Optical Illusions

[bannork]

Does anyone remember those posters from arround 20-25 years ago with various coloured patterns that when stared at, preferably in an altered mental state, revealed another figure or image? They often contained intricate geometrical patterns.

A lot were about the size of a poster on the back of a door. They had a special name, does anyone remember what they were called?

[Loz]

I know what you mean, pixelated images with a hidden scape. Can't remember a special name. Do remember I never saw one!

[RCR]

Magic eye

Google "magic eye" or "magiceye" and you'll find enough images to drive you crazy.

[zzdocxx]

I never could see the supposed picture in those things.

[anothertorres]

[Meridian007]

Also called a "3D pixelgram". There is software out there to make your own if you want to. If you Google it, you can see some of them online (but it works better on a flat panel monitor than a CRT monitor).

It took me the better part of a day to finally see one, (I was doing my undergrad in Canada at the time, and a poster distribution company called "Imaginus" would do a poster fair twice a year), I refused to move and just sat there until I figured it out. The key is to not focus your eyes on the picture, but at a point beyond it. If you think of it as looking through a window, you focus at what you are looking at beyond the window, rather than the window itself. Now pretend that the pixelgram is that window.

I like the newly re-popularized 3D stereo-photos that are being done, that require you to focus on a point closer to you than the photo, (put your finger in front of your face, focus on it until the two photos behind become three, then focus on the middle photo). Unlike the pixelgrams, these use actual photos, like this:

[Latindancer]

I still remember I had almost given up on them till I followed the focusing instructions and one swam into view. Following this, it still took a while.

But my niece could surprisingly do it in seconds. A more integrated brain, perhaps ?

[Moonrakers]

I always end up feeling nauseous and giving myself a headache after trying to see these things.

[petedk]

Do you mean Stereograms?

I was looking at quite a few only yesterday. Just Google stereograms and there are links to several sites.