Reflection

Reflection in game development, specifically in shaders, is a phenomena that simulates the bouncing off of light from objects similar to the way it happens in the real world. Shaders replicate this effect by emitting rays from the lighting source against the object's surface. When the ray strikes the surface, it will calculate the light’s color and angle to define how light should reflect off that surface. Reflection in shaders can further be classified into two types: Specular Reflection and Diffuse Reflection. Specular Reflection is the mirror-like reflection of light from a surface, where each incident ray is reflected with the light ray reflected at an equal but opposite angle. Diffuse Reflection, on the other hand, is the reflection of light into many directions, giving a softer effect. These reflections are quantified in computer graphics often using a reflection model such as the Phong reflection model or the Lambertian reflectance model.