Perceived Glossiness: Beyond Surface Properties

Abstract

Gloss is widely accepted as a surface- and illuminationbased property, both by definition and by means of metrology. However, mechanisms of gloss perception are yet to be fully understood. Potential cues generating gloss perception can be a product of phenomena other than surface reflection and can vary from person to person. While human observers are less likely to be capable of inverting optics, they might also fail predicting the origin of the cues. Therefore, we hypothesize that color and translucency could also impact perceived glossiness. In order to validate our hypothesis, we conducted series of psychophysical experiments asking observers to rank objects by their glossiness. The objects had the identical surface geometry and shape but different color and translucency. The experiments have demonstrated that people do not perceive objects with identical surface equally glossy. Human subjects are usually able to rank objects of identical surface by their glossiness. However, the strategy used for ranking varies across the groups of people.