Customer Reviews

Transformations and Projections in Computer Graphics

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David Salomon has written some of my favorite books on the subject of data compression. Once again he has managed to make what could have been a difficult book into something that is easily comprehensible if you have a background in linear algebra, trigonometry, and familiarity with orthogonal, cylindrical, and spherical coordinate systems.

Chapter one introduces geometric transformations in both two and three dimensions. This is rather easy material and can be found in many computer graphics books. The rest of the book is about projections. Chapter 2 focuses on parallel projections. Chapter 3 explains perspective projection, and something unique to this book is a very good treatment of the creation of stereographic images. Finally chapter 4, which goes on for 80 pages, is a very good treatment of all kinds of nonlinear projections including panoramic and map projections. I can find code that does these transformations, but these pages in this book actually explain matters so I can write my own. There are exercises included that range from proofs to practical image transformations. They aren't great practical experience for what you should have learned, but they are a start.

I'd say this is a particularly good source of information for those looking for material on panoramic images and stereographic images.

This is a must-have for your collection if you do transformations or projections. I have found this book priceless for actually explaining the math and deriving the formulas they use. Much better than any reference book I own - it gives me what I need, with enough explanation that I can modify as necessary. If you are looking for something to "plug in" rather than understand what you're doing, find another book.