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Developing Graphics Frameworks
with Java and OpenGL
Developing Graphics Frameworks
with Java and OpenGL
Lee Stemkoski
James Cona
First edition published 2022
by CRC Press
6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742
and by CRC Press
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
© 2022 Lee Stemkoski, James Cona
Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot assume
responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and publishers have attempted to
trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication and apologize to copyright holders if permission to
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so we may rectify in any future reprint.
Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Law, no part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized
in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying,
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Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are used only for
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Library of Congress Cataloging‑in‑Publication Data

Names: Stemkoski, Lee, author. | Cona, James, author.

Title: Developing graphics frameworks with Java and OpenGL / Lee Stemkoski, James Cona.
Description: First edition. | Boca Raton, FL : CRC Press, 2022. | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021056181 | ISBN 9780367720834 (hbk) | ISBN 9780367720698 (pbk) |
ISBN 9781003153375 (ebk)
Subjects: LCSH: OpenGL. | Java (Computer program language) | Computer graphics--Computer
programs.
Classification: LCC T386.O64 S739 2022 | DDC 006.6--dc23/eng/20220104
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021056181

ISBN: 978-0-367-72083-4 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-367-72069-8 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-15337-5 (ebk)

DOI: 10.1201/9781003153375

Typeset in Minion
by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd.
Contents

About the Authors, ix

Chapter 1   ◾   Introduction to Computer Graphics 1

1.1 CORE CONCEPTS AND VOCABULARY 2
1.2 THE GRAPHICS PIPELINE 7
1.2.1 Application Stage 7
1.2.2 Geometry Processing 8
1.2.3 Rasterization 10
1.2.4 Pixel Processing 12
1.3 SETTING UP A DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT 14
1.4 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 17

Chapter 2   ◾   Introduction to LWJGL and OpenGL 19

2.1 CREATING WINDOWS WITH LWJGL 19
2.2 DRAWING A POINT 25
2.2.1 OpenGL Shading Language 25
2.2.2 Compiling GPU Programs 28
2.2.3 Rendering in the Application 33
2.3 DRAWING SHAPES 36
2.3.1 Using Vertex Buffers 36
2.3.2 An Attribute Class 38
2.3.3 Hexagons, Triangles, and Squares 40
2.3.4 Passing Data between Shaders 47
2.4 WORKING WITH UNIFORM DATA 51
2.4.1 Introduction to Uniforms 51
2.4.2 A Uniform Class 52
2.4.3 Applications and Animations 55

v
vi   ◾    Contents

2.5 ADDING INTERACTIVITY 63

2.5.1 Keyboard Input with LWJGL 64
2.5.2 Incorporating with Graphics Programs 67
2.6 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 68

Chapter 3   ◾   Matrix Algebra and Transformations 69

3.1 INTRODUCTION TO VECTORS AND MATRICES 69
3.1.1 Vector Definitions and Operations 70
3.1.2 Linear Transformations and Matrices 73
3.1.3 Vectors and Matrices in Higher Dimensions 82
3.2 GEOMETRIC TRANSFORMATIONS 85
3.2.1 Scaling 85
3.2.2 Rotation 86
3.2.3 Translation 90
3.2.4 Projections 93
3.2.5 Local Transformations 98
3.3 A MATRIX CLASS 101
3.4 INCORPORATING WITH GRAPHICS PROGRAMS 110
3.5 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 116

Chapter 4   ◾   A Scene Graph Framework 117

4.1 OVERVIEW OF CLASS STRUCTURE 119
4.2 3D OBJECTS 121
4.2.1 Scene and Group 124
4.2.2 Camera 125
4.2.3 Mesh 126
4.3 GEOMETRY OBJECTS 128
4.3.1 Rectangles 129
4.3.2 Boxes 131
4.3.3 Polygons 134
4.3.4 Parametric Surfaces and Planes 136
4.3.5 Spheres and Related Surfaces 140
4.3.6 Cylinders and Related Surfaces 142
4.4 MATERIAL OBJECTS 148
4.4.1 Material Class 149
4.4.2 Basic Materials 152
 Contents   ◾    vii

4.5 RENDERING SCENES WITH THE FRAMEWORK 156

4.6 CUSTOM GEOMETRY AND MATERIAL OBJECTS 161
4.7 EXTRA COMPONENTS 166
4.7.1 Axes and Grids 167
4.7.2 Movement Rig 171
4.8 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 174

Chapter 5   ◾   Textures 177

5.1 A TEXTURE CLASS 177
5.2 TEXTURE COORDINATES 184
5.2.1 Rectangles 184
5.2.2 Boxes 185
5.2.3 Polygons 186
5.2.4 Parametric Surfaces 187
5.3 USING TEXTURES IN SHADERS 189
5.4 RENDERING SCENES WITH TEXTURES 193
5.5 ANIMATED EFFECTS WITH CUSTOM SHADERS 196
5.6 PROCEDURALLY GENERATED TEXTURES 201
5.7 USING TEXT IN SCENES 206
5.7.1 Billboarding 206
5.7.2 Heads-Up Displays and Orthogonal Cameras 215
5.8 RENDERING SCENES TO TEXTURES 220
5.9 POSTPROCESSING 226
5.10 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 236

