Visual Illusions

Visual illusions are objects that are not possible in reality. When you look at these objects your eyes collect information on the object, but that information does not match the information in your brain. The three images below are all different optical illusions. Each one displaying a fictional object that your brain tries to perceive as real.

Shape Constancy

Shape constancy is a phenomenon in which the person looking at the shape of an object sees the object as changed even though it has remained the same.

This image shows that the line passing through the square look to be two different lines. They are both part of the same lines.

Brightness Constancy

Brightness constancy is when you see a picture and believe something is darker due to a shadow over it. But as some painters have proved we sometimes assume that an item is darker just because their is a shadow.

The image of the square has arrows pointing to two squares on the cube that seem to be different colors. The two squares are actually the same color. 

Linear Perspective

Linear perspective is when parallel lines seem to converge with distance. This mostly happens in first world countries due to our familiarity with roads.

This image displays how the road looks to be farther away towards the back, even though it is on a two dimensional platform.

Size Constancy

Size consistency is when you see two of the same objects in a picture and the one that looks farthest away appears to be larger even if they are the same size.

This image displays how the triangles look to be different sizes, but are identical.

Convergence

Convergence is when your eyes move inward, or converge to perceive size correctly. When people do this they are able to tell if objects are close or far away from them.

The left displays your eyes looking forward. The right displays your eye's point of convergence.

Gradient Textures

Gradient Textures are caused when an object's texture is changed to give it the feel of depth. This is shown in Paris Street: A Rainy Day by Gustave Caillebotte in which the bricks in the street are drawn smaller the farther back they are in the painting.

This image looks like it has depth due to the blocks getting smaller in the picture.

Relative Clarity

Relative clarity is when we perceive things in focus, or clearer, to be closer to us while foggy or hazy objects seem to be farther. In this example, a pencil is in focus so it seems to be closer to us while the background is foggy and out of focus so it seems to be farther away.

Relative Size

Relative size is when we perceive things further or closer away due to their size. In this example, the smaller stick figure seems to be farther away because it is smaller than the bigger figure which seems to be closer to us.

Relative Height

Relative height is how we perceive how close objects are because of their height

relative to other objects. In this example, the stick figure that is higher is perceived as farther away while the lower stick figure is perceived closer to us.

Reversible Figures

Reversible Figures is when one object can have two or more perspectives. For example, in this staircase it may seem like you can walk up it, however if you focus on the top left and image it being closer to you, the staircase will flip upside down.

Phi Phenomenon

The Phe Phenomenon occurs when there are multiple still ights that blink in certain patters so it creats the illusion of movement. In this example, the LCD in this clock is turning off and on lights so it appears that the number are moving and changing.

Perception of Movement (Stroboscopic Motion)

Stroboscopic motion is when multiple images are flashed quickly after each other so that it gives the illusion of motion. In this example, there is a ball in different positions on separate individual sticky notes. When flashed quickly one after another, it gives the illusion that the ball is moving.

Figure-Ground Perception

In figure-ground perception there are usually two figures that you can see in reverse of each other. While you may see a figure one way, the background may appear to be another figure. In this famous example, you may see two faces staring at each other, or a vase. Each are two different figures that use each other to make up their figures.

Proximity

Proximity is when we group objects that are close together. In this example we tend to group rectangles in three separate columns instead of the rectangles being all together in one grid.

Similarity

Similarity is when we group similar objects together separate from different ones. In this example, We see the two different types of circles on the sides, and the triangles in the middle instead of just 3 different shapes that are randomly sorted.

Continuity

Continuity is when our brains perceive continuous patterns rather than discontinuous patterns in objects. In this example, we one wave figure instead of just multiple circles next to each other. Our brain makes the circles come together and form one smooth figure.

Closure

Closure is when we  are given an incomplete object and our minds fill in the gaps to create a whole object.  The example below shows us multiple lines that are not connected, however our mind connects them together and we can perceive a rectangle.