Lambertian reflectance

Light scattering from many common surfaces can be modelled by lambertian reflectance.

The Lambertian reflectance arises from the material's surface and immediate subsurface structure.

Lambertian reflectance is the property that defines an ideal diffusely reflecting surface.

Spectralon is a material which is designed to exhibit an almost perfect Lambertian reflectance.

For example, in ultrasound imaging, "rough" tissues are said to exhibit Lambertian reflectance.

While Lambertian reflectance usually refers to the reflection of light by an object, it can be used to refer to the reflection of any wave.

A surface which obeys Lambert's law is said to be Lambertian, and exhibits Lambertian reflectance.

An illuminated ideal diffuse reflecting surface will have equal luminance from all directions which lie in the half-space adjacent to the surface (Lambertian reflectance).

Lambertian reflectance is named after Johann Heinrich Lambert, who introduced the concept of perfect diffusion in his 1760 book Photometria.

Unfinished wood exhibits roughly Lambertian reflectance, but wood finished with a glossy coat of polyurethane does not, since the glossy coating creates specular highlights.

BRDFs can be measured directly from real objects using calibrated cameras and lightsources; however, many phenomenological and analytic models have been proposed including the Lambertian reflectance model frequently assumed in computer graphics.

One common model for diffuse reflection is Lambertian reflectance, in which the light is reflected with equal luminance (in photometry) or radiance (in radiometry) in all directions, as defined by Lambert's cosine law.