Texture mapping involves applying images or textures to 3D models to enhance their appearance. Textures provide surface details, colors, and patterns, allowing models to simulate real-world materials. Texture mapping is crucial for adding realism and visual complexity to 3D scenes, enabling artists to create intricate and visually appealing models.
Consider a 3D model of a building with brick patterns on its surface – texture mapping allows the artist to apply a texture representing bricks, enhancing the model’s realism. Textures can range from simple color maps to complex maps defining surface properties such as reflectivity, bumpiness, or transparency.