Programming Vertex, Geometry, and Pixel Shaders

The second edition of this popular book has been greatly expanded and updated with new material centered around using DirectX 10. The release of DirectX 10 brings the biggest changes in graphics hardware, runtime, and API design in more than 15 years. This practical reference covers all of the advanced rendering techniques important for graphics programmers in the game and film industries, and will help them implement these techniques efficiently with DirectX 10. Using a"cookbook"approach, this guide teaches beginning to intermediate graphics and game programmers how to program shaders in the High-Level Shading Language (HLSL), the primary real-time shading language used in recent game development. More than 60 examples are used to teach various techniques, ranging from simple real-time lighting to advanced, cutting-edge rendering. These techniques cover the essentials of shader programming and provide new time-saving tips. This book is broken into six parts covering introductorymaterial, light, shadow, environmental effects, post-processing effects, and procedural synthesis. A basic understanding of the math typically used in a game engine is assumed as is an intermediate understanding of the Direct3D API.