Volume stylizer: tomography-based volume painting

Abstract

Volumetric phenomena are an integral part of standard rendering, yet, no suitable tools to edit characteristic properties are available so far. Either simulation results are used directly, or modifications are high-level, e.g., noise functions to influence appearance. Intuitive artistic control is not possible. We propose a solution to stylize single-scattering volumetric effects. Emission, scattering and extinction become amenable to artistic control while preserving a smooth and coherent appearance when changing the viewpoint. Our approach lets the user define a number of target views to be matched when observing the volume from this perspective. Via an analysis of the volumetric rendering equation, we can show how to link this problem to tomographic reconstruction.