1. A method, comprising: identifying one or more matte objects in a scene that includes an environment map that includes one or more spherical or hemi-spherical textures that include a representation of one or more real-life objects, wherein each matte object in the one or more matte objects represents a corresponding real-life object; identifying one or more synthetic objects in the scene; and performing, via a processor, path tracing within the scene by: tracing a path within the scene from a source; determining whether the path intersects with a matte object or a synthetic object; and if the path intersects the synthetic object, performing a standard path tracing procedure with respect to the synthetic object, or if the path intersects the matte object, determining a next object to intersect with the path and: if the next object is another matte object or an environment map, selecting content included within the environment map, or if the next object is a synthetic object, substituting new content associated with an interaction between the matte object and the synthetic object for corresponding content in the environment map.