We have learned quite a few powerful algorithms for global illumination, but there still seems to be a peculiar scene with a torus inside a block of glass that just doesn’t want to give in and render. It contains specular-diffuse-specular interactions that are particularly difficult, or often impossible to sample with traditional random sampling. We also talk about the first biased algorithm, Henrik Wann Jensen’s masterpiece called photon mapping. This algorithm relies on the years of knowledge – for instance, we know that indirect illumination is usually a low-frequency signal that lends itself to the idea of using interpolation for missing samples instead of complete exhaustive sampling. This introduces bias, so the algorithm cuts corners – see for yourself if it’s worth it!
About the course:
This course aims to give an overview of basic and state-of-the-art methods of rendering. Offline methods such as ray and path tracing, photon mapping and many other algorithms are introduced and various refinement are explained.
The basics of the involved physics, such as geometric optics, surface and media interaction with light and camera models are outlined.
The apparatus of Monte Carlo methods is introduced which is heavily used in several algorithms and its refinement in the form of stratified sampling and the Metropolis-Hastings method is explained.
At the end of the course students should be familiar with common techniques in rendering and find their way around the current state-of-the-art of the field. Furthermore the exercises should deepen the attendees’ understanding of the basic principles of light transport and enable them to write a simple rendering program themselves.
These videos are the recordings of the lectures of 2015 at the Teschnische Universität Wien by Károly Zsolnai and Thomas Auzinger
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