A 3D/2D rendering engine written in C++ based on OpenGL. This project allows you to visualize, calculate, and explore complex fractals in real-time, offering an interactive experience in both two-dimensional and navigable three-dimensional environments.
The engine supports a vast library of fractals, divided into two main categories:
- 2D Fractals:
- Mandelbrot, Julia, Burning Ship, Sierpinski, Koch, Barnsley, Newton.
- 3D Fractals:
- Mandelbulb and Mandelbox.
Advanced Rendering Capabilities:
- Double Precision (Deep Zoom): Ability to enable double-precision floating-point calculations to explore extreme depths in Mandelbrot, Julia, and Burning Ship fractals without losing detail.
- Raymarching & Distance Estimators: Advanced algorithms for volumetric rendering of 3D fractals.
- Lighting and Shading: Implementation of the Blinn-Phong lighting model combined with Horizon-Based Ambient Occlusion (HBAO) to give depth and realism to fractal surfaces.
- User Interface (GUI): Integrated menu to select the fractal type in real-time, tweak its parameters, or manage animations and precision modes.
This project is built using industry-standard graphics and math libraries:
- C++
- OpenGL 4.3+ (Rendering via GLSL Fragment/Vertex shaders)
- GLFW3 (Window and input management)
- GLEW (OpenGL extension wrangler)
- GLM (Mathematics library for matrices, vectors, and camera)
- Dear ImGui (Bloat-free graphical user interface)
The exploration mechanics adapt automatically depending on the loaded fractal:
- Mouse Wheel: Zoom In / Zoom Out.
- Left Mouse Button (Drag): Panning (Move the view).
- Arrow Keys: Alternative panning.
- W / A / S / D: Move forward, backward, and sideways.
- Space / Left Shift: Move up and down.
- Left Mouse Button (Drag): Rotate the camera (Pitch & Yaw).
- Mouse Wheel: Change the field of view (FOV/Zoom).