In article <422f4268$1@news.povray.org>,
 "Jeremy M. Praay" <jer### [at] questsoftwarecom> wrote:

> What are the benefits of using the reflective spectral data (e.g. 
> RS_White_Paint_1) over normal pigments?  Is it simply that the RS values 
> will look better under a much wider range of lighting?  Is it ok to mix 
> normal rgb pigments (e.g. rgb <1,0.8, 0.6>) along with the RS values?

I'm not sure what Lightsys uses, but it sounds like it simply uses a 
greater number of samples for color. Real world color is a mess of 
wavelengths from a continuous spectrum. Not all light sources emit 
evenly through the entire visible spectrum, and most materials reflect 
very unevenly, with complicated variations of reflection as a function 
of wavelength. The same object can have very different appearances under 
two lights that both appear to be "white". The effect is especially 
important in highly monochromatic light, such as that from low-pressure 
sodium street lights. 3 channels simply aren't enough to simulate this 
kind of effect. The effects can be subtle or glaringly obvious, 
depending on the situation.

-- 
Christopher James Huff <cja### [at] gmailcom>
POV-Ray TAG: <chr### [at] tagpovrayorg>
http://tag.povray.org/

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