A reversible print by John Kay, 1789.

The renowned portrait photographer reflects on his work, his relationship to philosophers, and the nature of portraiture. Continue reading →

The post What the Photographer Who’s Taken Hundreds of Philosopher Portraits Really Thinks of Philosophers appeared first on Aesthetics for Birds.

The winning and commended images of the Ocean Photographer of the Year 2024 competition were just announced, with Rafael Fernández Caballe named as the overall winner for his image of a Bryde’s whale swimming up to swallow a bait ball of sardines off Mexico’s Pacific Coast. Contest organizers at Oceanographic Magazine were once again kind enough to share some of this year’s top images below, and their full gallery can be seen here.

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When we read type we imagine that we read the whole of the type — but that is not so; we only notice the upper half of each letter. You can easily prove this for yourself by covering up the upper half of the line with a sheet of paper (being careful to hold the paper exactly in the middle of the letters), and you will not, without great difficulty, decipher a single word. Now place the paper over the lower half of a line, and you can read it without the slightest difficulty.

— George Lindsay Johnson, “Some Curious Optical Illusions,” Strand, October 1897

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Patreon subscriber Ivan points out that effectively his whole life became a football pull. I wonder if Lucy is watching from a distance.