Visual Language

Sunday Cartoon: There is an ironical and comical message to this image. This cartoon uses vibrant reds, yellows, and greens. The viewer knows to take this cartoon light-heartedly due to the playful color scheme. The creases of the woman's dress are ironically like arrows pointing directly to her missing dog.



Amelie Movie Poster: There is a curious message about this image. The viewer wonders who this girl is and what is the secret she is keeping. The viewer is drawn to the face of the actress. Not only because she is centered in the poster, but her skin stands out brightly against the sultry green background. She has a mischievous smile and is looking up to the viewer, like she has done something she was not supposed to do or that she has a secret. Again, the bright red, green, and yellow lead the viewer to believe that this movie is more of a comedy rather than a drama.



Justine's Profile Picture: The viewer is sent a message that they are an "outsider". Justine is looking away from the camera and at the monument poster behind her. We immediately look in the direction she is looking. Because she is not looking directly at us, we feel as though we are "spying" on her. We can also tell this is not a candid shot as her body faces the direction of the photographer and she is "posing".

Visual Puzzles

CAT PUZZLE



















My strategy for solving the cat puzzle was to count the triangles numbering them as I counted. Jan followed a similar strategy. However, we both forgot to double count triangles we had already counted. He came up with 15 triangles, and I came out with 16 triangles. The correct answer was 20 triangles.


BRACELET PUZZLE



















Jan decided to cut out the bracelets and thought it would help. I started to shade in similarities between all three bracelets. Finally I found a discrepancy in bracelet number 2, and declared bracelet number 1 and 2 to be similar. Jan also found bracelet number 1 and 2 to be similar using his method. We came to the correct conclusion.

Top-Down Visual Processing

Figure 1: A classic illusion and example of Top-Down Visual Processing. Top-Down Visual Processing is more action and goal based than Bottom-Up Visual Processing. We are constantly preparing ourselves for what might happen next and how we will need to respond. This image was found at www.mozglubov.blogspot.com.

Figure 2: With Top-Down Visual Processing,our goal when looking at this image is to see the entire picture. At first all we can see are scattered black dots. Then we notice a collection of dots in the form of a dog, a Dalmatian. This image was found at www.thelitelights.com.

Figure 3: This image contains four circles each with a quarter of the circle cut out. However, non-visual information is so powerful, that in this case viewers visualize a superimposed white square resting on top of the four circles. This image was also found at www.mozglubov.blogspot.com.