Definition
The BRDF was first defined by Fred Nicodemus around 1965. The definition is:
where is radiance, or power per unit solid-angle-in-the-direction-of-a-ray per unit projected-area-prependicular-to-the-ray, is irradiance, or power per unit surface area, and is the angle between and the surface normal, The index indicated incident light, whereas the index indicates reflected light.
The reason the function is defined as a quotient of two differentials and not directly as a quotient between the undifferentiated quantities, is because other irradiating light than which are of no interest for might illuminate the surface which would unintentionally affect whereas is only affected by
Read more about this topic: Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function
Famous quotes containing the word definition:
“No man, not even a doctor, ever gives any other definition of what a nurse should be than this—”devoted and obedient.” This definition would do just as well for a porter. It might even do for a horse. It would not do for a policeman.”
—Florence Nightingale (1820–1910)
“According to our social pyramid, all men who feel displaced racially, culturally, and/or because of economic hardships will turn on those whom they feel they can order and humiliate, usually women, children, and animals—just as they have been ordered and humiliated by those privileged few who are in power. However, this definition does not explain why there are privileged men who behave this way toward women.”
—Ana Castillo (b. 1953)
“The man who knows governments most completely is he who troubles himself least about a definition which shall give their essence. Enjoying an intimate acquaintance with all their particularities in turn, he would naturally regard an abstract conception in which these were unified as a thing more misleading than enlightening.”
—William James (1842–1910)