Chapter 6   ◾   Light and Shadow 237

6.1 INTRODUCTION TO LIGHTING 237
6.2 LIGHT CLASSES 241
6.3 NORMAL VECTORS 244
6.3.1 Rectangles 244
6.3.2 Boxes 244
6.3.3 Polygons 245
6.3.4 Parametric Surfaces 246
6.4 USING LIGHTS IN SHADERS 249
6.4.1 Structs and Uniforms 250
6.4.2 Light-Based Materials 252
viii   ◾    Contents

6.5 RENDERING SCENES WITH LIGHTS 259

6.6 EXTRA COMPONENTS 262
6.7 BUMP MAPPING 265
6.8 BLOOM AND GLOW EFFECTS 269
6.9 SHADOWS 277
6.9.1 Theoretical Background 277
6.9.2 Adding Shadows to the Framework 281
6.10 SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS 293

INDEX, 295
About the Authors

Lee Stemkoski is a professor of mathematics and computer science. He earned his Ph.D.
in mathematics from Dartmouth College in 2006 and has been teaching at the college level
since. His specialties are computer graphics, video game development, and virtual and
augmented reality programming.

James Cona is an up and coming software engineer who studied computer science at
Adelphi University. Some of his specific interests include music, video game programming,
3D graphics, artificial intelligence, and clear and efficient software development in general.

ix
 Chapter 1

Introduction to
Computer Graphics

The importance of computer graphics in modern society is illustrated by the great quan-
tity and a variety of applications and their impact on our daily lives. Computer graphics
can be two-dimensional (2D) or three-dimensional (3D), animated, and interactive. They
are used in data visualization to identify patterns and relationships, and also in scientific
visualization, enabling researchers to model, explore, and understand natural phenomena.
Computer graphics are used for medical applications such as magnetic resonance imag-
ing (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) scans, and architectural applications, such as
creating blueprints or virtual models. They enable the creation of tools such as training
simulators and software for computer-aided engineering and design. Many aspects of the
entertainment industry make use of computer graphics to some extent: movies may use
them for special effects, generating photorealistic characters, or rendering entire films,
while video games are primarily interactive graphics-based experiences. Recent advances
in computer graphics hardware and software have even helped virtual reality and aug-
mented reality technology enter the consumer market.
The field of computer graphics is continuously advancing, finding new applications,
and increasing in importance. For all these reasons, combined with the inherent appeal
of working in a highly visual medium, the field of computer graphics is an exciting area to
learn about, experiment with, and work in. In this book, you’ll learn how to create a robust
framework capable of rendering and animating interactive 3D scenes using modern graph-
ics programming techniques.
Before diving into programming and code, you’ll first need to learn about the core
concepts and vocabulary in computer graphics. These ideas will be revisited repeatedly
throughout this book, and so it may help to periodically review parts of this chapter to
keep the overall process in mind. In the second half of this chapter, you’ll learn how to
install the necessary software and set up your development environment.

DOI: 10.1201/9781003153375-1 1
2   ◾    Developing Graphics Frameworks with Java and OpenGL

1.1 CORE CONCEPTS AND VOCABULARY

Our primary goal is to generate 2D images of 3D scenes; this process is called rendering
the scene. Scenes may contain 2D and 3D objects, from simple geometric shapes such as
boxes and spheres to complex models representing real-world or imaginary objects such
as teapots or alien lifeforms. These objects may simply appear to be of a single color, or
their appearance may be affected by textures (images applied to surfaces), light sources that
result in shading (the darkness of an object not in direct light) and shadows (the silhouette
of one object’s shape on the surface of another object), or environmental properties such as
fog. Scenes are rendered from the point of view of a virtual camera, whose relative position
and orientation in the scene, together with its intrinsic properties such as angle of view
and depth of field, determine which objects will be visible or partially obscured by other
objects when the scene is rendered. A 3D scene containing multiple shaded objects and a
virtual camera is illustrated in Figure 1.1. The region contained within the truncated pyra-
mid shape outlined in white (called a frustum) indicates the space visible to the camera. In
Figure 1.1, this region completely contains the red and green cubes, but contains only part
of the blue sphere, and the yellow cylinder lies completely outside of this region. The results
of rendering the scene in Figure 1.1 is shown in Figure 1.2.

FIGURE 1.1 Three-dimensional scene with geometric objects, viewing region (white outline), and
virtual camera (lower right).

FIGURE 1.2 Results of rendering the scene from Figure 1.1.

 Introduction to Computer Graphics   ◾    3

FIGURE 1.3 Zooming in on an image to illustrate individual pixels.

