An affine transformation is a mathematical operation that alters the position, size, and orientation of objects in a coordinate space while preserving their geometric properties. This transformation can include operations such as translation, scaling, rotation, and shearing. It is commonly used in computer graphics, image processing, and geometric modeling. In an affine transformation, parallel lines remain parallel, and points are transformed in a linear manner. The transformation can be represented using matrices, allowing for efficient calculations. This makes affine transformations essential in applications like computer vision and robotics, where accurate manipulation of shapes and images is crucial.