Computer Graphics schedule (provisional, subject to change)

The following is a week-by-week list of topics to be covered in this course.

Week	Topic	Reading Sections
1	Introduction: Geometric description, coordinate spaces, points, vectors, and basic operations on these.	1, 4, 5.1
2	Modelling in 2D Worlds: Modelling and describing 2D graphical objects. Modelling lines and polygons.	3, 3.2, 3.5
3	Viewing 2D Worlds: Clipping and 2D transformations. Viewing and manipulating a 2D scene. Windows, viewports, graphical objects.	5.2-5.5, 3.9, 3.11
4	Modelling in 3D Worlds: Polyhedra and data structures for polyhedra. 3D transformations. Graphical objects and hierarchical models.	7.1. 7.4, 7.6, 9.1, 10.5, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9
5, 6	Viewing 3D Worlds: Virtual camera model.	6.1-6.4
7	Reading week.
8	Implementing the virtual camera. Perspective and parallel projections. The graphics viewing pipeline. Clipping to the view volume.	6.5-6.7
9	Colour models for computer graphics. A simple model for shading polygons in 3D scenes.	11, 14.1
10	Visibility and Rendering: Hidden surface elimination, z-buffer algorithm and Painter's algorithm.	13, 14.2
11	Global Illumination: An introduction to ray tracing.	14.6, 14.7, 14.8
12	Revision.

Essential Reading

The chapters ans sections above refer to Foley, J.D., van Dam, A., Feiner, S.K., Hughes, J.F., Phillips, R.L. (1994) Introduction to Computer Graphics, Addison-Wesley publishers. Indicated above are the chapters & sections that correspond most closely to the material that we'll attempt to introduce in the lectures, but there is by no means an exact correspondence. In certain circumstances it might be necessary for you to read other sections of the book in order to appreciate a given section.

There are lots of other good books out there. One the students seem to like is '3D Computer Graphics 3rd Edition' by Alan Watt.