Dr Yan Lu

Profile

I am a Research Fellow working across colour science, vision, digital imaging and immersive technologies. My research examines how human skin and facial appearance are measured, modelled and reproduced across cameras, displays and virtual or mixed-reality systems. I combine spectral and image measurement, colour management, psychophysics, statistical modelling and machine learning to study perceptual accuracy, naturalness and preference.

I completed my PhD in Colour and Imaging Science at the University of Leeds in 2023. My doctoral research developed models of facial colour appearance and attractiveness using cross-cultural psychophysical experiments. I then joined the University of Manchester, where I investigated colour vision and active visual search in naturalistic virtual environments. I returned to Leeds in 2025 to work on a Meta-funded project focused on accurate and natural facial reproduction for digital humans in VR and MR.

I am the lead author of the International Skin Spectra Archive (ISSA), an open multicultural dataset containing 15,256 spectral and colorimetric records from 2,113 participants across eight countries. I also contributed to CIE Technical Committee 1-92 and the development of CIE 256:2025, which provides international guidance for the reliable measurement of human skin colour.

My work is interdisciplinary and collaborative, with academic and industry partners including Meta, L'Oréal, Unilever, and Huawei. Current interests include high-fidelity 3D facial imaging, perceptual limits for digital face reproduction, inclusive skin-colour representation, and imaging approaches and computational modelling for skin and facial appearance analysis.

Research interests

• Human skin colour and facial appearance measurement, perception and preference modelling
• Spectral and digital imaging, camera calibration, colour correction and image-quality evaluation
• Colour management and perceptual quality for displays, digital humans and AR/VR/MR systems
• Human colour vision, psychophysics and behaviour in natural and immersive environments
• Lighting quality, visual ergonomics, health-oriented lighting and human factors

Qualifications

• PhD in Colour and Imaging Science, University of Leeds, 2023
• MSc in Electro-Optical Measurement and Control Technology, Fudan University, 2019
• BEng in Electrical Engineering and Automation, Fudan University, 2016

Professional memberships

• Member, CIE Technical Committee 1-92: Measurement of Human Skin Colour
• Reporter, CIE Division 1: Memory Skin Colour and its Acceptability Boundaries
• UK representative, CIE Research Forum 03: Matters Related to Colour Rendition
• Review Editor, Frontiers in Imaging
• Review Committee member, Color and Imaging Conference
• Member, The Colour Group (Great Britain) and Vision Sciences Society