Books/Foundations of Graphics & Compute: Volume 5: Ray-Tracing
Book cover from the publisher catalogue.
Books
Foundations of Graphics & Compute: Volume 5: Ray-Tracing
By Kenwright
The art and science of rendering realistic images have fascinated computer graphics enthusiasts for decades. At the heart of this journey lies ray-tracing, a powerful technique that simulates the behavior of light to create stunningly lifelike visuals. Whether you're rendering photorealistic scenes, exploring procedural textures, or diving into fractal geometries, the principles of ray tracing offer a foundation for creativity and technical excellence. This book is your guide to understanding and mastering these principles, with a practical focus on WebGPU, a modern graphics API that unlocks the power of GPU computation for the web. The chapters ahead take you on a step-by-step journey, starting with the fundamentals of ray-tracing, path-tracing, and ray-marching. From building your first ``Hello-World'' ray-tracer to implementing advanced features like shadows, reflections, and procedural textures, the book is designed to be approachable for beginners while offering depth for experienced developers seeking to refine their skills. Each chapter is crafted with two goals in mind: to deepen your understanding of ray tracing concepts and to provide hands-on coding experience. WebGPU serves as the backbone for all examples, making it possible to run powerful, interactive graphics applications directly in modern web browsers. By the time you complete this book, you'll not only have a solid grasp of ray tracing but also a toolkit of techniques for creating visually compelling and performant applications. This book covers a wide range of topics, including:
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Looking for a new direction in Programming? “Foundations of Graphics & Compute: Volume 5: Ray-Tracing” makes a persuasive case for giving the subject your attention. Bring a specific question and turn the reading into a purposeful exploration. Tracing light offers an unusually visual route into technical thinking: a changed assumption can become a changed image. Pick a reflection, shadow, or material effect you want to understand and use it to focus your exploration. Bring a pencil, a small example, and the willingness to ask why a relationship works. Moving between symbols and visible behaviour can turn an abstract topic into something you want to investigate further. A promising addition to a reading list with a purpose.
Explore Books, Computers & Technology, Web Development & Design with a reading approach that gives the ideas somewhere to go. Tracing light offers an unusually visual route into technical thinking: a changed assumption can become a changed image. Pick a reflection, shadow, or material effect you want to understand and use it to focus your exploration.
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Publisher’s synopsis
Graphics and Compute: Volume 5 Ray-Tracing (Hardback) offers a comprehensive and in-depth guide that walks you through the concepts, applications, and best practices. With a strong focus on hands-on examples and real-world relevance, it empowers you to not just learn the theory but to apply it in meaningful ways across graphics, compute, and more.
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