From a more technical, lower-level perspective, rendering a scene produces a raster – an

array of pixels (picture elements) that will be displayed on a screen, arranged in a 2D grid.
Pixels are typically extremely small; zooming in on an image can illustrate the presence of
individual pixels, as shown in Figure 1.3.
On modern computer systems, pixels specify colors using triples of floating-point num-
bers between 0 and 1 to represent the amount of red, green, and blue light present in a
color; a value of 0 represents no amount of that color is present, while a value of 1 repre-
sents that color is displayed at full (100%) intensity. These three colors are typically used
since photoreceptors in the human eye take in those particular colors. The triple (1, 0, 0)
represents red, (0, 1, 0) represents green, and (0, 0, 1) represents blue. Black and white are
represented by (0, 0, 0) and (1, 1, 1), respectively. Additional colors and their corresponding
triples of values specifying the amounts of red, green, and blue (often called RGB values)
are illustrated in Figure 1.4.
The quality of an image depends in part on its resolution (the number of pixels in the
raster) and precision (the number of bits used for each pixel). As each bit has two possible
values (0 or 1), the number of colors that can be expressed with N-bit precision is 2N. For
example, early video game consoles with 8-bit graphics were able to display 28 = 256 dif-
ferent colors. Monochrome displays could be said to have 1-bit graphics, while modern
displays often feature “high color” (16-bit, 65,536 color) or “true color” (24-bit, more than
16 million colors) graphics. Figure 1.5 illustrates the same image rendered with high pre-
cision but different resolutions, while Figure 1.6 illustrates the same image rendered with
high resolution but different precision levels.
In computer science, a buffer (or data buffer, or buffer memory) is a part of a computer’s
memory that serves as temporary storage for data while it is being moved from one location
to another. Pixel data is stored in a region of memory called the frame buffer. A frame buffer

FIGURE 1.4 Various colors and their corresponding (RGB) values.

4   ◾    Developing Graphics Frameworks with Java and OpenGL

FIGURE 1.5 A single image rendered with different resolutions.

may contain multiple buffers that store different types of data for each pixel. At a mini-
mum, the frame buffer must contain a color buffer, which stores RGB values. When render-
ing a 3D scene, the frame buffer must also contain a depth buffer, which stores distances
from points on scene objects to the virtual camera. Depth values are used to determine
whether the various points on each object are in front of or behind other objects (from the
camera’s perspective), and thus whether they will be visible when the scene is rendered. If
one scene object obscures another and a transparency effect is desired, the renderer makes
use of alpha values: floating-point numbers between 0 and 1 that specify how overlapping
colors should be blended together; the value 0 indicates a fully transparent color, while the
value 1 indicates a fully opaque color. Alpha values are also stored in the color buffer along
with RGB color values; the combined data is often referred to as RGBA color values. Finally,
frame buffers may contain a buffer called a stencil buffer, which may be used to store values
used in generating advanced effects, such as shadows, reflections, or portal rendering.
In addition to rendering 3D scenes, another goal in computer graphics is to create
­animated scenes. Animations consist of a sequence of images displayed in quick enough
succession that the viewer interprets the objects in the images to be continuously moving or
changing in appearance. Each image that is displayed is called a frame. The speed at which
Another random document with
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the different colours. The diagram will tell us. Suffice it to say, that
one colour will only differ from another and from white in brightness.
It is a very remarkable fact how many people who are defective
in colour vision pass through a good part of their lives without being
definitely aware of it. It is very doubtful whether, in the majority of
cases, they themselves discover it. They may quite possibly attribute
the descriptions of colour which they hear, and which appear to
them absolutely false or meaningless, as due to mental or moral
defects in their friends. I have had two cases of this recently. One
was a gentleman of seventy-four, who had no conception that he
had anything but normal colour vision; his daughters, however, had
a suspicion that something was not quite right in it, and after a good
deal of persuasion brought him to me to examine. The first mistake
that he made was to state that he was sitting on a black velvet chair,
whereas the seat was a deep crimson plush. He laughed at his
daughter’s description of the mistake he made, and declared he was
only colour ignorant, and that she was the one who was colour
blind. The examination showed that colour ignorant he was, but that
the ignorance was due to complete red-blindness. For the seventy-
four years he had lived he was unaware of his deficiency, suspecting
it in others, and it was only an accidental circumstance which made
him acquainted with the true state of his colour perception. Another
elderly gentleman, in a high position in life, was also accidentally
tested, and he proved to be completely green-blind. He, too, was
quite unaware of his defect, and protested that, yachtsman as he
was, he would never mistake a ship’s lights; but a very brief test
showed his friends who were with him that his declaration had to be
received with a certain amount of reservation. Others there are who
certainly do know that some peculiarity exists in their sense of
colour, and, foolish as it may appear to be—though, after all, it is
quite consistent with a sensitive nature—they have tried to hide their
defect from their fellow-creatures. Such examples, no doubt, some
of my audience have met with, and experience tells me that they
have just as much reluctance to pass an hour in my darkened room
as they would have to occupy a police cell. In those few cases that
have come voluntarily to me for examination, the peculiarity in
colour sense was first brought to notice by the patient—if patient I
may call him—failing to distinguish between cherries and the cherry
leaves, or strawberries and the strawberry leaves. Such mistakes
committed publicly are usually the source of unbounded merriment
and curiosity to schoolboys when made by their schoolfellows, and I
am bound to say that even persons of graver years are not unapt to
be amused at what they consider to be a shortcoming in their fellow-
creatures. To the student of colour vision the discovery of curious
cases of colour deficiency is looked upon in a very different light—a
good case of colour blindness, or still better one of monochromatic
vision, is eagerly sought after, with the hope of submitting it to a
rigid examination. When we look at the diagram (Fig. 16) we shall
find why it is that the colour blind describe the spectrum as they do.
Literally for those whose vision is dichromic, it is made up of two
sensations alone, and the colours to which these sensations give rise
are mixed throughout a large part of the spectrum, the pure
unmixed sensations being at each end of the spectrum as they are in
normal colour vision. The annexed diagram (Fig. 18) gives the
curves for a red-blind person as made by observations under Clerk
Maxwell’s directions. The standard colours here have been badly
selected, for one of them stimulates the two sensations possessed.

