventHandler):
        def on_created(self, event):
            if event.is_directory:
                return
            input_path = event.src_path
            filename = os.path.basename(input_path)
            if filename.lower().endswith(('.jpg', '.jpeg', '.png')):
                output_directory = 'Gray_Images'
                output_path = os.path.join(output_directory, f"bw_{filename}")
                convert_to_black_and_white(input_path, output_path)
   

   • This class inherits from FileSystemEventHandler, which provides methods for handling file system events.
   • The on_created method is called when a new file is created.
   • It checks if the event is related to a directory, and if not, it extracts the input file path and filename.
   • If the file has a supported image extension (JPEG or PNG), it defines the output path for the black and white version and calls convert_to_black_and_white.
3. Defining the Conversion Function:

    def convert_to_black_and_white(input_path, output_path):
        try:
            img = Image.open(input_path)
            bw_img = img.convert("L")
            bw_img.save(output_path)
            print(f"Image converted to black and white: {output_path}")
        except Exception as e:
            print(f"Error processing {input_path}: {e}")
   

   • This function takes an input image file path and an output file path.
   • It opens the input image, converts it to black and white using the "L" mode, and saves the result.
   • Any exceptions during this process are caught, and an error message is printed.
4. Main Execution Block:

    if __name__ == "__main__":
        input_directory = 'Colored_Images'
        output_directory = 'Gray_Images'
   
        os.makedirs(output_directory, exist_ok=True)
   
        event_handler = ImageHandler()
        observer = Observer()
        observer.schedule(event_handler, path=input_directory, recursive=False)
        observer.start()
   
        try:
            while True:
                time.sleep(1)
        except KeyboardInterrupt:
            observer.stop()
        observer.join()
   

   • The main block of the script sets up the input and output directories.
   • It creates the ImageHandler and Observer instances.
   • The observer is configured to watch the input_directory for file creation events (recursive=False means it won’t look into subdirectories).
   • The observer is started, and the script enters a loop where it sleeps for 1 second, allowing it to continuously monitor for new files.
   • If the script is interrupted by a keyboard interrupt (Ctrl+C), it stops the observer and joins the thread.

In summary, this script continuously monitors the Colored_Images directory for new image files and converts them to black and white, saving the results in the Gray_Images directory. The monitoring is done using the watchdog library, and the script runs until manually interrupted.