HDRI stands for High Dynamic Range Image, commonly used as an environment texture for realistic lighting and reflections.
An HDRI stores a wider range of brightness than a normal image. In Blender, HDRIs are often used to light scenes from all directions and provide realistic reflections. They are useful when learning Global Illumination and Path Tracing because the environment itself becomes part of the lighting setup.
A grayscale texture that describes raised and lowered surface detail.
A height map uses brightness values to describe surface height. It can drive bump, displacement, or parallax-style effects depending on the renderer and material setup. Height maps are often paired with normal maps, managed with consistent Texel Density, and painted in tools like Substance Painter.
A high-importance asset that receives extra modeling, texture, and presentation attention because it will be seen up close.
A hero asset is the object the audience is meant to notice. It may have cleaner topology, richer textures, stronger silhouette design, and more review time than background props. Hero assets often need careful Texel Density, normal maps, height maps, material work, and presentation lighting.