Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Chapter 18 Lighting 483 PROFESSIONAL TIP PROFESSIONAL TIP When rendering metal and other shiny materials, it helps to have a bright object nearby to create some highlights on the object. Adding simple vertical planes to the left and right of the object (out of the camera’s view) and applying a self-illuminating material to them will create some nice highlights. Photographers use this trick in the studio. Hotspot and Falloff A spotlight produces a cone of light. The hotspot is the central portion of the cone, where the light is brightest. See Figure 18-3. The falloff is the outer portion of the cone, where the light begins to blend to shadow. The hotspot and falloff of a spotlight are not affected by the distance the light is from an object. Spotlights are the only lights with hotspot and falloff properties. Low specular factor (matte) High specular factor Figure 18-2. Matte surfaces produce diffuse light. This is also referred to as having a low specular factor. Shiny surfaces evenly reflect light and have a high specular factor. Figure 18-3. The hotspot of a spotlight is the area that receives the most light. The smaller cone is the hotspot. The falloff receives light, but less than the hotspot. The larger cone is the falloff. A full-color image is provided on the companion website. www.g-wlearning.com/CAD/