The First Controllable Bokeh Rendering Challenge at NTIRE 2026

TL;DR

This paper reports on the inaugural Controllable Bokeh Rendering Challenge at NTIRE 2026, evaluating diverse methods for realistic bokeh synthesis through quantitative and qualitative assessments.

Contribution

It introduces the first challenge on controllable bokeh rendering, providing a benchmark and insights into effective methodologies and participant approaches.

Findings

Most participants extended the Bokehlicious baseline method.

Evaluation included both quantitative metrics and qualitative expert assessments.

44 participants registered, 8 submitted valid solutions.

Abstract

This study presents the outcomes of the first Controllable Bokeh Rendering Challenge at NTIRE and highlights the most effective submitted methodologies. In total, 44 participants registered for the competition, of which 8 teams submitted valid solutions after the conclusion of the final test phase. All submissions were evaluated on unseen images, focusing on portraits and intricate subjects with complex and visually appealing bokeh phenomena. In addition to the first track focusing on established quantitative fidelity metrics, we conducted a qualitative user study with a panel of experts for a second track focusing on perceptual assessment. As this was the inaugural challenge on this topic, most of the participants focused on refining and extending the Bokehlicious baseline method.