Fig. 18.
 An easy and instructive experiment can be made to give an idea
of the kind of colour that these colour blind imagine as white,
whether they be red-, green-, or violet-blind. (For those who have
only monochromatic vision, as before stated, white is coloured with
the one colour they possess.) Three slits are now in the spectrum,
one near the extreme end of the red, another well in the violet, and
the third in that part of the spectrum in which the green-blind see
their neutral colour (see page 66). With the three colours issuing
from these apertures a match is made with the white patch, and in
this case the match is made as seen from a distant point, so that the
resulting deductions may be true to the audience. If a colour-blind
person be in this theatre, he will agree with me that the match is as
correct to him as it is to myself and the rest of you. So far we could
not distinguish his colour perception from the normal, but if he be
red-blind, and the red slit be covered, he will still say that the match
holds good, for, as a matter of fact, the red with which we helped to
build up the white is non-existent to him. The white that he now
sees is to us the greenish-blue patch which the mixed violet and
green make. If he be a green-blind person he will tell us the colour
is a very pale blue, but when the green slit is covered up and the red
uncovered, the match will once more be correct, though the purple,
formed by the mixture of red and blue, will appear to him to be a
little darker than the white. This is what one would expect, for you
must recollect this green in the spectrum he would call white or
grey. If then, from what to him is also white, though formed by the
rays coming through the three slits, we take away a certain amount
of degraded white (green to us), he must still see white, but darker.
We have, however, met with what is an apparent paradox. The
green, coming through the now covered slit, he calls white, as he
also does the purple. To impress this point more strongly upon you, I
will place in front of the green slit a small prism which has an angle
of about one and a-half degrees. This is just sufficient to throw the
green colour on the neighbouring white surface. Here we have both
the colours which the green-blind calls white side by side. If the
brightness of each be the same, he would see no difference in them.
Is it possible that on any theory this can be correct? To explain this
apparent paradox, and without reference to the mathematical proof
that white subtracted from white leaves white, we have only to look
at our diagram (Fig. 16), and it is immediately apparent how it
arises. The red and the blue curves cut at this point; and if we take
away the green sensation entirely, the residue will be a mixture of
the red and blue, which is the identical purple colour forming the
patch.
If we are wishful to ascertain the colour that the violet-blind calls
white, we have only to cover up the violet slit and a yellow is left
behind as the result. I would have you remark that these colours
which are seen as white would only be of the hues shown you,
supposing the colour sensations were identical with those in normal
vision. Whether this is the case we cannot absolutely say, and the
only way in which this can be authoritatively settled is by examining
some person who has normal colour vision in one eye and defective
colour sense, not due to disease, in the other. One such person has
been examined abroad, but in what way I am unable to say. It is
recorded that he sees the red end of the spectrum as yellow with
the eye that is defective. Another person I have heard of in England,
but so far have not had the good fortune to get hold of him for
examination. When I can lay my hands on him, he will be able to
help to confirm or disprove what should be a general rather than a
particular case.
So far I have only met with what appears to be one genuine
case of violet blindness. It is very remarkable, on account of the
eccentricity of the colour nomenclature. The only two colours which
the subject saw were red and black. He named all greens and blues
as black, the distinction between the two being that the former was
“bright black” and the latter “dark black.” Yellow he called white, and
a glance at Fig. 16 will show that at this place in the spectrum the
neutral point of a violet-blind should occur. By shifting the slit
gradually into the green, he called it grey, instead of “bright black,”
though it did not match the white patch when darkened. He called a
green light a “bright black” light. We shall have to refer to this case
when we are describing other investigations.
 CHAPTER VI.
Another mode of exhibiting colour blindness, and one of the first
adopted, is by making mixtures of colours with rapidly rotating
colour discs. In my own experiments I have chosen a red, which is
scarlet, over which a wash of carmine has been brushed. It has a
dominant wave-length of 6300. The green is an emerald-green, and
has a dominant wave-length of 5150. The blue is French ultra-
marine, with a dominant wave-length of 4700. The card discs, of
some 4 inches diameter, are coated with these colours as pastes,
and by making an incision in them radially to the centre, as before
described, and inter-locking them, the compound disc can be caused
to show sectors of any angle that may be required. Outside these
are the discs of black and white, the proportions of which can be
altered at will.
The light thrown on the rotating sectors being that from an
electric arc light, normal vision requires 118° of red, 146° of green,
and 96° of blue to match a grey made up of 75 parts of white and
285 parts of black. For the last two numbers a correction has been
made to allow for the small amount of white light reflected from the
black surface. This correction has also been made in the subsequent
matches which will be described. Colour mixtures such as these are
conveniently put in the form of equations, and that given will then
be shown as follows—
118 R + 146 G + 96 U = 75 W + 285 B.
(Here R, G, U, W, and B are used to indicate Red, Green, Blue,
White, and Black.)
This match was exact also for all the colour blind, for the
deficiency in one grey is also a deficiency in the other. With a red-
blind, however, very different matches can be made, as the red
pigment is a complex colour. There is in it, besides red, a certain
amount of yellow, whilst in the green there is, besides green, a small
amount of a red and a larger amount of yellow. The yellow will not
only stimulate the green sensation, but also the red where it is
present. Although in complete red-blindness the red sensation is
totally absent, we may expect that a mixture of red and blue, as well
