Advanced Global Illumination, 2nd Edition

Foreword

There have been tremendous advances in the realism of computer-generated images over the last twenty years. This is the result of a great deal of research and is documented in thousands of technical papers. While this effort has resulted in many algorithmic and mathematical tools, it has also resulted in a vast and somewhat impenetrable literature. This literature has conflicting terms, symbols, and often advocates approaches that are simply not practical. As a result, it is very difficult for new people to “get up to speed” and begin developing software to generate realistic images. The most technical part of realistic image generation is dealing with “global illumination.” The word “global” refers to the fact that the appearance of ...