Blender Git Commit Log

Cycles: reduce shadow terminator artifacts

Offset rays from the flat surface to match where they would be for a smooth
surface as specified by the normals. In the shading panel there is now a
Shading Offset (existing option) and Geometry Offset (new).

The Geometry Offset works as follows:
* 0: disabled
* 0.001: only terminated triangles (normal points to the light, geometry
doesn't) are affected
* 0.1 (default): triangles at grazing angles are affected, and the effect
fades out
* 1: all triangles are affected

Limitations:
* The artifact is still visible in some cases, it could be that some quads
require to be treated specifically as quads.
* Inconsistent normals cause artifacts.
* If small objects cast shadows to a big low poly surface, the shadows can
appear to be in a wrong place - because the surface moved slightly above
the geometry. This can be noticed only at grazing angles to light.
* Approximated surfaces of two non-intersecting low-poly objects can overlap
that causes off-the-wall shadows.

Generally, using one or a few levels of subdivision can get rid of artifacts
faster than before.

Differential Revision: https://developer.blender.org/D11065