Title: Perception as a physiological phenomenon
Course: EN_Overall composition > Section: 2. How perception works

In psychology and physiology, perception refers to the sum of the steps of reception, selection, processing (e.g. comparison with previous knowledge) and interpretation of sensory information.

You get an overview on the human eye and how "seeing" works.

We perceive the majority of all information from our environment through our eyes. They serve to perceive visual stimuli such as brightness, colour, contrast, lines, shape and form, movement and spatiality. Visual perception (from the Latin videre: to see) refers to the reception and processing of optical stimuli, in which the eye and brain extract relevant information, recognise elements and interpret them by comparing them with memories. Thus, visual perception goes far beyond the mere reception of information.

Especially in an artistic context, a perceived image or scene is called a visual event.

Structure of the human eye

The human eye is a complicated organ consisting of muscles, fibres, membranes, nerves and blood vessels. The cornea, which also acts as protection on the outside, the eye fluid in the anterior chamber of the eye, the eye lens and the vitreous body form a lens system.

When perceiving with the eyes, two things occur.

- Our eyes always register incident light as if it were falling into our eyes in a straight line from a starting point. This applies, for example, to light that has been reflected or refracted on its way to the eyes. This is why we also see images of objects in places (e.g. behind mirror surfaces) where they do not actually exist.
- Since optical impressions are processed in the brain, experiences and moods also play a role in the visual process.

In general, different people looking at the same object can have different optical perceptions.

For more details see chapter "Construction of the eye" in Color-Theory:
$@H5PACTIVITYVIEWBYID*1949503@$&forceview=1

Optical illusions

Sometimes we think we see something that is actually different from what we perceive. Such "false" optical impressions are called optical illusions.

Visual habits and experience also play an important role in optical illusions.

There are

- directional illusions
- size illusions,
- illusions of shape,
- contrast illusions and
- color illusions.

See the enclosed h5p about "Optical Illusion".

More examples you can find here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_illusion