ECE 417Image Processing
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Engineering
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 2 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
This course introduces the basic theories and methodologies of digital image processing. Topics include intensity transformations for image enhancement, two-dimensional discrete Fourier transform, spatial and frequency domain linear image filtering, nonlinear image filtering, binary image processing, edge detection, image segmentation, and digital video processing basics.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Students must be in level 4A or higher
- Enrolled in H-Computer Engineering, H-Electrical Engineering, or H-Software Engineering
Antirequisites
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
- SYDE575 - Image Processing (0.50)
Leads to
No course lists it as a requisite.
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 4758 | 0 / 80 | TTh 13:00–14:20 Jan 18 16:00–17:20 Feb 8 16:00–17:20 Mar 8 16:00–17:20 Mar 29 16:00–17:20 |
| LEC 701 | 1915 | 10 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
| TUT 101 | 4759 | 0 / 80 | T 20:00–20:50 |
Reviewed on UW Flow
33% liked it0% easy17% useful
From 6 ratings and 2 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
While this course does NOT need ECE316 as a pre-req, the amount of the probability involved in this course would make you question yourself so much that eventually you would give up on this course. The most difficult course I've ever taken in my past 5 years of university. DON'T take this course unless you are ready for dry concepts and boring derivations. This course DOESN'T teach you how to do real image processing at all.
Apr 2019 · didn’t like it · 2 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
* Unclear explanations (prof gets lost in the math equations)
* Hard midterm/exam (didn't match previous years or what we learned in class)
* Never got marks back until the end of the term (so we didn't know how well/terrible we were doing).Mar 2019 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
15 posts and comments in 10 threads mention ECE 417, December 2014 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Winter 2024
Interesting ML course from Engineering Department from Math Student 7 points, 8 comments
u/Novel_Brain9700: “… ECE 417: Image Processing or SYDE 575: Image Processing 6. ECE 457B: Fundamentals of Computational Intelligence (Winter) 7. ECE 457C: Reinforcement Learning (Spring) 8. ECE 495: Autonomous Vehicle (Winter) 9. …”
Fall 2023
Is ECE 406 do-able on co-op term? 1 point, 3 comments
u/Safi_world: “… above (if there is a lab many of them seem to be online): MSCI 446, SYDE 522, SYDE 572, ECE 417, ECE 451, ECE 452, ECE 453, ECE 457B, ECE 459. …”
Winter 2019
Thoughts on ECE417 final? 2 points, 1 comment
u/StrawberryJuice19: “Shall we ride the curve again? BTW, What did you think about Q5, it was a trick question. g = fu | NOT g = Hf + e, so P(u) != P(g|f)”
ECE 417 vs SYDE 372 3 points, 3 comments
u/2tripleO: “Trying to decide between ECE 417 and SYDE 372 as a TE next semester. Not sure of my interests yet, but interested in both courses. Does one course provide more practical skills than the other?”
u/dennybang4292: “I haven't taken ECE 417 (will take next term), but SYDE 372 was very enjoyable. Although it wasn't easy, the prof (Alex Wong) is truly passionate about the course and I feel like I learned a lot in the end. …”
u/dennybang4292: “… So he is pretty much the best in this area I haven’t taken SYDE 575 (which is the equivalent of ECE 417) but my friends have told me its a bit easier than 372”
u/dennybang4292: “… (Almost identical to previous midterms) &x200B; For ECE 417, I would highly discourage anyone from taking it. The prof is really slow with the pace of his lectures so he could not even cover 2/3 of the whole curriculum. …”
ECE 417: Bye bye to half of the class. 43 points, 17 comments
Fall 2018
How is ECE417: Image Processing with Oleg? 9 points, 1 comment
u/ECE2019: “Some of the comments of UW flow make me feel this isn't a good course, but I'm interested in image processing. If you've taken this course, what was your experience like?”
Spring 2018
4 ECE TEs in 4b? 5 points, 12 comments
u/als26: “… The 4 TEs would be: ECE417, ECE406, ECE457b and ECE459. If I am only to take 3 TEs in 4b, I'll drop 459 and take a CSE instead. Is this a bad choice? I'm a slightly below average ECE student, I don't want to overload my last term. …”
Winter 2018
Any ECE/CS/SE graduates working in a field with Image Processing? 7 points, 4 comments
u/memecached: “Have you taken ECE 417 yet (Image Processing: the course)? It might also be a good idea to chat with the prof(s) running the course so that they can weigh in their opinions as well!”
Any ECE graduates that took ECE413/417/493 1 point, 14 comments
u/als26: “EDIT: referring to ECE493 T21 I need help in choosing a few ECE TEs next term. I'm a CE and I'm interested in fields to do with computer vision and image processing. Machine learning has also peaked my interest. …”
u/CapturedSoul: “Dont take ece413 its a waste of a TE unless you wanna be a dsp engineer making filters for hardware applications.”
u/als26: “Any opinions on ECE417 then? For 417 I saw that'd we'd be learning algorithms for image processing which is something I'd like. I just figured ECE413 would kinda be a background course for some of the math and concepts we'd have to know.”
u/CapturedSoul: “… https://ece.uwaterloo.ca/ece417/”
Fall 2014
uWaterloo CS minor - Worthwhile? 6 points, 22 comments
“I'm really interested in CS and the carreer benefits that a CS minor could provide me with. I've already completed CS 135 and I'm in the process of planning out what courses I want to take to …”
u/SpaceWarrior1: “… Courses with significant CS technical content include ECE 254, 351, 354, 406, 409, 417, 428, 429, 451, 452, 453, 457A, 457B, 458, 459, SYDE 322, 422, and MTE 241. Engineering students should take Engineering courses where possible. …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
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