Arithmetic operations using OpenCV in Python

In this tutorial, we are going to perform arithmetic operations on images using OpenCV in Python. We need to install the OpenCV module.

Run the following command to install the OpenCV module.

pip install opencv-python==4.1.1.26

If you run the above command, you will get the following successful message.

Collecting opencv-python==4.1.1.26
Downloading https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/1f/51/e0b9cef23098bc31c77b0e0
6221dd8d05119b9782d4c2b1d1482e22b5f5e/opencv_python-4.1.1.26-cp37-cp37m-win_amd64.w
hl (39.0MB)
Requirement already satisfied: numpy>=1.14.5 in c:\users\hafeezulkareem\anaconda3\l
ib\site-packages (from opencv-python==4.1.1.26) (1.16.2)
Installing collected packages: opencv-python
Successfully installed opencv-python-4.1.1.26

Adding Two Images

We need two images for the addition. We have a method called cv2.add(image_one, image_two) to perform addition. It's very hand method. The sizes of the two images must be the same. Let's see the images.

Image One

Image two

Let's see the code.

Example

# importing cv2 module
import cv2
# reading the images and storing in variables
image_one = cv2.imread('_one.jpg')
image_two = cv2.imread('_two.jpg')
# adding two images
result_image = cv2.add(image_one, image_two)
# displaying the final image
cv2.imshow('Final Image', result_image)
# deallocating the memory
if cv2.waitKey(0) & 0xff == 27:
   cv2.destroyAllWindows()

Output

Result Image

Subtraction

We have a method called cv2.substract(image_one, image_two) to perform subtraction on two images. We are going to use the same images as an addition. Let's see the code.

Example

# importing cv2 module
import cv2
# reading the images and storing in variables
image_one = cv2.imread('_one.jpg')
image_two = cv2.imread('_two.jpg')
# substracting two images
result_image = cv2.subtract(image_one, image_two)
# displaying the final image
cv2.imshow('Final Image', result_image)
# deallocating the memory
if cv2.waitKey(0) & 0xff == 27:
   cv2.destroyAllWindows()

Output

Result Image

Conclusion

If you have any doubts regarding the tutorial, mention them in the comment section.