You can think of your visual system, when your eyes are closed, like a recording camera with the lens cap on. It can change shades of gray, and it can be interrupted by phosphenes. For instance, the black ink of text might appear darker than eigengrau because the whiteness of the page provides the contrast the eyes need to understand black.īut eigengrau is not a static color. This is because light provides the contrast necessary to perceive darker-ness. Eigengrau is a German term that roughly translates to ‘intrinsic gray’ or ‘own gray.’ When deprived of light - as in when our eyes are closed, or when we are in darkness with our eyes open - we are unable to perceive true blackness, and rather, perceive eigengrau. The color black is often referred to as the absence of light, but when it comes to the human visual system, eigengrau is the color perceived in the absence of light. Let’s start with the almost-black background. It’s a phenomenon called phosphene, and it boils down to this: Our visual system - eyes and brains - don’t shut off when denied light. Welcome back! What’s the first thing you saw? Most people see splashes of colors and flashes of light on a not-quite-jet-black background when their eyes are closed.
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