Shading refers to the process of applying colours and textures to three-dimensional virtual objects in the computer. 3D meshes are inherently grey. By applying “shaders” to these grey objects we can influence the object’s colour, texture, reflectivity, shininess and other, subtler attributes.

The same sphere rendered with three different shaders: (from left to right)
the default, grey shader, a dull Lambert shader, and a shiny Blinn shader

There are different shader types in Maya that react to light in a variety of ways. The “Lambert” shader has no reflectivity, so is best used for dull object like wood or cloth, while shaders such as the “Blinn” or “Phong” types, which have various options for controlling reflection and shininess, are used for materials such as glass, metal or plastic. It is quite an art to pick the correct shader type for the kind of material that you want to simulate and often requires a trial-and-error process.

Lauren Brom has a detailed account of how she shaded the environment in her end-of-year report on the production website, including a great overview of the various shader types.

I’ll go through the process of creating the skin texture for Detective Deadly Serious, picking up from the point of completing the head model. This will give an idea of the production process that we followed in bringing him to life. It is best to have read the "Character Development" section on modelling before continuing here.