Effects of diffuse and specular reflections on the perceived age of facial skin

Age perception is a better biomarker of skin aging than chronological age. However, the optical cues that determine the perception of human skin age are difficult to assess given the complex interactions between light and the multi layered structure of the skin. The aim of the present study is to clarify the independent contribution of both diffuse and specular reflection components to the skin age perception. First, according to our results, subjects were able to estimate the age of skin only by using the diffuse reflection component. Moreover, we showed that inclusion of the specular reflection component added on average 5 years to their age estimation. Second, by artificially manipulating the specular component, we concluded that the luminance distribution affects the perceived age of the skin.

Arce-Lopera, C. A., Igarashi, T., Nakao, K., Okajima, K. (2012). Effects of Diffuse and Specular Reflections on the Perceived Age of Facial Skin. Optical Review, 19(3), 167-173

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