A negative picture is the inverse of a normal, or positive, image.
In a negative picture, white or light areas appear dark, and darker areas appear light.
Usually, photo negatives are turned into positive images in a darkroom.
Verywell
In the negative picture visual illusion, yourbrainand visual system briefly create a color image from a negative photo.
Keep reading to learn more about this interesting brain function and why it happens.
What you experience during the visual illusion is known as a negative afterimage.
This leads your visual system and brain to produce a negative afterimage in your retina.
The magenta color fatigues the magenta photoreceptors so that they produce a weaker signal.
Since magenta’s opposing color is green, you then interpret the afterimage as green.
You should see the same shape but in green.
Negative vs.
Positive Afterimages
In a negative afterimage, you see opposing colors.
To try this, stare at brightly lit picture, and then close your eyes.
For just an instant, you will continue to see the image, even though your eyes are closed.
Researchers call this “retinal inertia.”
The lilac chaser illusion combines properties of a few different types of visual illusions.
2018;12:559. doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00559
Carbon CC.Understanding human perception by human-made illusions.Front Hum Neurosci.
