Mirror or Camera: Which is the Truest Reflection of Our Perception?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the comparison between mirrors and cameras as representations of visual perception. Participants explore the implications of how each medium captures and presents images, including aspects of dimensionality and accuracy in representation.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Technical explanation, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions which medium provides a more accurate representation of what we see, noting that cameras may flatten 3D images while mirrors flip images.
  • Another participant suggests that stereo cameras, which utilize two lenses, could more closely replicate human vision by producing 3D images.
  • A participant explains that modern cameras employ special mirrors, such as pentamirrors, and discusses the role of depth of field in achieving a pseudo-3D perspective in photographs.
  • There is clarification regarding the type of mirror referenced, with one participant indicating that the common plane mirror is likely what was meant in the initial comparison.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the accuracy and dimensionality of images produced by mirrors versus cameras, indicating that multiple competing perspectives remain without a clear consensus.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention various technical aspects, such as the use of pentamirrors versus pentaprisms in cameras, and the influence of depth of field on image representation, which may depend on specific definitions and assumptions about visual perception.

shredder666
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Which one is a more accurate representation of the image? (i.e. what we see with our own eye)

I've read that camera's actually flatten out the 3d image, but I have no clue what the consequence of this would be, while I do know that mirrors flip the image but I think that's the only thing that it does.
 
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The closest we could get to actual human vision artificially is through stereo cameras which have two lenses and produce 3d images.
 

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The two cases that you describe work in more-or-less the same way. "Modern cameras" also use a special kind of mirrors, called pentamirrors*. The "accurate" representation of an image depends on many parameters.

*High-end cameras use pentaprisms. Pentamirrors are used in order to decrease the cost. Mirrorless cameras have been recently introduced (~last year).

The only way to get a (peudo-)3d perspective in your photos is by using lenses with very shallow depth of field which allow you to isolate the focused object from its background.
See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depth_of_field
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/depth-of-field.htm
 
|squeezed> said:
"Modern cameras" also use a special kind of mirrors, called pentamirrors*.

*High-end cameras use pentaprisms. Pentamirrors are used in order to decrease the cost. Mirrorless cameras have been recently introduced (~last year).

I think what he meant by mirror is the normal plane mirror used in everyday life instead of the pentamirror used inside a camera.
 

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