A bump map is a texture that is used to obtain detailed 3D effects.
I am pretty sure someone here can give you a good example.
This example from Half-Life 2 is the best example I can give:
See how the bricks realisticly respond to the light? That's not actual 3D. That is what we call bump mapping.
Last edited by Kutakaswa; Nov 29, 2011 at 03:33 PM.
Reason: spoiler fail