Subsurface Scattering - Rendering Techniques

Rendering Techniques

Most materials used in real-time computer graphics today only account for the interaction of light at the surface of an object. In reality, many materials are slightly translucent: light enters the surface; is absorbed, scattered and re-emitted — potentially at a different point. Skin is a good case in point; only about 6% of reflectance is direct, 94% is from subsurface scattering. An inherent property of semitransparent materials is absorption. The further through the material light travels, the greater the proportion absorbed. To simulate this effect, a measure of the distance the light has traveled through the material must be obtained.

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