Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Colored Light
A
colored light
is not really a light; rather, it is an attribute of all the lights I have
already discussed. Colored light is any light source that has a specific color. The
scene in Figure 1.17 is lit with four separate colored lights. They are all point lights,
but they each have a different color.
Almost every light source is a colored light. A fluorescent light is usually slightly
blue, whereas a normal incandescent light bulb is yellow. The rays of the sun con-
tain the full spectrum of light but they tend to be a little on the yellow side unless
the sun is setting, in which case they can be very red and orange. When you are
lighting a scene, use a light that fits the nature of the scene. For example, when you
are doing an interior room, give it a slightly yellow light to simulate the incandes-
cent light source.
Figure 1.17
Four colored lights are used to light this scene.
Reflections
A shiny surface looks shiny because it reflects its surroundings. The only way to get
a true reflection on a surface in a game is to calculate it based on the angle of the
surroundings and the game view, and then render the calculated image on the surface.
