OpenGL Explorations

This repository is a learning project that explores the fundamentals of 3D rendering with OpenGL. It includes a collection of experiments and demonstrations, integrated with ImGui for easy exploration and modification of parameters.

Gallery

Here are some project screenshots and a video:

Screenshots

Videos

Features

• Render Game Window (Clear Color)
• Render Triangle
• Render Square
• Load 2D Texture
• Render Sphere (UV Sphere)
• Cube Rendering With Lighting Effect and Materials
  • Multiple material options
  • Phong lighting model
• Cube With Texture and Lighting
  • Textured Cube with texture Diffuse, Emission and Specular
  • Phong lighting model with Attenuation
• Fractal Brownian Motion Plane With Lighting
  • Fractal Brownian Motion Plane with Wireframe view, Rotation and each point movement.
  • Phong lighting model
• Load and Tessellate Height Map
  • Load Height Map from png
  • Uses Tessellation and interpolation to generate 3D Height map from png
  • Uses FOV to dynamically change the tessellation levels
  • Renders Normals
  • Uses Frustum culling
• Load 3D model using Assimp
  • Load 3D model from obj file
  • Render 3D model with Phong lighting model
  • Renders Normals
• Particles in 3D (Implements in CPU)
  • Uses CPU to create, update and destroy particles from emitter
  • Max number of particle alive per frame is ~30K (with Avg of 22 FPS)
• Particles in 3D (Implements in GPU Nvidia GTX 1050)
  • Uses CPU to create, update and destroy particles from emitter
  • Max number of particle alive per frame is ~1.5 million (with Avg of 120 FPS)
• Fire Particle Simulation
  • Uses GPU to create, update and destroy fire particles from emitter
  • Each has its own temp and other properties.
  • Uses Smoothed-particle hydrodynamics (SPH) for more relastic particle simulation and have effect of particles on each other.
• Procedural Terrain Generation
  • Uses SimpleX/Perlin noise to generate height map
  • Uses height map to generate 3D terrain
  • Uses Frustum culling before mesh generation, Multithreading, Dynamic tessellation based on FOV, and camera distance for performace optimization.

Particle system: Initial Implemented using Array of Structures (AoS), with commit [cc8fe1647093a94a01c6ae96c84aa74215fd3172]

Getting Started

You can follow same instructions on https://github.com/Shreyas9699/opengl-base-template to set it up.
OR
You can follow The Cherno Instructions

Prerequisites

• OpenGL 3.3 or higher
• GLFW
• GLEW
• GLM
• stb_image
• Assimp
• ImGui

Usage

• Use the ImGui interface to modify rendering parameters in real-time.
• Explore different rendering techniques by selecting from the available demos.

Recent Changes

• 2025-06-23: Using SPH calc, better fire simulation. Issue: Bad performance with large number of particles

Acknowledgments

• The Cherno for the OpenGL tutorials and guidance.
• LearnOpenGL for providing excellent tutorials and resources.
• The Book of shader to guide through the complex shader.