as of green and blue, will enable a match to be made of the grey
produced by the mixture of white and black.
This was the case. We have the following proportions—
295 R + 65 U = 45 W + 315 B.
When the green disc is substituted for the red, the red-blind made
the following mixture—
229 G + 131 U = 120 W + 240 B.
It is worth noticing that the amount of blue in the first mixture is
about half that required for the second. This tells us that the amount
of green sensation stimulated in the first case is much less than in
the second. As red can be substituted for green, it should follow that
green, when rendered darker, should match the red. To try this a red
disc replaced the black disc, and a black disc replaced the blue. The
following match was then made—
131 G + 229 B = 340 R + 20 W.
It seems impossible to believe that these mixtures, so dissimilar in
colour, could ever form a satisfactory match. This last equation might
have been derived from the two first, in which case it would have
stood—
137 G + 223 B = 342 R + 18 W.
By a completely green-blind the following mixtures were made—
251 R + 109 U = 62 W + 298 B,
and
277 G + 83 U = 107 W + 253 B.
In this case 363 Green are equivalent to 251 parts of Red mixed with
78 of White and 34 Black. The difference in the matches made by
the two types of colour blindness is very evident. In the one case the
amount of red required is much greater than the green, and in the
other vice versâ. Another instance may be given of colour matches
made, by means of discs, by a partially green-blind person, whose
case will be more fully described when we treat of the luminosity of
the spectrum to the different classes of colour vision.
His matches were as follows—1st, That of the normal vision.
2nd,—
160 R + 80 G + 120 U = 72 W + 288 B.
The green was then altered to 200, when the following made a
match—
65 R + 200 G + 95 U = 72 W + 288 B.
Using these two equations, we have the following curious result—
that 120 G was matched by 95 R + 25 U. As the green disc is nearly
twice as luminous as the red to normal colour vision, this equation
confirms the result otherwise obtained, that his blindness to colour is
a deficiency in the green sensation. No mixtures of blue and red, or
blue and green, would match a grey formed by the rotation of the
black and white sectors.
I must now introduce to your notice a different method of
experimenting with colour vision. If we throw the whole spectrum on
the screen, and ask a person with normal vision to point out the
brightest part, he will indicate the yellow, whilst a red-blind will say
the green, and so on. This tells us that the various types of colour
blind must see their spectrum colours with luminosity differing from
that of the normal eye. The difference can be measured by causing
both to express their sense of the brightness of the different parts of
the spectrum in terms of white light, or of one another. Brightness
and luminosity are here used synonymously. On the two small
screens are a red and a green patch of monochromatic light—a look
at the green shows that it is much brighter than the red. Rotating
sectors, the apertures of which can be opened or closed at pleasure
during rotation, are now placed in the path of the green ray. The
apertures are made fairly small, and the green is now evidently
dimmer than the red. When they are well open the green is once
more brighter. Evidently at some time during the closing of the
apertures there is one position in which the red and green must be
of the same brightness, since the green passes through the stage of
being too light to that of being too dark. By gradually diminishing
the range of the “too open” to “too closed” apertures we arrive at
the aperture where the two colours appear equally bright. The two
patches will cease to wink at the operator, if we may use such an
unscientific expression, when equality in brightness is established.
This operation of equalising luminosities must be carried out quickly
and without concentrated thought, for if an observer stops to think,
a fancied equality of brightness may exist, which other properly
carried out observations will show to be inexact. Now, instead of
using two colours, we can throw on a white surface a white patch
from the reflected beam, and a patch of the colour coming through
the slit alongside and touching it. The white is evidently the brighter,
and so the sectors are placed in this beam. The luminosity of (say) a
red ray is first measured, and the white is found to require a certain
sector aperture to secure a balance in brightness. We then place
another spectrum colour in the place of the first, and measure off in
degrees the brightness of this colour in terms of white light, and we
proceed similarly for the others. Now how are we to prove that the
measures for luminosity of the different colours are correct? Let us
place three slits in the spectrum, and by altering the aperture of the
slits make a mixture of the three rays so as to form white. The
intensity of this white we can match with the white of the reflected
beam. We can then measure the brightness (luminosity) of the three
colours separately, and if our measures are correct there is primâ
facie reason to suppose that they will together make up the
brightness of the white. Without going through this experiment it
may at once be stated that the reasoning is correct, for within the
limits of error of observation they do so. Having established this
proposition, we can next compare inter se, the brightness of any or
all of the rays of the spectrum by a preliminary comparison with the
reflected beam of white light. As in the colour patch apparatus all
colours and principal dark lines of the solar spectrum are known by
reference to a scale, in making a graphic representation of the
results, we first of all plot on paper a scale of equal parts, and at the
scale number where a reading is made, the aperture of the sectors
in degrees is set up. Thus, suppose with red light the scale number
which marked the position of the slit was 59, and the aperture 10°,
we should set up at that scale number on the paper a height of 10
on any empyric scale. If in the green at scale No. 38 the sectors had
to be closed to 7°, we should set up 7 at that number on the scale.
When observations have been made at numerous places in the
spectrum, the tops of these ordinates, as they are called, should be
joined, and we then get the observed curve of luminosity for the
whole spectrum. For convenience’ sake we make the highest point
100, and reduce the other ordinates in proportion. For some
purposes it may be advantageous to give the luminosity curve in
terms of a scale of wave-lengths. For our purpose, however, it is in
general sufficient to use the scale of the instrument.
 Fig. 19.

