Category Archives: For the layman – How 3D Rendering Works.

[ about a 15 min. read ] Well we did it. We went through the whole process. We got a 3D model. Materialized it. Added textures. Edited UV maps. Set up the camera composition. Added proper lighting and we rendered our image. So now we are done right? No. Not yet. Now comes the final […]

[ about a 20 min. read ] In the previous article we discussed lighting. Specifically techniques and methods you have available to light your scene. But what exactly is light in a 3D scene? How does a 3D render software actually go from a lit scene to a final image? Well this is what we […]

[ about a 20 min. read ] In the previous articles I discussed Camera & Composition. In this article I want to discuss light and lighting techniques in 3D scenes. Now composition and lighting are of course very intertwined. As in the previous article I discussed some key aspects in lighting with regards to composition. […]

[ about a 25 min. read ] In the previous article I talked about the camera. I discussed the creative options we have at our disposal to set up our shot. Those options were basically already part of setting up the composition. But I also mentioned that camera and composition are very intertwined. In this […]

[ about a 15 min. read ] In the previous article I talked about UV mapping. what it exactly is and how it influences texturing. In this article however we are going to address a whole different topic. We are going to talk about the camera. The camera is very intertwined with composition, but to […]

[ about a 20 min. read ] In the previous article I explained what textures are and how they are used in 3D rendering. Now there is one important step in-between that I deliberately skipped. And this is how to actually get a 2D image onto a 3D object. I will discuss how that is […]

This is an additional example for my article on textures. It is an example of the build-up of a concrete road material. That concludes the build- up of this concrete road material.

[ about a 20 min. read ] In the previous article I talked about materials and shaders. The material is the main interface for the user that shows all the properties of the material that can be changed. The shaders contains all the algorithms and mathematical programming. Based on the material property settings, the shader […]

[ about a 15 min. read ] So you have your 3D model. It is either a polygon model or a CAD NURBS model (as stated in the previous article). So we import it in our 3D rendering software, but it still doesn’t really look like much. Most likely it just looks dull and grayish. […]

[ about a 10 min. read ] Welcome to this 1st part of what will most likely be a 7 part series on how 3D rendering works. It is an explanation for the layman. I will basically be touching upon all the elements of what is needed to construct a 3D render. 3D models, Materials, […]