Coatings including pigments comprising substrate particles with ultrafine metal oxide particles deposited on the surfaces thereof and made by a plasma process are disclosed. The substrate particles may comprise an oxide such as SiO.sub.2, Al.sub.2O.sub.3, Bi.sub.2O.sub.3 and the like. The ultrafine metal oxide particles may be partially oxidized such as Cu.sub.2O, Ti.sub.3O.sub.4 and the like. The pigments may be used in coating compositions in which the substrate particles substantially match the refractive index of the coating composition base, and the ultrafine metal oxide particles provide the desired reflectance characteristics for the coating.