Overview
Perspective is the illusion of depth. It’s the math trick that makes a flat canvas look like a window into a 3D world.
Core Idea
The core idea is Convergence. Parallel lines appear to meet in the distance.
Formal Definition
- Linear Perspective: Using vanishing points and horizon lines to create depth.
- Atmospheric Perspective: Things further away look bluer and hazier.
Intuition
- Railroad Tracks: You know the tracks are parallel, but they look like they touch at the horizon. That point is the Vanishing Point.
- The Box:
- 1-Point Perspective: Looking straight at the front of the box.
- 2-Point Perspective: Looking at the corner of the box.
- 3-Point Perspective: Looking down from a skyscraper (vertical lines converge too).
Examples
- Brunelleschi: The architect who “discovered” linear perspective in the Renaissance.
- Escher: Played with perspective to create impossible objects (stairs that go up forever).
Common Misconceptions
- Misconception: It’s how we really see.
- Correction: We have two eyes (binocular vision) and curved retinas. Linear perspective is a mathematical approximation of vision (like a camera).
- Misconception: Ancient art was “bad” at perspective.
- Correction: They often used Hierarchical Perspective (Kings are big, servants are small) because they cared about status, not realism.
Related Concepts
Applications
- 3D Modeling: Video games use perspective projection matrices.
- Architecture: Rendering buildings.
Criticism and Limitations
- Distortion: Wide-angle perspective distorts shapes at the edges.
Further Reading
- Perspective Made Easy by Ernest Norling