Why does the reflection in the mirror appear reversed?

[pbdweeeebie]

This coin was photographed spinning on the surface of a mirror outdoors - flashes were used:



Why is it that the reflection appears to be illogical and reversed?

[AnnaV]

I think it's an optical illusion -the furthest part of the coin is touching the mirror, and the face is on the underneath, whereas it could also look like the part of the coin touching the mirror is the closest part, and teh face is on the top of the coin, in which case the reflection is wrong.

Not sure if I explained that well, I know what I'm on about in my own head

[Iguanasan]

That is strange. The problem is that if you are underneath looking up at the coin and therefore down on the reflection, the edge of the coin that should be visible should be the top edge and not the bottom as in this photo.

What was the angle of the camera?

[Mr Guy]

There's more optical illusion at work than just the orientation. What kind of surface were you shooting on that would allow something to actually touch its reflection?

[dcclark]

To see that the reflection makes sense, try this experiment: mentally (or in an editor), draw a vertical line which begins at any noticeable feature on the top coin (such as the nose) and connect it to the same feature on the bottom coin. Any line you draw will end up being vertical: each piece matches up to something directly down from it in the reflection. All of the lines are parallel to each other, none cross.

Now, try the same thing with your face, standing in front of a mirror. Again, all of the lines connecting your nose to the reflection's nose, etc. will be perfectly straight and parallel. This is how all mirrors work.

That's why I think that this reflection makes perfect sense.

[pbdweeeebie]

Originally Posted by AnnaV

I think it's an optical illusion -the furthest part of the coin is touching the mirror, and the face is on the underneath, whereas it could also look like the part of the coin touching the mirror is the closest part, and teh face is on the top of the coin, in which case the reflection is wrong.

Not sure if I explained that well, I know what I'm on about in my own head

Here is some info on the shot: The point where the the coin and its reflection meet, is on the surface of the mirror. The mirror surface runs all all the way to the edge of the frame [bottom] and if you look in the background, the thin dim white horirizontal edge at just about the level of the "W" is the end of the mirror surface.

Originally Posted by Iguanasan

That is strange. The problem is that if you are underneath looking up at the coin and therefore down on the reflection, the edge of the coin that should be visible should be the top edge and not the bottom as in this photo.

What was the angle of the camera?

The lens of the camera was about level to the surface of the mirror.

I think this maybe it. But why?

Originally Posted by Mr Guy

There's more optical illusion at work than just the orientation. What kind of surface were you shooting on that would allow something to actually touch its reflection?

The coin was spinning on a mirror.

Originally Posted by dcclark

To see that the reflection makes sense, try this experiment: mentally (or in an editor), draw a vertical line which begins at any noticeable feature on the top coin (such as the nose) and connect it to the same feature on the bottom coin. Any line you draw will end up being vertical: each piece matches up to something directly down from it in the reflection. All of the lines are parallel to each other, none cross.

Now, try the same thing with your face, standing in front of a mirror. Again, all of the lines connecting your nose to the reflection's nose, etc. will be perfectly straight and parallel. This is how all mirrors work.

That's why I think that this reflection makes perfect sense.

Your description proves correct, but I am still puzzled why it is that it is not the reflection of the underside of the coin that I see.

Is it just me that's confused?

[dakwegmo]

Try it yourself. Take the mirror, and hold it at eye level with one hand, then hold the coin on the mirror in roughly the same position as the coin. The camera angle relative to the mirror is the most important thing in determining how the reflection appears.

[pbdweeeebie]

Originally Posted by dakwegmo

Try it yourself. Take the mirror, and hold it at eye level with one hand, then hold the coin on the mirror in roughly the same position as the coin. The camera angle relative to the mirror is the most important thing in determining how the reflection appears.

Yup, I did just that before posting the pic and the question - and that was what I observed. But for the life of me, I can't get it sorted in my noggin!

[idcrewdawg]

I think what you're seeing is exactly what you should see. The reverse orientation illusion I believe is what is throwing you off. Seeing this from a different angle using the same lighting conditions would help solve the puzzle.

[dcclark]

Yup, this is like one of those black and white drawings where, if you view the black parts as the foreground, you see one picture, and if you view the white parts as the foreground, you see another entirely different picture! You are imagining that the edge of the coin which is touching the mirror is closest to you, and the coin goes back into the photo from there. That's not the way it is -- the edge touching the mirror is in the back, and the rest of the coin is pointing towards you. Try to force yourself to see it that way, and you'll see that the face is downwards.

At any rate, you have certainly discovered a nice optical illusion!