Rendering Visual Realism Like a Pro
As graphics cards and the resolution of computer displays have improved over time, audiences have expected better quality rendering in animated movies, games, and other computer graphics-based media. By examining the way that objects in the real world get their color, computer scientists have been able to improve upon similar models of Lambert and Phong. Today, most 3D engines aimed at producing visual realism apply a shading technique called physically based rendering (PBR).
In this chapter, we will investigate the theory behind this technique and then put it into practice in our Pygame/OpenGL project. To this end, we will be discussing the following topics in this chapter:
- Following where light bounces
- Applying the Inverse Square Law
- Calculating Bidirectional Reflectance
- Putting it all together
By the end of this chapter, you will have a project that uses Python and OpenGL to render objects using PBR and understand...