Now, if we test the vision of the various types of colour blind by

this plan, we should expect to get luminosities at different parts of
the spectrum which would give very different forms to these curves.
We cannot hope, for instance, that a red-blind who sees no red in
the extreme end of the spectrum would show any luminosity in that
region, nor that the green-blind should show as much in the green
part of the spectrum as those who possess normal colour vision,
since one of the sensations is absent. With monochromatic vision
there should be a still further departure from the normal curve. That
these differences do exist is fully shown in Fig. 19. One of the most
striking experiments in colour vision is to place a bright red patch on
the screen, and to ask a red-blind to make a match in luminosity
with the white. The latter will have to be reduced to almost darkness
—a darkness, indeed, that makes the match almost seem incredible.
You will notice that the places in the spectrum where the red- and
green-blind see grey are by no means places of greatest luminosity.
We shall find that these luminosity curves are suggestive when
making another investigation into the form of the spectrum curves of
the colour sensations.
Besides cases of complete blindness due to the absence of one
or two sensations on the Young theory, we have other cases, as was
said when remarking on the percentage of people who are colour
deficient, in which one or even two sensations are only more or less
deadened. It has often been said that with the theory provisionally
adopted, such cases are difficult to class as red or green deficient.
As far as my own observations go, I have never found this difficulty.
The luminosity curves of such observers, combined with other
indications, give a ready means of classing them. The main difficulty
to my mind is to state what is normal colour vision, but, as I have
found that the very large majority of eyes give the same luminosity
to colours as my own, I have taken my own colour perception as
normal. In numerous experiments which Lord Rayleigh has made in
matching orange by means of a mixture of red and green, he has
come across several who have apparently normal vision, as they see
colours correctly in every part of the spectrum, and yet some require
much less red mixed with the green to make a match with the
orange than do others. What is yellow to them is decidedly green to
the majority. This has been classed as another kind of normal vision;
but the luminosity curves show that it may be equally well due to a
deficiency in the green sensation, and which would require more
green to make the necessary match. The limits of the visible
spectrum to these persons, as far as my examination of their cases
goes, are the same as my own.
Again, there are others in which the spectrum seems decidedly
somewhat shortened at the red end compared with my own, and the
luminosity curves point to them as being strictly colour deficient in
the red and nothing else. As they see all colours, they have been
classed as another form of normal vision. The deficiency in both
these cases is so small that white is their neutral colour, but there is
evidence that the hues are slightly changed. I do not wish any one
to accept my deductions as being more correct than those who hold
differently, but the results of examination by the luminosity methods
appear to me difficult to reconcile with any other view. There are,
however, a large number of cases in which, though complete red- or
green-blindness is wanting, there is no doubt that more than slight
colour deficiency exists. For instance, in Fig. 23 we have the curve of
luminosity of the spectrum as measured by a very acute scientific
observer, and it is compared with that of normal colour vision. He
certainly is not completely blind to any sensation. An inspection and
comparison of the two curves will show that he is defective in the
green sensation, although it is present to a large extent. The
deficiency is obvious enough. An endeavour to find his neutral point
was most interesting. At 39 in the scale he saw a little colour, but at
39·5 all colour had vanished, and between the coloured patch and
the white he saw no difference. This similarity he saw till 47·3 in the
scale, when he began to see a faint trace of colour. There is a large
piece of the spectrum, then, which to him is grey. It must be
recollected that all three sensations were excited in this region, but
some more than others. Now, experiment has shown that, with
normal vision, two per cent. of any colour may be mixed with a pure
colour without its being perceived. It is not surprising, therefore,
that although the red, or the green, or the blue may be present in
an intensity above that required to form white, yet the resulting
sensation should pass for white. It may be remarked that red and
white when mixed he never mistook for yellow, and he always
recognised yellows and red; yellowish green, however, he called pale
yellow.
 Fig. 23.

