ABSTRACT
The illumination of a 3D scene is the result of the interaction between the light sources and surfaces of the environment. In Chapter 14 we examined an illumination equation that expressed the local interaction of light with a surface. In that case, the value of the resulting energy (color) is given explicitly by the equation. However, that equation is limited and cannot describe all the phenomena of luminous energy propagation in a scene. In this chapter, we will study an illumination equation that describes such phenomena and the computational methods to numerically solve that equation. Fundamental prerequisites for this chapter include Chapters 14 and 18.
