VFX Atlas
M 152 / 18307 Filters & Motionalgorithm output

Non-Local Means Denoising

Non-Local Means Denoise. filtering, restoration & motion

Typeface · IBM Plex Mono

Real-world algorithm demonstration, applied to a NASA portrait.
Real-world algorithm demonstration, applied to a NASA portrait.Image: NASA / Eileen Collins · scikit-image (public domain)View source ↗

Prompt

Apply Non-Local Means Denoising to suppress random luminance grain and colored speckles while retaining recurring textures and meaningful detail. Make flat surfaces cleaner and shadows smoother, with stable edges and natural tonal transitions. Avoid waxy skin, smeared patterns, or invented texture. Preserve the original subject and composition.

Paste it into LetzAI with your own image to apply the effect ↗

Identify

Noise surfaces smooth out based on similar patches1.

Principle

The algorithm compares small image sections over larger distances.

Try it out

Compare it to Gaussian Blur2.

Classification

Calculated image processing result.

Further examples · 9 images

Non-local means denoising example
02 Non-local means denoising exampleA triptych shows a bird in original, noisy, and denoised states. The third panel demonstrates how the algorithm smooths flat background areas while preserving the sharp edges of the bird's feathers and beak.Kriomet · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
Comparison of denoising methods - Houffalize - raw crop, bm3d gamma10, bm3d gamma 15, wavelets+non-local means, proprietary camera denoising
03 Comparison of denoising methods - Houffalize - raw crop, bm3d gamma10, bm3d gamma 15, wavelets+non-local means, proprietary camera denoisingThis stack compares multiple image processing methods on a town landscape. The non-local means version reduces grain in the stone textures and rooftops more effectively than standard raw crops or basic camera filters.Trougnouf · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Denoising comparison - noisy, bm3d, wavelets + non-local denoise
04 Denoising comparison - noisy, bm3d, wavelets + non-local denoiseThree crops show a person in a red shirt against a green wall. The final crop uses non-local means to remove luminance noise from the wall's texture without losing the structural lines of the blinds.Trougnouf · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Glardon Vallorbe LA2442-0 140 mm Swiss cut 0 6-piece needle file set”
05 Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Glardon Vallorbe LA2442-0 140 mm Swiss cut 0 6-piece needle file set”The photo shows a needle file set. The NL-Means panel removes grain from the metal surfaces while maintaining sharper edge transitions than the Gaussian blur version.Lucasbosch (photo); processed for the Atlas · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Orange texture made of a fishing net on a wooden board at golden hour”
06 Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Orange texture made of a fishing net on a wooden board at golden hour”A fishing net is shown over wood. Non-local means denoising smooths the orange background by averaging similar patches, preserving the dark net lines better than the uniform Gaussian blur.Basile Morin (photo); processed for the Atlas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Delosperma cooperi (Délosperma rose) - 97”
07 Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Delosperma cooperi (Délosperma rose) - 97”The image features pink flowers. The algorithm reduces noise in the green foliage and petal clusters, creating flat color zones while maintaining the structural boundaries of the plant groups.Another one of my pictures: This photograph was taken by Medium69 (William Crochot) and released (photo); processed for the Atlas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Ruïne Casti Munt Sogn Gieri Waltensburg (actm) 17”
08 Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Ruïne Casti Munt Sogn Gieri Waltensburg (actm) 17”This landscape shows castle ruins and trees. NL-Means denoising creates uniform surfaces in the sky and grass, showing less overall smearing of the tree silhouettes compared to the blur.Agnes Monkelbaan (photo); processed for the Atlas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Franeker. Stadhuis. 03-08-2021. (actm) 02”
09 Non-Local Means Denoising, applied to “Franeker. Stadhuis. 03-08-2021. (actm) 02”A portrait painting is displayed. The NL-Means effect eliminates heavy stipple noise, resulting in smooth, painterly gradients on the subject's face and background that preserve the frame's rectangular structure.Agnes Monkelbaan (photo); processed for the Atlas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons