View allAll Photos Tagged optical
No trickery & I had to stare at it myself. Mating pair flying together after she chased another female for sitting in same tree as he while she was on the two Eaglets.
A tower optical viewfinder and a Southern California sunrise from the pier. These coin operated binoculars stand waiting for guests to peer into. What I find amusing is the wide expanse of beauty all around compared to the limits of what this machine can do.
Thanks for your continued support and loyal viewership. I appreciate the comments and faves.
Mike D.
It seems to keystone ... I could see it in the viewfinder too.
- Rosa's Garden of Earthly Delights, Keefer Lake, Ontario, Canada -
De Museumfabriek in Enschede, voorheen de Twentse Welle.
Het gebouw staat altijd gedeeltelijk in het water.
Gezien tijdens voorbereiding op de 40 km sponsorloop van Nacht van de Vluchteling. Voorbereiding: Hengelo- rondje Enschede 24 km
Lamp in the waiting room of my ophthalmologist. The light is originally much softer on the eyes, but I am in the mood to slide, and I suddenly have a crave for a creamsicle.😁 HSS!
I wanted to try some longer duration shots but I didn't take my full filter set with me to Homer this time - swift kick to self! I did happen to have a circular ND filter as part of my kit, so I gave it a try. I ended up only being able to expose for 20 seconds as any more would have overexposed the image. Even so, I was pleased with the interesting effect it produced both in smoothing the waters of Kachemak Bay as well as making the fisherman look like a ghost. He also spent some time near the chair, giving a lighter ghost image there. In a way this represents a metaphor for us, we're just a blip on the radar. Here today, gone tomorrow!
Taken 6 May 2023 at Homer, Alaska.
It appears we are looking up a hill at an Elk with the sky in the background but what we are actually looking at is down a hill with a lake behind her.
My attempt at the "Crazy Tuesday" theme "December decorations"
Shot with a Optical "Six-Proyectar 60 mm F 1.8" (projection) lens on a Canon EOS R5.
The Root Problem: Perspective Distortion
When you tilt a camera (especially upward at a building), parallel lines in reality appear to converge in the image. This is due to how light rays hit the sensor.
Vertical lines → lean inward (the “falling buildings” effect)
Objects closer to the camera → look disproportionately larger
This is governed by basic projective geometry—not a flaw, just how perspective works.
The “Trick”: Re-mapping the Image
Perspective correction tools (in apps like Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop) apply a mathematical transformation to the image.
Think of it like this:
The original photo is a distorted grid
The software stretches, compresses, and skews parts of that grid
It forces lines that should be parallel (like building edges) to become parallel again
This transformation is often a homography (a 2D projective transform).
Why It Looks Like “Optical Trickery”
The illusion comes from how your brain interprets visual cues:
a. Restoring “Expected Reality”
Your brain expects:
Vertical lines to be vertical
Rectangles to look rectangular
When software enforces this, the image feels “correct”—even though it’s been heavily warped.
b. Stretching Space Unevenly
To fix perspective:
The top of the image is often stretched wider
The bottom may be compressed
This creates subtle side effects:
People or objects near edges can look slightly distorted
Resolution is uneven (some areas lose detail)
Taunton Minster, St Mary Magdalene church.
Taunton, Somerset, UK.
Despite my best efforts it still looks a bit weird.
Although beautiful statues and cathedrals filled my brain during travels to Italy, I found myself enchanted with the architecture of each town we visited. I especially loved the windows with their all the exquisite details.
As I was waiting on the corner for a friend to return from a shop, I looked up and noticed one window across the street seemed to be gleaming. Initially I thought the black shapes were two cats facing each other. A closer look much later actually showed me something totally different.
female broad-billed hummingbird on the patio heading for one of the many feeders.
The shadow of her wing looks like she is mounted on the patio wall, which is in fact at least 10 feet away.
Tucson, Arizona
Thank you for taking a look at my images. I appreciate it.
Skyrim - NLA ENB profile by Confidence-Man, free camera, time stop, time and weather control, custom FOV.
I created a photo and - accidently - an optical illusion. The left side appears longer but that's only because of the arrangement of the lumber. And I like the symmetry of the snowy cup cakes! St. John's, NL, Canada.
Un'illusione ottica è caratterizzata da immagini percepite visivamente che differiscono dalla realtà oggettiva. Le informazioni raccolte dall'occhio sono trasformate nel cervello per dare una percezione che non coincide con una misura fisica della fonte di stimolo.
Il modo in cui oggetti e colori appaiono dipende fortemente dal loro contesto. Le variabili strutturali e spaziali di una scena possono influenzare l'aspetto e la percezione.
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An optical illusion is characterized by visually perceived images that differ from objective reality. The information gathered by the eye is processed in the brain to give a perception that does not coincide with a physical measurement of the stimulus source.
The way in which objects and colors appear strongly depends on their context. Structural variables and space of a scene can affect the appearance and perception.