The process used to create a very realistic image of a fern is similar to
the process used for the Serpinski Cheese, and is very simple.
It consists of iterating a large number of times the transformation
represented below : each rectangle is replaced by three smaller
rectangles (w2,w3 and w4) and a last rectangle reduced to a
segment of line (w1), placed as indicated on the second picture.
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The parameters needed to definite this process are only a few. Here is a set of values that specify the construction of a fern.
w | a | b | c | d | e | f | p |
1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.16 | 0 | 0 | 0.01 |
2 | 0.85 | 0.04 | -0.04 | 0.85 | 0 | 1.6 | 0.85 |
3 | 0.2 | -0.26 | 0.23 | 0.22 | 0 | 1.6 | 0.07 |
4 | -0.15 | 0.28 | 0.26 | 0.24 | 0 | 0.44 | 0.07 |
These parameters can be used as input in the public domain program FRACTINT which draws the associated fractal. To know what these parameters stand for or where fractint can be found, examine the links given further on in the main page.