There's probably already something that does this ...but I wrote a simple script that does this.

You need to have an image, and another image to grab colors from.
Script will be available under Script-Fu/Create New/Transfer colors...


here are samples of what i did.
Mona lisa using colors from starry night and vice versa.



and here i just made an image with gradients from black to dark red, from dark red to medium blue and from medium blue to light green and then from light green to bright yellow and used it as color image to transfer colors from.
here's the result

Interesting Tin, I'll give it a go.
{Edit}
I don't think it should permanently change the state the original image. If you want to run it again with a different color count you have to revert the original.

Odin, the filter creates a NEW image.
Thus, you can repeat it by setting again active the image you want to change, change the parameters and run the filter.

Edit: I understand what you meant: it's the SOURCE image that is permanently changed! Yes it's an error IMO too.

Yes, a new image is created but my source image changed as well.

Tin,
it looks interesting, I guess you have to correct what noticed by Odin

thanks Odin.
I have made it to create a new image (copy of the source image to grab colors from) and work on that then delete it after so that source image is unchanged.
PS... I was hoping to see people's play with stealing colors from other masterpieces/paintings.

@trandoductin
there was a script a long while ago, that had the same name and the same purpose. Maybe people think it is the same script? I had limited success with that script. I have downloaded yours to try when I get a chance.

Also, you may want to mention that it is a script in the title so people interested in scripts will take a look.

There i changed the title.

here i used gradient from black to dark blue, dark blue to yellow and yellow to white.

http://www.silent9.com/blog/archives/16 ... Match.html

An example here:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=3263

It is quite a bit different in operation that yours, though, as it actually tries to preserve the histogram's shape when mapping. The convert to indexed and remap palette you implemented is definitely faster.

There was also the gimp Match Colours script here: http://www.ve3syb.ca/software/gimp/myscripts.html based on this technique

-Rob A>

Histogram match sounds much more advanced than my script... faster isn't always better.. I'll have to give this histogram match a try..very curious. thanks..

Always more than one way to do things in GIMP. Nice to have choices and thank you for this script Trandoductin.

one try (256 colors)

starting image (a photo half manipulated by gmic)


source of colors


outcome


it looks nice!

second try

same base image

source of colours


outcome

The match color script mentioned by RobA does a much nicer job since it blurs the colors and keep luminance ...and you don't get this "shoddy" looking kind of images.

here's results for what happens if you use shoddy version of my script and then used the decompose and recompose and blur colors of match colors's script

downloaded and experimented also with Kevin's filter; got very smooth results, as you say.
Nice to have both!

All these scripts are limited to 256 colors... So i wrote a standalone script/program that transfers colors based on luminance values.
But it's taking really long to run since it tries to replace pixel by pixel. I ran it for 2 hours already on your sample images and it's still running..almost finished now. I'll post the result when they're done running...
Not sure if anyone wants the program since it's so slow..but the result should be interesting since it's much richer in colors (or at least i hope so).

here's one of them... not as cool as i had hoped.

here's the other

using proportion colors i get these results (runs much faster like within 10 seconds i get result).