Stereoscopic fusion with gaze-contingent blur G Maiello1, M Chessa2, F Solari2, P Bex1 |
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1Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School, MA, United States |
| Away from fixation, blur is a more precise cue to depth than binocular disparity, and the visual system relies on the more informative cue when both are available [Held et al, 2012, Current Biology, 22(5):426-431]. Furthermore, the presence of correct defocus diminishes visual fatigue while viewing stereoscopic stimuli [Hoffman, et al, 2008, JoV, 8(3):33,1-30]. These findings suggest that defocus plays an important role in the perception of simulated 3 dimensional scenes. We examine how the time-course of binocular fusion depends on depth cues from blur and stereoscopic disparity in natural images. Light field photographs of natural scenes taken with a Lytro camera were used to implement a real-time gaze-contingent stereoscopic display with a natural distribution of blurs and disparities across the retina. Depth cues from disparity and blur were independently manipulated while observers were required to locate the closest or furthest region in depth under free or guided viewing and press a response button when the 3D image fused. The time-course of perceptual fusion increased with depth away from the initial fixation plane and was shorter when blur and disparity cues were coherent. These results suggest that informative distributions of retinal blur facilitate depth perception in natural images. |
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