Depth map

In 3D computer graphics and computer vision, a depth map is an image or image channel that contains information relating to the distance of the surfaces of scene objects from a viewpoint.

The first depth map shows luminance in proportion to the distance from the camera.

The second depth map shows luminance in relation to the distances from a nominal focal plane.

Surfaces closer to the focal plane are darker; surfaces further from the focal plane are lighter, (both closer to and also further away from the viewpoint).

[citation needed] Depth maps have a number of uses, including:

Fog effect
Shallow depth of field effect
Generating and reconstructing 3D shapes from single or multi-view depth maps or silhouettes [ 3 ]