CS 360: Introduction to Computer Graphics

Credits: 3-0-0-0 (9)

Prerequisites: Linear Algebra, excellent programming skills (JavaScript, HTML)

Who can take the course: UG Students

Course Objective:

Computer graphics is one of the fundamental topics in computer science that deals with generation of images or any kind of visualization in a digital device. The goal of learning computer graphics is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the principles, techniques, and applications of computer-generated imagery in various disciplines. Through this course, the students will learn the fundamental concepts and theories of 2D and 3D graphics algorithms and through several programming assignments they will gain hands-on experience on 2D/3D interactive graphics programming. Students will also learn about various rendering paradigms that are used to generate realistic and real-time images. To generate real-time graphics, we will cover GPU shader programming. We will also discuss Ray Tracing techniques that are used to produce realistic graphics by simulating the light transport phenomena. Through this course, students will gain proficiency in graphics programming, enabling them to create and manipulate visual content for a wide range of disciplines, including gaming, animations, visualization, and design.

Course Contents:

• Introduction, Math Basics, Raster Images, JavaScript
• Graphics API, WebGL
• Transformations 2D and 3D
• Viewing & Projections
• GPU Pipeline, GPU Shaders, and Shader Programming, GLSL
• Basic Shape Generation and Polygonal Meshes
• Illumination and Shading, Shading Transformations
• Textures, Textures on GPU, Cube Environment Mapping, Bump mapping and Normal Mapping
• Frame Buffer Objects (FBO), Rendering to FBO, Planer Reflections
• Multi-pass rendering: Advanced Graphics Effects
• Texture/Image Texture Post processing in Shader
• Rendering Equation, Rendering Algorithms
• Ray Tracing, Distributed Ray Tracing: Reflection, Shadow Mapping, and other advanced topics

Books and References:

1.     Fundamentals of Computer Graphics, Steve Marschner and Peter Shirley, 4^th Ed, CRC Press.

2.     Interactive Computer Graphics, A Top-Down Approach with WebGL, Edward Angle and Dave Shreiner, 7^th Ed, Pearson.

3.     Realistic Ray Tracing, Peter Shirley and R. Keith Morley, AK Peters.

4.     Computer Graphics: Principle and Practice, James D. Foley, Andries van Dam, Steven K. Feiner, John Hughes, Morgan McGuire, David F. Sklar, and Kurt Akeley.

5.     WebGL 2.0 Specification at khronos.org.

6.     The OpenGL® Shading Language Manual, John Kessenich, Dave Baldwin, and Randi Rost.