Astra Image - Image Processing Software

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Astra Image 3D Visualization Examples
The three-dimensional visualization in Astra Image is extremely powerful, flexible and easy to use. You just select the region you are interested in and with one click you can produce a 3D surface plot, also known as an intensity plot. You don't need to prepare your data in any way. The surface plot can be rotated, zoomed and modified in real time. The lighting and material properties can be modified in real time too. Plots can be created from 16-bit and 32-bit grayscale images as well as 24-bit and 48-bit color images.

	Selecting the Region The first thing to do is to select the region to plot. On the left is an image with a star on the edge of a nebulous region. We can use the Rectangle Selection tool to select this area. After the selection has been made, just click on Surface Plot command.
	Surface Plot Window The surface plot window shows the surface plot. The plot can be rotated and zoomed in real time. On the right of the window there are three tabs that allow you to configure the chart, the material and the lighting. Whenever you make an adjustment, the chart is updated instantly. The chart on the left has been colored with a palette and the overlay grid has been turned on.
	Chart Types You can choose one of three different chart types: smooth surface, stepped surface and tower surface. To change the chart type, just click on the desired type in the Chart Type box. On the left you can see an example of these three chart types. The first is a smooth surface plot. The overlay grid is turned on.
	The second is a stepped surface plot. Each pixel is represented by a floating rectangle. The stepped surface plot adds some transparency and removes some clutter.
	The third is a tower (or pedestal) surface plot. Each pixel is represented by a tower.
	Rendering The surface plots can be rendered with smooth (Phong) shading, flat shading or in wireframe. The type of rendering can be changed simply by clicking on the desired rendering type in the Rendering box. The position and colors of the light source can be changed also. In addition, the color of the surface can be modified on a per-polygon or per-vertex basis. All of these adjustments are done simply and the surface plot updates in real time. An example of a wireframe surface plot can be seen to the left.