Another example of partial red-blindness is also instructive.

Fig. 23 also shows it graphically. There is no doubt as to the nature
of the defect. The spectrum is slightly shortened, and the luminosity
of this part of the spectrum is less than that of normal vision. There
was no difficulty in distinguishing every colour, though the positions
of the colours from yellow to green seemed to be shifted; but no
neutral point could be traced. Apparently, both this case and the
former are about equally colour defective; but in this last the same
reasons do not apply for the existence of a neutral point. (For
measures see page 214.)
 CHAPTER VII.
We are now in a position to carry the investigations as to luminosity
a little further. When we look at small patches of light, we view the
colour through the yellow spot in the eye. If, when we have matched
the luminosity in the ordinary manner, we turn our eyes some 10°
away from the patches, we shall find that except at one place in the
green the equality in brightness no longer exists. By a little practice
we can make matches of luminosity when the eyes are thus
diverted. This will give us a different curve of luminosity, as the
yellow spot absorption is absent, and the difference in the heights of
the ordinates between the two curves will give us that absorption.
Fig. 20 shows this very well; and it will be noticed that the eye is
appreciably not so sensitive to the red and yellow at 10° from the
axis as it is on its central area. If we measure the areas of these two
curves we get the relative values of the light energy which is active
on the two parts of the eye, and these we found to be as 167 to
156. The heights at which to put the maxima of the two curves were
found from various considerations, and the correctness of the
deductions was verified by directly comparing the intensities of two
patches of white light some 10° apart, which, when looked at direct,
were of equal intensities. When one was compared with the other,
the eye receiving one image centrally and the other outside the
yellow spot, the difference in values was closely proportional to
those of the above areas. The part of this last curve showing a
deficiency in red sensation is very similar to that obtained from a
person who is partially colour blind. The absorption by the yellow
spot derived from these measures is graphically shown in the next
figure (Fig. 21).
Fig. 20.
 Fig. 21.

The question of the visual sensation at the “fovea centralis” (if it

be admitted that this is coincident with the visual axis of the eye, as
is usually accepted) may be very easily studied. When the luminosity
of the spectrum is examined at five or six feet distance, by throwing
the two patches on the whitened face of a small square of half-inch
side, we get a result differing from both of the above. The fovea
appears to be slightly more sensitive to red than the macula lutea,
and is generally less sensitive to the green rays (see Fig. 20). If a
star, or a distant light, be observed with the part of the retina, on
which the axis of the eye falls, as is the case in ordinary vision, and
then be observed with the eye slightly directed away, the difference
in the colours of the light is unmistakable. (The tables giving the
measured value of these curves will be found in the appendix, page
211.)
 Fig. 22.

