persistence of vision
Persistence of vision
Animation works by using an optical illusion. By
presenting a sequence of still images in quick enough succession, the viewer
interprets them as a continuous moving image. This is the same principle that enables
live action film making and projection to work. Film theorists often refer to
this illusion of movement as the persistence of vision.
Persistence of vision works because the human eye
and brain can only process 10 to 12 separate images per second, retaining an
image for up to a fifteenth of a second. If a subsequent image replaces it in
this period of time it will create the illusion of continuity.
The use of animation techniques to create moving images predates
conventional cinema. Devices like the phenakistoscope (disk pictured above) and
the zoetrope (pictured below) used the basic principles of animation to provide
entertainment in the 19th century.
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