Exploring Gradient-Based Face Navigation Interfaces

We have created a gradient-based face navigation interface that allows users to explore a large face space based on an eigenface technique. This approach to synthesizing faces contrasts with more typical techniques for forming composite faces based on the blending of facial features. We compare three ways of moving through the face space, using two types of sliders and a face-wheel. These are adapted from typical color space interfaces since they are commonly used. However, eigenface dimensions do not have meaningful text labels, unlike primary colors, necessitating the use of faces themselves for the labels of the navigation axes. Results suggest that users can navigate with face-labelled axes. They find slider interfaces best suited to finding the neighborhood of a target face, but that the face-wheel is better for refinement once inside the neighborhood.