One of the "holy grails" of 3d computer animation is, of course, creating a lifelike human face with realistic looking hair and features.



These computer-constructed images would be so realistic, that it would be impossible or very difficult to discern the animated model from a digital photograph of a real person. In animation circles, they call this "photo realism". One of the secrets of photo realism is making "virtual skin" look realistic by manipulating how light interacts with natural skin. Light tends to penetrate our skin, just below the surface, and scatter at different points. It does not just bounce off the surface like it does with plastic, metal, etc. Today's digital software can easily recreate these attributes, with stunning results.



See if you can pick out the real faces from the computer manipulated ones below. You can highlight the text at the bottom of the page for the answers!



Are These Faces Real Or Computer-Manipulated?

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

A. Computer Generated B. Computer Generated C. Computer Generated

D. Computer Generated E. Computer Generated F. Computer Generated

Yep, these faces were ALL digitally manipulated, for a study on "facial attractiveness" carried out at the universities at Regensburg and Rostock, Germany. Sorry to trick you like that!

Highlight The Text In The Box Below For The Answers!