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Image-based modeling and rendering

Computer imaging technique

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
1 min read
Source updated June 16, 2026

In computer graphics and computer vision, image-based modeling and rendering (IBMR) methods rely on a set of two-dimensional images of a scene to generate a three-dimensional model and then render some novel views of this scene.

The traditional approach of computer graphics has been used to create a geometric model in 3D and try to reproject it onto a two-dimensional image. Computer vision, conversely, is mostly focused on detecting, grouping, and extracting features (edges, faces, etc.) present in a given picture and then trying to interpret them as three-dimensional clues. Image-based modeling and rendering allows the use of multiple two-dimensional images in order to generate directly novel two-dimensional images, skipping the manual modeling stage.

01Light modeling

Instead of considering only the physical model of a solid, IBMR methods usually focus more on light modeling. The fundamental concept behind IBMR is the plenoptic illumination function which is a parametrisation of the light field. The plenoptic function describes the light rays contained in a given volume. It can be represented with seven dimensions: a ray is defined by its position (x,y,z), its orientation (\theta ,\phi ), its wavelength (\lambda ) and its time (t): P(x,y,z,\theta ,\phi ,\lambda ,t). IBMR methods try to approximate the plenoptic function to render a novel set of two-dimensional images from another. Given the high dimensionality of this function, practical methods place constraints on the parameters in order to reduce this number (typically to 2 to 4). A common simplification used by light field rendering and the Lumigraph reduces the plenoptic function to a four-dimensional light field, P_{4}(u,v,s,t), in which each ray is parameterized by its intersections with two parallel planes outside the object's convex hull.

02IBMR methods and algorithms

  • View morphing generates a transition between images
  • Panoramic imaging renders panoramas using image mosaics of individual still images
  • Lumigraph relies on a dense sampling of a scene
  • Space carving generates a 3D model based on a photo-consistency check
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Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Image-based modeling and rendering”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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