About these 3D Illustrations...

These illustrations were created using a 3D modeling and rendering program called Strata Studio Pro. Some of the older images were created with Studio Pro's predecessor, Strata 3D.

First wire frame models of each object are created and texture maps created in Photoshop are applied to each object. Then these objects along with lights and finally the camera are positioned in the scene. It's very much like working in a photo studio, only it's a virtual studio.

When the view through the "camera" window is just what you visualized, you tell the program to "take the picture" or render the image. These images were rendered using a process called ray tracing, in which for every pixel in the final scene the computer calculates the path the light rays take from every light source in the scene to the camera. The color of each pixel in the final image is determined by calculating what each light ray may have reflected off of, passed through or been blocked by, on its way to the camera lens.

These images were rendered at sizes up to 3000 x 2000 pixels which is six million pixels or calculations per light source. Some of the earlier images I created took as long as five days to render, but with today's much faster computers it takes less than 5 hours for the same image now.

- - -   Peter J. Sucy   - - -

e-mail: pjsucy@eznet.net
website: http://home.eznet.net/~pjsucy