The Illusions

Actually, our visual perception system is optimally adapted to our needs. As a rule, we can easily identify shapes, colours, distances, size ratios and structures – even if we or the objects are in motion.This is enough to orient, move and behave in our natural environment. However, there are also situations in everyday life in which it reaches its limits. In complex situations, in difficult light conditions (e.g. fog or twilight) or in confusing arrangements, first impressions can easily lead you crazy.
The Psychology of Perception deals with the connection between external stimuli and sensory impressions, i.e. how we experience these stimuli. A series of situations was found and constructed, which show us these boundaries in a particularly vivid way: optical illusions. On these pages, henceforth a constantly updated collection of such optical illusions will be created. You can simply be impressed by the phenomena, you can experiment with them by varying the parameters, or you can use the corresponding (Snap!)programs as a basis for your own further developments (see the How-to page for further informations). The collection is structured according to phenomenal areas: