Computer Graphics

Unit IV – Part II
Projections

Dr. Sushitha Susan Joseph

Asst. Professor,
Dept. of CSE, IIIT Kottayam
 The 3D synthetic camera model

The synthetic camera model is a framework used in

computer graphics and computer vision to simulate
how objects are viewed through a camera. It
consists of two main components
 The 3D synthetic camera model
1) Objects (Geometry): This refers to the 3D shapes
and surfaces that are being represented in the
scene.
• The geometry defines the structure and
appearance of the objects, including their
vertices, edges, faces, textures, and materials.
• These elements determine how light interacts with
the objects and how they are rendered in the final
image.
2) Viewer (Camera): The viewer represents the
perspective from which the scene is observed.
• This includes parameters like the camera's
position, orientation, focal length, and field of
view.
• The camera model defines how the scene is
projected onto a two-dimensional plane (the
image), capturing the visual perspective that the
observer would see.
 Imaging with the synthetic camera

The image is rendered onto an image plane or projection plane

(usually in front of the camera).
Projectors emerge from the center of projection (COP) at the
center of the lens (or pinhole).
The image of an object point P is formed at the intersection of the
projector through P and the image plane.
 Specifying a viewer

Camera specification requires four kinds of parameters:

􀂊 Position: the COP.
􀂊 Orientation: rotations about axes with origin at the COP.
􀂊 Focal length: determines the size of the image on the film
plane, or the field of view.
􀂊 Film plane: its width and height.
 3D Geometry Pipeline
• The 3D geometry pipeline is a sequence of processes
used to transform 3D models into 2D images suitable
for display on screens.
1)Model (Object) Space: This is the local coordinate
system of a 3D object. It defines the geometry and
vertices of the object relative to its own origin.
Transformations applied in this space affect the object
itself.
2) World Space: This is a global coordinate system
that represents the entire scene. All objects are
positioned within this space, allowing them to interact
with each other and with the environment.
 3D Geometry Pipeline
3) Eye Space (View Space): The view space is the
space as seen from the camera's point of view. It is
the coordinate system that places the camera at the
origin, looking down the negative z-axis. In this space, all
objects are positioned relative to the camera.
View Matrix Construction: A view matrix is constructed
to transform coordinates from world space to eye space.
This matrix typically incorporates the following
transformations:
•Translation: Moves the scene so that the camera is at
the origin.
•Rotation: Aligns the camera's orientation with the world
axes
 3D Geometry Pipeline
4) Normalized projection space:
Normalized Device Coordinates (NDC): This is a
coordinate system where the visible region of the
scene is mapped into a cube that ranges from [−1,1]
in two axes (x, y) and [0,1] for z.
- NDC is used to determine how vertices are
rasterized to screen coordinates.
- To transform eye space coordinates into normalized
device coordinates, a projection matrix is created.
This matrix defines how 3D points are projected
onto a 2D plane, incorporating the camera's field of
view, aspect ratio, and near/far clipping planes.
 3D Geometry Pipeline
Conversion to normalized projection space (like NDC)
is needed for several reasons:
Device Independence: NDC provides a standardized
coordinate system that is independent of the specifics
of the output device (like screens with varying
resolutions and aspect ratios). This ensures that
objects are rendered consistently regardless of the
hardware.
Clipping: NDC makes it easier to implement clipping
algorithms. Any geometry outside the [−1,1] range in
NDC can be easily identified and culled before
rasterization, improving performance.
 3D Geometry Pipeline
5) Screen Space: This refers to the 2D coordinate
system of the actual display. The dimensions are
typically defined in pixels.
- To convert NDC to screen space, a viewport
transformation is applied. This involves
mapping the NDC coordinates to the dimensions
of the output display.
- By applying the viewport transformation,
normalized coordinates are converted into pixel
coordinates that fit the actual screen dimensions,
allowing for the final rendering of the image.
 3D Geometry Pipeline
6) Image Space: This can refer to the final
rasterized representation of the scene that is ready
to be output to a display or stored as an image.
• It often includes considerations for pixel format,
color depth, and any additional processing.
 3D Geometry Pipeline

Model Space
World Space
(Object Space)
Rotation
Translation
Resizing
 3D Geometry Pipeline

Model Space Eye Space

World Space
(Object Space) (View Space)
Rotation Rotation Projective,
Translation Translation Scale
Resizing Translation
 3D Geometry Pipeline (cont’d)

Normalized Projection Image Space (pixels)

Screen Space (2D)
Space Raster Space
Project Scale
Translation
 Classical Viewing

