strange 3D 'optical illusion' - what causes it?

[kuuan]

look at the blue table, does it look as if floating above the image plane also on your monitor? I wonder what causes that impression. Has it something to do with the strong blue on top of mostly red, colors at opposing ends of the spectrum?


strange 3D effect by Andreas, on Flickr, CV Heliar 4.5/15 on NEX5n
viewing a bigger size helps to see the effect more distinctively: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kuuan/18524500950/sizes/k/

 

[sreed2006]

It might be your glasses. When I use my reading glasses, any red text appears to be above the surface of my smartphone.

In this image on my monitor, without using my glasses, the image appears all in the same plane.

 

[kuuan]

It might be your glasses. When I use my reading glasses, any red text appears to be above the surface of my smartphone.

In this image on my monitor, without using my glasses, the image appears all in the same plane.

oh, ok, thank you for that! My vision is that bad that I hardly can tell if the effect is gone when I don't use my glasses, but I am quite sure that you are right!

Helen thank you for your response. You seem to have seen the strange effect, may I ask if you are using reading glasses?

So anyone who has good eyes won't know what I am talking about, still, though a bit less than before, I wonder if one can explain what exactly is causing the illusion.

 

[kuuan]

Yes Reading glasses and possibly drinking the same Kool Aid 😉

Hahaha, +3.5 for viewing the monitor, fresh carrot juice that's good for our eyes, iced green tea and red wide from a bottle brought along from the super market..

 

[Rob-F]

It does seem to flatten when I view it without glasses. But I think the main thing for me was that I didn't see at first that the table top is held up by the red thing under it. It didn't seem to have any visible means of support, until I looked at the white one, and the blue one, and saw they were supporting table tops. Then I saw the red one was, also.

I thought it must be a double exposure, at first.

This photo challenges the brain, with a puzzle to figure out!

 

[mfogiel]

I think you are right - it has to be something linked to different colour perception. At times I see these things even in B&W, particularly when using Zeiss glass.
Do you see the smaller tables float too?

MF20146211 by marek fogiel, on Flickr

 

[BLKRCAT]

can I have some of what you guys are smoking?

 

[kuuan]

It does seem to flatten when I view it without glasses. But I think the main thing for me was that I didn't see at first that the table top is held up by the red thing under it. It didn't seem to have any visible means of support, until I looked at the white one, and the blue one, and saw they were supporting table tops. Then I saw the red one was, also.

I thought it must be a double exposure, at first.

This photo challenges the brain, with a puzzle to figure out!

thank you Rob for your input.
Ha, I had not seen anything unusual with the red table, but having sat in this table I had not expected to. I still wonder how much you or anybody viewing the image sees what I am seeing. How much the blue table hovers on top of the image really is staggering to me, never have seen anything alike, it is very apparent that there is an optical illusion going on.
thank's kuuan

 

[kuuan]

I think you are right - it has to be something linked to different colour perception. At times I see these things even in B&W, particularly when using Zeiss glass.
Do you see the smaller tables float too?

MF20146211 by marek fogiel, on Flickr

this is very interesting Marek. Yes I see them a bit like floating, &W. The effect doesn't seem to be quite as distinct though, but I still wonder if it is mostly me who sees what I do at my colored image.
The last table back in your image, because of the dark background behind, also can be perceived as a cut out whole

 

[kuuan]

can I have some of what you guys are smoking?

you wouldn't like the quality that's available in Vietnam..

 

[Kate-the-Great]

It might be your glasses. When I use my reading glasses, any red text appears to be above the surface of my smartphone.

Interesting! I've noticed the same thing- Ars Technica's orange link text seems to float above their dark backgrounds in a way that I couldn't quite wrap my head around. I wonder if it's a chromatic aberration thing? I have noticed quite bad CA with my current glasses.


As for OP's table... it looks quite normal to me. It does seem that the right edge of the table is a bit harder than the mind expects for something that's out of focus, but I'll pass that off as peculiarities of bokeh in that particular lens and situation.