Advanced Shading

The Gouraud shading model was invented in 1971 [435]. Phong’s specular highlighting equation was introduced around 1975 [1014]. The concept of applying textures to surfaces was presented a year later by Blinn and Newell [96]. As part of the standard fixed-function pipeline, these algorithms were the mainstay of graphics accelerators for years. The advent of programmable shaders has vastly increased the available options-modern GPUs can evaluate (almost) arbitrary shading models. This moves the focus from “what is possible?” to “what are the best choices for this application?”