A reflectance model for computer graphics

  • Authors:
  • Robert L. Cook;Kenneth E. Torrance

  • Affiliations:
  • Program of Computer Graphics, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York;Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York

  • Venue:
  • SIGGRAPH '81 Proceedings of the 8th annual conference on Computer graphics and interactive techniques
  • Year:
  • 1981

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.02

Visualization

Abstract

This paper presents a new reflectance model for rendering computer synthesized images. The model accounts for the relative brightness of different materials and light sources in the same scene. It describes the directional distribution of the reflected light and a color shift that occurs as the reflectance changes with incidence angle. The paper presents a method for obtaining the spectral energy distribution of the light reflected from an object made of a specific real material and discusses a procedure for accurately reproducing the color associated with the spectral energy distribution. The model is applied to the simulation of a metal and a plastic.