Reflected Light

[Super Six-Four]

I've seen a new reflected light effect on recent releases by Aerosoft (A320) and Carenado (C182 and 206). It's simply gorgeous. From what I understand this is an alpha channel function, similar to the alpha that controls gloss? Is this called the Fresnel shader? Thanks for any insight!

Todd

 

[YohanNaz]

I've seen a new reflected light effect on recent releases by Aerosoft (A320) and Carenado (C182 and 206). It's simply gorgeous. From what I understand this is an alpha channel function, similar to the alpha that controls gloss? Is this called the Fresnel shader? Thanks for any insight!

Todd

The quote below is taken from the FSX SDK documentation. Everything you need to know about your question is answered in there. Are you interested in modifying some specular textures to get the desired effect?

Specular Map and Specular Alpha channel (Falloff map)
The specular map controls the specular characteristics on a model’s surface. There are two components to the map; the RGB and the Alpha. The RGB component defines the color and brightness of the specular highlights and the Alpha channel defines the falloff for those specular highlights.

Falloff refers to the sharpness of the highlight. A light value in the specular Alpha channel will result in a sharper highlight, where a dark value results in a broader, softer-edged highlight. Combining the RGB and Alpha values in various ways will result in a wide range of surface specular characteristics.



Being able to control the specular characteristics in a texture allows for much more freedom and control when defining the differing specular qualities of various types of surfaces. Before the inclusion of Specular maps, one would have had to define specular characteristics on a per-material basis; the increased flexibility of being able to define values in a texture should allow painters to create some very exciting effects. That’s the hope anyway.

Note that this map will need to be specified in the map slot referred to in the 3ds max Material Editor as the Specular Color slot. Click the slot and define the path for the map.

 

[Super Six-Four]

Thank you Jon. I'm not sure what the official term is for what I'm referring to. If speculiar is the reflection of the values (light, dark and color) on the shadow side of the fuselage, then yes, that's what I'm after. In the attached picture you can see the horizon is reflected as a lighter tone, with some of the blue sky hinted above that. I'm familiar with the alpha channel controlling the glossiness of the surface, but this seems to be a new effect.

 

[tgibson]

Specular controls how the sun glints off a surface. I think you might be talking about the Environment Map, which controls what is seen in the reflections.

 

[Alexis]

Thank you Jon. I'm not sure what the official term is for what I'm referring to. If speculiar is the reflection of the values (light, dark and color) on the shadow side of the fuselage, then yes, that's what I'm after. In the attached picture you can see the horizon is reflected as a lighter tone, with some of the blue sky hinted above that. I'm familiar with the alpha channel controlling the glossiness of the surface, but this seems to be a new effect.

This looks like using a fresnel ramp. (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc526971.aspx). You can find working example images in the P3D SDK Learning Center to see how that works.

The fresnel ramp is a texture that changes the specular/diffuse/reflection intensity or colour based on a polygon's angle to the camera.

You can use that to create a similar effect with a fresnel ramp.

IIRC, for specular the left side of the fresnel ramp is for the polygons perpendicular to the camera view and right is for off the vertical. So your ramp should be a gradient going from white->blue.

 

[Super Six-Four]

Alexis, I think you might be on the right track. But now I'm thinking this has to be set up in the 3D program, and not something that can simply added to any model texture.