Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
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Real-Time and Viewport Rendering
Any time you work in Blender with a 3D viewport open, real-time rendering of the contents of the 3D viewport
ishappening.Youhaveseveraloptionsforviewingthereal-time content,whichareaccessed throughtheView-
port Shading menu in the header of the 3D viewport, shown in
Figure 4-1
. By default, the options include
Bounding Box, Wireframe, Solid, and Texture. The Bounding Box option displays only the bounding box in-
formation for the objects and can only be used to roughly identify the locations and sizes of objects relative to
each other. Wireframe mode draws objects as transparent wireframes. This shows the shapes and geometry of
objects but gives no information about opacity, color, textures, or other surface qualities. Solid mode gives a
view of the opaque surfaces of objects, with limited information about their materials. For example, the basic
color of the material is shown, but its reflective characteristics are not accurately rendered.
Figure 4-1
Viewport Shading menu
The rendering style of Solid and Texture view modes depends also on the viewport's Material Mode, which
is controlled in the Display panel of the Properties shelf, shown in
Figure 4-2
. By default, Textured Solid is not
selected, so the Solid view does not show textures.
