A method codes a sequence of digital images, each image having the same image format and including a number of pixels with assigned pixel values. Motion parameters between first and second images are determined, where based on said motion parameters a motion compensation is performed for coding the sequence of images, where said motion parameters are included in the coded sequence of images. The motion parameters between a first image and a second image include a scalar field having scalar values for a plurality of image positions in the image format. The scalar field is determined such that gradient vectors derived from the scalar field correspond to motion vectors for the motion compensation.