Close-up of Duncan MacRae's Knoll shooter

[Bill Miller]

Duncan,

I showed this to Miller a while ago. Miller thought that the distant rectangle was larger than the rectangle in the foreground.

What does this tell you?

Miles,

You left out some information that I had to assume and if I was right, then you are wrong.

If the pegs are all of the same height and the grid lines are all of equal distance apart, then the closer rectangle shaped box is not as wide as the further away one, nor is it as tall. This would be like looking from atop of a building and seeing that one building is no taller then the street lamps on the street and yet the more distant building is many times taller then the street lamps and saying they are of the same size. The grid appears to be drawn in relation to a vanishing point. That would mean that in reality the width of one lane is as wide near the camera as it is far away.

Now if the pegs on the grid get smaller, then and only then could one make such a claim that both rectangles are of equal height. After all, we were talking about perspective and the real world such as seen in the plaza photographs.

Bill Miller

Edited September 28, 2007 by Bill Miller

[Miles Scull]

Duncan,

I showed this to Miller a while ago. Miller thought that the distant rectangle was larger than the rectangle in the foreground.

What does this tell you?

Miles,

You left out some information that I had to assume and if I was right, then you are wrong.

If the pegs are all of the same height and the grid lines are all of equal distance apart, then the closer rectangle shaped box is not as wide as the further away one, nor is it as tall. This would be like looking from atop of a building and seeing that one building is no taller then the street lamps on the street and yet the more distant building is many times taller then the street lamps and saying they are of the same size. The grid appears to be drawn in relation to a vanishing point. That would mean that in reality the width of one lane is as wide near the camera as it is far away.

Now if the pegs on the grid get smaller, then and only then could one make such a claim that both rectangles are of equal height. After all, we were talking about perspective and the real world such as seen in the plaza photographs.

Bill Miller

But, the black rectangles were added to the two dimensional surface of the three dimensional drawing of the receding lines by use of one rubber ink stamp.

The stamp was pressed twice.

Thus, the black rectangles are the same size, not, as you said, of different sizes.

[Bill Miller]

But, the black rectangles were added to the two dimensional surface of the three dimensional drawing of the receding lines by use of one rubber ink stamp.

The stamp was pressed twice.

Thus, the black rectangles are the same size, not, as you said, of different sizes.

Miles,

I thought we were talking 'perspective' and in a sense they can be the same size if you take the 3D factor away, but when the 'laws of perspective' are applied to the image as a whole - they are not the same size. They may cover the same amount of surface space on the image, but one is represented as being much taller than the pegs and wider than the lanes, thus one is larger in reality than the other.

The opposite could be achieved by holding a photo of Teddy Roosevelt's Mt. Rushmore image in front of a camera so to make it look like the same size of Teddy's actual face on Mt. Rushmore as seen in the distance. The two faces may appear to be the same size, but in reality by applying the laws of perspective - they are not.

Nice try, but that game doesn't play in Peoria.

Bill Miller

Edited September 29, 2007 by Bill Miller

[Evan Burton]

While you are talking about illusions, here is another - one of my favourites.

Believe it or not, the squares marked A and B are exactly the same colour.

Check it for yourself with photoshop, or make a colour printout of it and fold the paper so that the squares are next to each other.

[Miles Scull]

While you are talking about illusions, here is another - one of my favourites.

Believe it or not, the squares marked A and B are exactly the same colour.

Check it for yourself with photoshop, or make a colour printout of it and fold the paper so that the squares are next to each other.

Here you go, Evan:

------W O W !