• Viewing requires three basic elements

– One or more objects
– A viewer with a projection surface
– Projectors that go from the object(s) to the projection
surface
• Classical views are based on the relationship among
these elements
– The viewer picks up the object and orients it how she
would like to see it
• Each object is assumed to constructed from flat principal
faces
– Buildings, polyhedra, manufactured objects
 Projections
• Projections transform points in n-space to m-space,
where m<n.
• In 3-D, we map points from 3-space to the
projection plane (PP) (a.k.a., image plane) along
projectors (a.k.a., viewing rays) emanating from the
center of projection (COP):

• There are two basic types of projections:

– Perspective – distance from COP to PP finite
– Parallel – distance from COP to PP infinite
 Planar Geometric Projections
• Standard projections project onto a plane
• Projectors are lines that either
– converge at a center of projection
– are parallel
• Such projections preserve lines
– but not necessarily angles
• Nonplanar projections are needed for
applications such as map construction
Classical Projections
 Perspective vs Parallel
• Computer graphics treats all projections the same
and implements them with a single pipeline
• Classical viewing developed different techniques for
drawing each type of projection
• Fundamental distinction is between parallel and
perspective viewing even though mathematically
parallel viewing is the limit of perspective viewing
 Projections
• Once world-coordinate descriptions of the
objects in a scene are converted to viewing
coordinates, we can project the three-dimensional
objects onto the three- dimensional view plane.
• There are two basic projection methods.
- Parallel projection
- Perspective projection
 Taxonomy of Planar Geometric
Projections
planar geometric projections

perspective
parallel

1 point 2 point 3 point

multiview axonometric oblique
orthographic
Cavalier (45o)
isometric dimetric trimetric Cabinet (63.4o)
Parallel Projection
 Parallel Projections
In a parallel projection, coordinate positions are
transformed to the view plane along parallel lines,
as shown in the below Fig 1.

Fig 1. Parallel projection of an object to the view plane

 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
• Parallel projection preserves relative proportions
of objects, and this is the method used in
drafting to produce scale drawings of three-
dimensional objects.
• Accurate views of the various sides of an object
are obtained with a parallel projection, but this
does not give us a realistic representation of the
appearance of a three-dimensional object.
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
• We can specify a parallel projection with a
projection vector that defines the direction for
the projection lines.
• When the projection is perpendicular to the
view plane, we have an orthographic parallel
projection.
• Otherwise, we have an oblique parallel
projection.
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)

Fig . Orientation of the projection vector 𝑉𝑃 to produce an

orthographic projection (a) and an oblique projection (b)
 Orthographic Projection
Projectors are orthogonal to projection
surface
 Multiview Orthographic Projection
• Projection plane parallel to principal face
• Usually form front, top, side views

isometric (not multiview

orthographic view) front

in CAD and architecture,

we often display three
multiviews plus isometric
side
top
 Advantages and Disadvantages
• Preserves both distances and angles
– Shapes preserved
– Can be used for measurements
• Building plans
• Manuals
• Cannot see what object really looks like because
many surfaces hidden from view
– Often we add the isometric
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
Orthographic projections are most often used to
produce the front, side, and top views of an
object, as shown in Fig.
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)

Fig . Orthographic projections of an object displaying plan

and elevation views
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
Front, side, and rear orthographic projections of
an object are called elevations; and a top
orthographic projection is called a plan view.
• Engineering and architectural drawings
commonly employ these orthographic
projections, because lengths and angles are
accurately depicted and can be measured from
the drawings.
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
Axonometric orthographic projections
We can also form orthographic projections that
display more than one face of an object. Such
views are called axonometric orthographic
projections.
The most commonly used axonometric projection
is the isometric projection. We generate an
isometric projection as follows
- Principal Axes: In an isometric projection, the
projection plane is aligned with the three
principal axes (X, Y, and Z) of the object. Each
axis is equally foreshortened.
 Parallel Projections (Cont.)
Axonometric orthographic projections
- Equal Distances: The projection plane
intersects each coordinate axis at the same
distance from the origin. This distance is
typically chosen to maintain a consistent scale
throughout the drawing of the object.
- Orientation: The projection plane is oriented so
that it forms 120-degree angles between the axes.
This allows for a balanced representation of the
object's dimensions.
 Isometric projection

