SUMMARY UNIT 1

Visual perception is the ability of humans to apprehend forms and colours found in their
environment.
VISUAL Observation involves looking closely at forms and images and studying their qualities and meaning.
PERCEPTION AND Analytical: involves identifying and examining the form of all the
OBSERVATION elements that make up an object.
Types of observation
Functional: involves understanding the meaning, function and operation
of the elements of an object.

Principles of perception are accepted statements about visual perception. They are useful for
discovering the visual effects which may be achieved when composing an image.
Proximity: forms which are close to each other are seen as belonging to
the same figure.
PRINCIPLES OF Similarity: similar forms are perceived as belonging to the same figure.
PERCEPTION AND Continuity: forms that are arranged facing in the same direction are
VISUAL EFFECTS Main visual effects perceived as a unit.
Contrast: a form stands out from the others around it when it has a
different colour, shape, size or position.
Homogeneity: when all the forms in a scene are the same or similar, we
perceive them as a group.

Optical illusions are images that are impossible to find in physical reality, but which can be
OPTICAL recreated in full detail using visual representation, like mirages that appear and disappear.
ILLUSIONS Impossible objects: created by combining basic figures in a complex way.
Kinetic objects: give the sensation of movement.

Visual communication is the process of creating, transmitting and receiving messages through
images.
Context: the set of circumstances or locations where the image is found.
VISUAL
Signified: the meaning or symbolism given to a visual message.
COMMUNICATION
Things to consider Signifier: the visual content of an image.
Visual code: the group of standards and methods that relate the signified
to the signifier.

Visual language is a system of communication that organises and relates the different visual
elements of images.
VISUAL Objective: uses images that refer to a specific reality.
LANGUAGE Types of visual Advertising: combines expressive images and text in a way that ensures
language that the message is easily understood.
Artistic: the images have a different signified for each viewer.

Descriptive: to present forms, events or situations in an objective way.

Informative: to convey news, announce an event or promote a product by highlighting its qualities.
FUNCTIONS OF
Aesthetic: to communicate the idea of an established standard of beauty.
IMAGES
Expressive: to convey emotions and feelings or encourage personal reflection.
Communicative: brands, signs and symbols.