COMPUTER GRAPHICS
Resolution in Computer Graphics: -
Resolution in computer graphics refers to the maximum number of pixels that can be displayed on a
monitor screen without overlap. High-quality devices typically have a resolution of 1280 by 1024. High-
resolution systems are sometimes known as high-definition systems.
The resolution of images on a monitor
screen describes them. An image with a
resolution of 800 x 600 has 800 pixels in each
row and 600 pixels in each column. The image
has resolution of 800 x 600 = 4,800,000 pixels.
As the resolution lowers, fewer samples
are collected, and image quality deteriorates.
Figure shows an image with resolutions of 256
x 256, 64 x 64, and 16 x 16 pixels.
Basic elements of computer graphics: -
Computer graphics elements include animation, interaction, rendering, and modeling.
Animation is the simulation of temporal changes in the environment. It is commonly utilized in
movies, advertising, and education.
Interaction is the process of generating responses to the system’s external inputs.
Rendering is the process of creating an image from a 2D or 3D model.
Modelling/Geometry is the process of creating a mathematical representation of a three-dimensional
surface or object.
How real-world object is converted to image: -
Objects are physical entities that represent actual objects. Objects
can be natural, such as flowers, clouds, mountains, and trees, or
manufactured, such as a car, cell phone, book, ball, and so on. A
three-dimensional coordinate system is used to represent objects.
Computer graphics is concerned with the representation of real-
world objects on a computer screen.
An image is a representation of real-world items on a digital display
device. Objects in the real world are continuous, with a smooth
boundary. They are discretized when mapped on a monitor screen
and frequently have zigzag boundaries due to the grid layout of the
monitor screen.
Image is formally a two-dimensional array of pixels. A pixel is an image’s smallest addressable unit.
Image is defined mathematically as a function of its spatial coordinates (x, y). Where (x, y) is the pixel position
in the image and function f(x, y) is the intensity or color at that place.
The diagram demonstrates how continuous shapes are changed to discrete entities while being turned
into a digital image or mapped on a monitor screen.
Pixel and how it helps representing shapes on screen: -
The pixel, as previously stated, is the smallest addressable
unit of an image. It is also referred as pel or image element.
Because real-world objects are continuous in nature, they have an
endless number of samples.
Only finite samples are taken into account when they are
transformed into a picture and presented on the monitor screen.
At the end of the day, the item on the computer screen is a
collection of pixels.
The monitor screen, like the digital image, is organized into
a grid with n rows and m columns. Each cell on this grid is also
known as a pixel. Each grey/black cell in represents one pixel.
Pixel wise representation of image
We can obtain a better idea of the pixel by zooming in on the image. In Figure each square represents
one pixel.
The pixel value for a grayscale image ranges from 0 to 255, where 0 represents black and 255
represents white. The grey colors with varied intensities are represented by the in-between range.
Each pixel in a color image is a triplet of color (R, G, B) consisting of a proportion of red, green, and
blue color. The final color of the pixel on the monitor screen is determined by the combination of these three
components. Each component’s value ranges from 0 to 255, resulting in 255 x 255 x 255 = about 17 million
distinct color tones.
Frame buffer and the role of frame buffer in display: -
The screen image can be thought of as a two-dimensional grid of pixels. The picture is shown by a
raster system by drawing pixels in a row-by-row fashion from left to right. The image definition is saved in a
memory known as the refresh buffer or frame buffer.
The scene to be presented is initially loaded into the frame buffer as intensity values. The frame buffer
should ideally be the same size as the screen resolution. The intensity value from the frame buffer’s top left
location is obtained and painted at a top-left spot on the screen. Soon after, the second pixel of the same row
is painted, and the procedure is repeated.
Frame buffers in raster displays hold individual pixels of the scene, whereas frame buffers in random
scan displays store commands for rendering the scene.
Resolution in computer graphics refers to number of pixels, whereas frame buffer refers to memory to
hold the information for those pixels
Compute the memory requirement of the frame buffer for the system having resolution 1280 x 1280 and
supports 24 bits per pixel.
Number of pixels = 1280 x 1280 = 16, 38, 400
Number of bits = Number of pixels x Number of bits/pixel
= 16, 38, 400 x 24
= 3, 93, 21, 600 bits
= 39321600 / 8 = 49,15,200 Bytes (∵ 1 Byte = 8 bits)
= 49,15,200 / 1024 = 4800 KB (∵ 1 KB = 1024 Bytes)
= 4800 / 1024 = 4.69 MB (∵ 1 MB = 1024 KB)
Thus, the system having screen resolution 1280 x 1280 and supporting 24 bits per pixel require 4.69
MB of memory for the frame / refresh.
Bitmap and Pixmap: -
If the refresh buffer employs one bit per pixel, it is referred to as a bitmap. If it employs multiple bits
per pixel, it is referred to as pixmap.
A bitmap is used in a bi-level system, whereas a pixmap is used in a multi-color system.
