Depth perception

For objective comparisons of size, see Orders of magnitude (length).
Perspective, relative size, occultation and texture gradients all contribute to the three-dimensional appearance of this photo.

Depth perception is the ability to perceive distance to objects in the world using the visual system and visual perception. It is a major factor in perceiving the world in three dimensions

Depth sensation is the corresponding term for non-human animals, since although it is known that they can sense the distance of an object, it is not known whether they perceive it in the same way that humans do.[1]

Depth perception arises from a variety of depth cues. These are typically classified into binocular cues and monocular cues. Binocular cues are based on the receipt of sensory information in three dimensions from both eyes and monocular cues can be observed with just one eye.[2][3] Binocular cues include retinal disparity, which exploits parallax and vergence. Stereopsis is made possible with binocular vision. Monocular cues include relative size (distant objects subtend smaller visual angles than near objects), texture gradient, occlusion, linear perspective, contrast differences, and motion parallax.[4]

  1. ^ Howard, Ian (2012). Perceiving in Depth. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-199-76414-3.
  2. ^ Sternberg, R. K. (2012).
  3. ^ Goldstein E.B. (2014, 2017) Sensation and perception (10th ed.). Pacific Grove, Calif.: Wadsworth.
  4. ^ Burton HE (1945). "The optics of Euclid". Journal of the Optical Society of America. 35 (5): 357–372. Bibcode:1945JOSA...35..357B. doi:10.1364/JOSA.35.000357.