The Sandstorm (CG 1 2025, Aron Hanowski)

As soon as the information sheet for the rendering competition was published, I knew that I wanted to implement a volumetric renderer. In the end, this is the feature that I spent by far the most time implementing. I did not reach the goal I initially set out to reach, but I also came closer than I sometimes expected.

My final submission will be discussed below; but first let me give a general overview of all the features I implemented for the rendering competition:



The final result

The paper Ray Tracing Deterministic 3-D Fractals (1989) by John Hart et al. contains the wonderful quote

A proper rendering of a fractal should reveal its order while hinting at its chaos.

Thus, the fractal in the below image represents the theme Chaos in Harmony already by itself. But there's more to the picture:
We see a fractal, half-buried in the desert sands, and flocks of birds, startled by a huge menacing sandstorm at the horizon, bringing chaos and disorder to the serenity and peacefulness of the desert – threatening to bury the fractal completely, as it reshapes the desert landscape, only to leave it once again in an orderly and peaceful fashion once it has passed through.
Therefore, the sandstorm represents the theme Chaos in Harmony as well.

But the story this picture is telling is not told through the sandstorm or the Mandelbulb alone; it is the combination of both themes that truly represents Chaos in Harmony.

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