Unity 2018 Shaders and Effects Cookbook - Third Edition

How it works...

Metals are known for the conducting of electricity; light is in the form of electromagnetic waves, meaning that almost all metals behave in a similar way compared to non-conductors (often referred as insulators). Conductors tend to reflect most photons (70-100%), resulting in high reflectance. The remaining light is absorbed, rather than diffused, suggesting that conductors have a very dark diffuse component. Insulators, conversely, have a low reflectance (4%); the rest of the light is scattered on the surface, contributing to their diffused looks.

In the Standard Shader, purely metallic materials have dark diffuse components, and the color of their specular reflections is determined by the Albedo map. Conversely, the diffuse ...