Fig . Isometric projection for a cube

 Axonometric Projections
Allow projection plane to move relative to object

classify by how many angles of

a corner of a projected cube are
the same

none: trimetric q1
two: dimetric
three: isometric q2 q3
Types of Axonometric
Projections
• In dimetric projection, two of the three axes are
foreshortened equally, while the third axis is
foreshortened at a different scale. The angles
between the axes are not equal, typically resulting
in a more realistic appearance than isometric
projection.
• In trimetric projection, all three axes are
foreshortened at different scales, and the angles
between the axes are also unequal. This allows for a
more varied representation of depth and
perspective.
 Advantages and Disadvantages
• Lines are scaled (foreshortened) but can find scaling
factors
• Lines preserved but angles are not
– Projection of a circle in a plane not parallel to the
projection plane is an ellipse
• Can see three principal faces of a box-like object
• Some optical illusions possible
– Parallel lines appear to diverge
• Does not look real because far objects are scaled the
same as near objects
• Used in CAD applications
Oblique parallel projection
 Oblique parallel projection.
Oblique parallel projection.
- The projection lines are drawn at an angle (often
45 degrees) to the plane of projection, which
gives a skewed appearance to the object.
- In oblique projection, one face of the object
(usually the front) is drawn true to scale, while
the other dimensions are drawn at an angle
(commonly 45°) to the horizontal plane.
 Oblique Projection
Arbitrary relationship between projectors and projection
plane
 Oblique Projection … contd.
Cavalier: The project line making an angle 45 degrees
with projected plane, line of object length will not
change.
Cabinet: The project line making an angle 63.4 degrees
with projected plane. Lines perpendicular to viewing
surface are projected at ½ their actual length
 Oblique Projection … contd.
• Cavalier Projection: The depth is represented at full
scale. If the depth of the object is 1 unit, it appears as 1
unit in the drawing
• Cabinet Projection: The depth is foreshortened,
typically by a factor of 1/2. So, if the actual depth is 1
unit, it appears as 0.5 units in the drawing.
Appearance
The front view remains true to scale, while the depth
appears distorted based on the chosen method (cavalier or
cabinet). This creates a more realistic perception of depth
without the complexity of perspective projection.
Perspective Projections
 Perspective Projections
• Perspective projection is a method used in drawing
and computer graphics to represent three-
dimensional objects on a two-dimensional plane in
a way that mimics human visual perception.
• This technique creates a sense of depth and
realism by simulating how objects appear smaller
as they recede into the distance.
 Perspective Projection
Projectors coverge at center of projection
 Perspective Projections
• For a perspective projection ( Fig. 2 shown below),
object positions are transformed to the view plane
along lines that converge to a point called the
projection reference point (or center of projection).

Fig 2. Perspective projection of an object to the view plane

Perspective Projection
 Perspective Projections (Cont.)
• The projected view of an object is determined by
calculating the intersection of the projection
lines with the view plane.
• A perspective projection, produces realistic views
but does not preserve relative proportions.
• Projections of distant objects are smaller than
the projections of objects of the same size that
are closer to the projection plane as shown in the
fig.
 Perspective Projections (Cont.)

Fig 3. Perspective projection of equal-sized objects at different

distances from the view plane.
 Vanishing Points
• Parallel lines (not parallel to the projection plan) on the
object converge at a single point in the projection (the
vanishing point).

• This refers to lines on the object that are parallel to each

other but not parallel to the surface onto which the object is
being projected. For example, the edges of a building are
often parallel to each other but not necessarily parallel to
the ground (the projection plane).
 Vanishing Points
• They refer to points on the horizon line where parallel lines
appear to converge as they recede into the distance.
• Horizon Line: This is the eye level of the viewer, and it
represents the distance at which the sky meets the ground.
• Drawing simple perspectives by hand uses these vanishing
point(s)

vanishing point
 Types of vanishing points
1) One point perspective
2) Two point perspective
3) Three point perspective
 One-Point Perspective
• One principal face of an object is aligned parallel to
projection plane (usually the picture plane)
• In this approach, there is a single vanishing point on
the horizon line. This is often used when the viewer is
looking directly at the front of an object (e.g., a road or
hallway).
• Useful for interior scenes or objects facing the viewer
directly.
 Two-Point Perspective
• In the principal direction parallel to projection plane.
• This involves two vanishing points on the horizon line
which gives realistic representation of an object.
• It is commonly used for drawing objects at an angle (e.g.,
the corner of a building), where two sets of parallel lines
converge to two different vanishing points..
 Three-Point Perspective
• No principal face parallel to projection plane.
• Three vanishing points for cube which allows for a view
that captures depth, height, and width simultaneously.
• Here, there are three vanishing points—two on the
horizon line and one either above or below it.
• This technique is used to depict objects viewed from an
extreme angle, such as looking up at a tall building or
down from a height. .
 Applications of vanishing points
Vanishing points are used in various fields,
including:
• Art and Illustration: To create realistic
landscapes and architectural drawings.
• Photography: Understanding vanishing points
helps in composing shots to enhance depth.
• Architecture and Design: To visualize buildings
and spaces accurately.
 Advantages and Disadvantages
• Objects further from viewer are projected smaller than
the same sized objects closer to the viewer (diminuition)
– Looks realistic
• Equal distances along a line are not projected into equal
distances (nonuniform foreshortening)
• Angles preserved only in planes parallel to the projection
plane. This means that while depth and height can be
distorted, the shapes of objects in the same plane will
maintain their angles.
• More difficult to construct by hand than parallel
projections (but not more difficult by computer)