Tag: ed-catmull

The z-buffer reduced hidden-surface visibility to a per-pixel depth comparison, trading memory for a simple, order-independent algorithm that became fundamental to raster graphics hardware.

Ed Catmull's 1974 graphics research mapped photographs and patterns onto curved surfaces, separating visual appearance from geometric complexity.

Catmull-Clark subdivision generalized B-spline refinement to polygon meshes of arbitrary topology, giving digital artists a coarse control cage for smooth surfaces.