“ An object at a distance is most conspicuous, when it is lightest, and the darkest is least visible. ”
Leonardo da Vinci, The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci (1478 – 1519). copy citation
| Author | Leonardo da Vinci |
|---|---|
| Source | The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci |
| Topic | distance light |
| Date | 1478 – 1519 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Jean Paul Richter in 1888 |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/5000/pg5000-images.html |
Context
“The variety of colour in objects cannot be discerned at a great distance, excepting in those parts which are directly lighted up by the solar rays.
290.
As to the colours of objects: at long distances no difference is perceptible in the parts in shadow.
291.
OF THE VISIBILITY OF COLOURS. Which colour strikes most? An object at a distance is most conspicuous, when it is lightest, and the darkest is least visible.
An exceptional case.
292.
Of the edges [outlines] of shadows. Some have misty and ill defined edges, others distinct ones.
No opaque body can be devoid of light and shade, except it is in a mist, on ground covered with snow, or when snow is falling on the open country which has no light on it and is surrounded with darkness.”
source
