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I do work with computer graphics and am dipping my toes into ray tracing. That field involves a good number of the subjects covered in DSP (Fourier transform, time vs frequency space, etc) but I was hoping to find a book in the realm that didn't also deal with, say, digital devices or electrical engineering-- not that I have anything against those subjects, but they're not germane to what I'm doing and I'd prefer not to wade through them on my way to DSP understanding.

Could anyone recommend some books for someone in my position? I've taken calculus and differential equations & linear algebra in the past and so am reasonably proficient as far as the mathematics involved. Thanks much.

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  • $\begingroup$ The specific topics that you reference would be covered most basically in a textbook geared toward a "signals and systems"-type course. I don't have a great reference, but an undergraduate-level text on the topic would probably be accessible without previous knowledge in signal processing. $\endgroup$
    – Jason R
    Apr 28, 2012 at 5:28
  • $\begingroup$ Physically Based Rendering is great. $\endgroup$
    – datageist ♦
    Apr 28, 2012 at 5:49
  • $\begingroup$ There was a project (probably still exists) that introduced DSP to high school students, and it developed not only reading materials for students but also teacher guides, etc. Some of this might give you the less EE-oriented introduction you want, or it might be too elementary for what you need. David Munson, Dean of Engineering at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, was involved in the project, and so looking at the publications he lists on his web page will give you a guide to where to look on the Internet for more information, downloadable files, etc. $\endgroup$
    – Dilip Sarwate
    Apr 28, 2012 at 12:01

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I am surprised no one has mentioned Richard Lyon's book - by far one of the BEST books out there on understanding digital signal processing in a very clear, concise, and methodological way.

Its excellence comes from that fact that he explains concepts to you in a very easy way to grasp, without loss of rigor or detail needed to get to the heart of various DSP concepts. He does not shy away from math, (which is good), but you are guaranteed to understand all of it.

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  • $\begingroup$ The main reason I didn't mention this (and I was a reviewer of the 2nd ed) is that it isn't image centric. Otherwise, it is a fantastic book that all DSP people should own. I always tell people it is a book by an engineer for other engineers. $\endgroup$
    – mpdonadio
    May 1, 2012 at 18:08
  • $\begingroup$ @MPD Do you know of any books that are image centric that are similar to Lyon's in this sense? Cheers. $\endgroup$
    – Spacey
    May 1, 2012 at 18:11
  • $\begingroup$ no my image processing library is pretty lean and more academic in nature. Gonzales and Woods is my go-to reference. $\endgroup$
    – mpdonadio
    May 1, 2012 at 22:25
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There is a classic book of Gonzales & Woods: Digital Image Processing. You may find it as a good introductory material.

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  • $\begingroup$ This is a fairly standard text for undergraduate and graduate level image processing. $\endgroup$
    – mpdonadio
    Apr 30, 2012 at 0:15
  • $\begingroup$ I just got this book 2 months ago. Its tremendously useful at my job. Its explains most major concepts fairly well. $\endgroup$
    – CyberMen
    May 3, 2012 at 14:21
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The first chapters of a large number of books on audiology, auditory neurology, computer music and the physics of music seem to cover these basics of the DSP subject area from a non-EE point of view. For instance "Music, a Mathematical Offering" by Benson. Also, Julius O. Smith seems to have published some of his Stanford CCRMA lecture material on the math behind computer music in book form.

There is a general science non-textbook on frequency analysis in sonar and radar "Blip, Ping, and Buzz" by Mark Denny, and some recreational math books on various aspects of the Fourier series as well, including "Dr. Euler's Fabulous Formula" by Paul Nahin.

For an almost-textbook, I like the Dover reprint of "Digital Filters" by R. Hamming.

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I have found Signal Analysis: Time, Frequency, Scale and Structure by Allen & Mills quite good. Numerical Recipes by Press is also useful for a bit more of a grounding in the math behind processing techniques.

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Though it is a little dated, I am pretty sure Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice covers DSP from an image processing point of view. I would borrow / interloan this before purchasing to see if it would help.

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Steven W. Smith Digital Signal Processing is pretty good and is available for free on the website.

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