At first glance, it seems as if something has gone disastrously wrong for this javelin thrower. Fortunately, Estonian athlete Magnus Kirt is safe and well; the image is actually a clever photographic illusion that plays tricks on the eye.

It’s a photo that has people baffled as they try to understand it. Upon first look, it appears as though the javelin is protruding from his skull, the projectile seemingly bursting out from just beneath his right eye.

Nobody wants a javelin sticking out of their eye, and fortunately for Kirt — a decorated athlete who won the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships — he doesn’t either, and the optical illusion is created by a combination of factors.

A Perfect Shadow

The photo appears to have been taken in the late afternoon and the Sun, which is off to Kirt’s left-hand side, has meant the shadow that falls from the javelin’s tip has extended directly opposite across his face, making the shadow look like part of the javelin.

But while the Sun had to be in its exact position for the optical illusion to work, it also required the skill of the photographer who released the shutter at the exact right moment to freeze the frame.

And none of this would work if it weren’t for the fact that Kirt is a left-handed javelin thrower. Just like the general population, most athletes are right-handed. Thankfully, for the sake of this image at least, Kirt is a leftie. There would be no optical illusion if the spear were in his other hand.

Who doesn’t love a good optical illusion photo? A few years back, a mind-bending photo of a bird seemingly stepping between worlds was “breaking people’s brains.”

Looking for optical illusions is a fun thing to go and shoot, like Dutch iPhone photographer Rob Hoeijmakers, who looks for lines, perspectives, and patterns he “can play with.” He uses the perfect lines and flat landscape of the Netherlands — a country with hardly any hills and zero mountains — to make photos like this one that went viral on the internet.

Image credits: Via @biologistmichael

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