14.5. Summary

This chapter looked at how shaders model the properties of light that arrives at a particular point on a surface. Light can be transmitted, reflected, or absorbed. We developed shaders that model the reflection and refraction of light based on an approximation to the Fresnel equations, a shader that simulates diffraction, and shaders that implement a bidirectional reflectance distribution function. Finally, we studied a shader that uses image-based methods to reproduce varying lighting conditions and self-shadowing for a variety of materials.

Pardon the pun, but the shaders presented in this chapter (as well as in the preceding two chapters) only begin to scratch the surface of the realistic rendering effects that are possible with the OpenGL Shading Language. The hope is that by developing shaders to implement a few examples of lighting, shadows, and reflection, you will be equipped to survey the literature and implement a variety of similar techniques. The shaders we've developed can be further streamlined and optimized for specific purposes.