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Learning to See
CHAPTER TWO
Learning to See
Before we begin looking at the technology that one can use to capture and manipulate images, it seems appropriate to get a better understanding of imagery in general—to look at how our eyes and our brains interact with the visible world. We also need to discuss the devices we have developed to capture a portion of the visible world— their characteristics and limitations. Although most of us spend our whole lives looking at the world around us, we seldom stop to think about the specifics of how the brain perceives what our eyes see. Most of the time it immediately reduces everything to some kind of symbolic representation, and we never even stop to consider issues such as how the light and shadows in front of us are interacting. But at some point in the process of becoming an artist, one needs to move beyond this. To quote the poet/novelist/scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe1
This is the most difficult thing of all, though it would seem the easiest: to see that which is before one’s eyes.
1
Although he is best known as the author of Faust, Goethe also published a book called Theory of Colors, which is an in-depth analysis of how the brain perceives color and contrast. He also wrote a poem called The Sorcerer ’s Apprentice, which inspired the composer Dukas to write a piece of symphonic music of the same name which, in turn, inspired the best-known segment from Walt Disney’s Fantasia.
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3/21/2008 5:41:56 PM
Learning to See
Before we begin looking at the technology that one can use to capture and manipulate images, it seems appropriate to get a better understanding of imagery in general—to look at how our eyes and our brains interact with the visible world. We also need to discuss the devices we have developed to capture a portion of the visible world— their characteristics and limitations. Although most of us spend our whole lives looking at the world around us, we seldom stop to think about the specifics of how the brain perceives what our eyes see. Most of the time it immediately reduces everything to some kind of symbolic representation, and we never even stop to consider issues such as how the light and shadows in front of us are interacting. But at some point in the process of becoming an artist, one needs to move beyond this. To quote the poet/novelist/scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe1
This is the most difficult thing of all, though it would seem the easiest: to see that which is before one’s eyes.
1
Although he is best known as the author of Faust, Goethe also published a book called Theory of Colors, which is an in-depth analysis of how the brain perceives color and contrast. He also wrote a poem called The Sorcerer ’s Apprentice, which inspired the composer Dukas to write a piece of symphonic music of the same name which, in turn, inspired the best-known segment from Walt Disney’s Fantasia.
Ch002-P370638.indd 15
3/21/2008 5:41:56 PM