Abstract

One of the primary accomplishments of the retinal circuitry is to transform the light signal to one which reflects contrast, or variation around the mean level, rather than the mean level itself. This transformation determines not only visual sensitivity, but also is an important factor in the suprathreshold visibility, that is the brightness of objects. Historically, most work on the problem has concerned measurements of threshold sensitivity. I will review our current understanding of the determinants of visual sensitivity and then examine how far we can extend these conceptions to the perception of brightness.

© 1992 Optical Society of America