What Do You See?

Your eyes see everything. But is everything you see for real? Visual illusions play tricks on your eyes …and your mind, too.

Your eyes and brain work together. Your eyes need light which bounces off an object and enters your eyes through the cornea, the front surface of your eye. The light continues through your eye and focuses on your retina. Your retina creates electrical signals that travel to the brain. Your brain then translates the signals and gives you sight. Your brain interprets the images and tells you what the object looks like. If your perception doesn’t match the object or image, you are probably viewing a visual illusion.

When looking at an illusion, have you ever recognized image but a friend says they see something else? That’s because both light and perception create the illusion. Each person has a unique imagination that influences his or her perception.

Want to know the tricks used in optical illusions? Shades of color give depth to surfaces while certain shapes can trick the eye. Horizontal and vertical distances appear different and angles can cause involuntary eye movement.

Check out Dr. Tavel’s optical illusions page and tell us: what do you see?