Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Chapter 17 Materials in AutoCAD 451 Exercise 17-4 www.g-wlearning.com/CAD/ Complete the exercise on the companion website. New Material from Scratch Creating a material from scratch gives you complete control over the material. Although there are many options to consider, creating a material from scratch may be the only way to get the exact material you need to complete your scene. To start creating a material from scratch, select the generic material type by selecting New Generic Material… from the drop-down menu at the lower-left corner of the materials editor. Refer to Figure 17-6B. The New Generic Material… option is also available from the materials browser. The properties and settings are discussed in the next sections. NOTE NOTE New materials are placed in the Document Materials area and are only available in the current drawing unless added to the Favorites library or a user defi ned library. Generic Category The diffuse color is the color of the object in lighted areas, or the perceived color of the material. See Figure 17-7. It is the predominant color you see when you look at the object. The Color property sets the diffuse color of the material. In AutoCAD, the ambient and specular colors are determined by the diffuse color. The ambient color is the color of the object where light does not directly provide illumination. It can be thought of as the color of an object in shadows. In nature, shadows cast by an object typically contain some of the ambient color. Specular color Ambient color Diffuse color (Color property) Figure 17-7. The three colors of a material are illustrated here. In AutoCAD, the Color property sets the diffuse color. The ambient and specular colors are based on the diffuse color. A full-color image is provided on the companion website. www.g-wlearning.com/CAD/