Can we in any way find from these methods the colour sensation
curves? I think we can. Suppose we have a second instrument
exactly like the first placed side by side with it, we can then throw
two patches of colour on the two adjacent white surfaces, and we
can mix with either, or both of them, as much white light as we
choose. From the second instrument let us throw all the spectrum
colours in succession on to the one surface, and on to the other the
three primary colours mixed in such proportions as to match them
accurately. This plan is, I venture to think, a better way of obtaining
the value of colours in terms of standard colours than that adopted
by Maxwell. This method gives the values directly, and not by
calculation from matches with white. Let us place one slit near each
of the extreme ends of the spectrum; that in the red near the red
lithium line, and another a little beyond G in the violet of the
spectrum, whilst the third slit should be in the exact position in the
green, where the green-blind sees grey. Now it might be a matter of
dispute as to whether one was entitled to make this last one of the
positions for the slits, for we use it entirely on the assumption that
two of the colour sensations which we suppose we possess are
identical with those of the green-blind. This might be, or might not
be, the case; but I think it can be shown very easily that the
assumption we are making is more than probably exact. Having the
slits in these positions, we may endeavour to match the spectrum
orange. We mix the red and the green lights together, and find that
the best mixture is always paler than the orange, but by adding a
small quantity of white to the orange we at once form a match. In
the same way if we have a greenish-blue to match, we shall find
that we can only make the match when we add a little white to the
simple colour. Now let us shift the position of the slit in the green
just a little—a very little—towards the blue, and again try to match
orange. Do what we will we cannot find apertures to the slits which
will give us the colour, though it be diluted with white. It will be too
blue or too red, but never exactly orange. This tells us that there is
too much blue in the green we are using. Next, shift the slit a little
towards the red below our fixed position, and endeavour to match
the blue. We shall find that this, too, becomes impracticable. The
blue is either too green or too violet, telling us that our mixture
contains too much green. As the neutral point of the colour blind is
the only position for the green slit which enables us to make a good
match to both the orange and the blue, it follows that this must be
the point where these two colour sensations are so arranged as to
be in the proportions required to form white when green is added;
that is, that there is neither an excess of red nor an excess of violet.
To come back to our measures of colour. We can make up every
spectrum colour with these three colours, and finally divide the
luminosity curve into the colour luminosity. In all these matches the
violet luminosity is very small indeed compared with the red or
green. A match with white is now made by a mixture of all these
colours, and you will see, from the images of the slits on the screen,
that the luminosity of the violet is almost a negligible quantity
compared with the others. We may, therefore, as a first
approximation, divide up the luminosity curve into two parts, one
being the luminosity of the green in the different colours and the
other of the red. The green, however, is made up of red, of violet,
and of an excess of green sensation, which in this case comes
practically to a mixture of white with the green sensation. How can
we tell how much is green and how much is white? Suppose I, as a
normal-eyed person, compare the luminosity of the colour coming
through the red slit with that coming through the green slit, and
then get the green-blind to do the same, it is evident that any
excess in the luminosity as measured by myself over that measured
by the green-blind must be due to the green sensation, and we can
also see how much red and violet make up his white. We shall not
be far wrong, then, in apportioning the constituents of the white
thus found between the green and the red; the violet being, for the
time being, negligible. We must subtract the red sensation from the
green colour curve and add it to the red colour curve: the two
curves will then be very closely the curves of the red and green
sensations. By causing the green-blind to make mixtures of red and
violet for all the colours of their spectrum, we can arrive at what
must be finally taken away or given to these curves, though such
addition or subtraction of violet will be small when the luminosities
are considered. The accompanying figure (Fig. 22) gives an idea of
the shape and general features of these curves. It may be remarked
that we can check the general accuracy of the measures of the
colour mixtures by calculating or measuring the areas of the two
colour curves, the red and the green. If accurate, they should bear
the same ratio that the luminosities of the two colours bear to each
other (when mixed with a little violet, which is practically negligible)
to form white light. So far, then, we can utilize the luminosity
methods to calculate and to trace the sensation curves for the
normal eye. It will not escape your notice that the maximum heights
of these two component curves are nowhere near the parts of the
spectrum where the colour is the purest. Another check to these
curves may also be made by taking the difference in the ordinates of
the luminosity curves of the colour blind and the normal eyed. Too
much stress must not, however, for the moment, be laid on this, as
this method depends on the absolute correctness of the scale of the
ordinates in the curves. It must be recollected that to the former
white light is deprived of at least one constituent sensation which is
perceived by normal eyes. This, in all probability, renders the white
less luminous to them than those possessing normal vision, so that
the comparisons of luminosities are referred to different standards.
 It may seem a very simple matter to ascertain the correct scale,
but it is not, except by the extinction method, which will be
described later. At one time General Festing and myself tried to
obtain a comparison by finding the limiting illumination at which a
book could be read. We got results, but for the purpose in question
the values are not conclusive. What we really were measuring was
the acuteness of vision in different coloured lights. As a good deal
depends upon the optical perfection of the eyes under examination,
besides the illumination, we must be on our guard, even if there
were nothing else against the method, against taking any such
measures as being conclusive.
 CHAPTER VIII.
Before quitting the measurement of luminosity, it may be as well to
see whether the curves described are the same whatever the
brilliancy of the spectrum may be. We can easily experiment with a
very reduced brightness. Upon the screen we have an ordinarily
bright spectrum. As the slit, through which the white light forming
the spectrum comes, is narrowed, there is an evident change in the
relative brightness of the different parts, though the energy of every
ray must be proportionally reduced. The red is much more enfeebled
than the green, and in brightness the green part of the spectrum
looks much more intense than the yellow, which is ordinarily the
brightest part. This we have assured ourselves of not only by casual
observation, but also by direct measurement. Perhaps I can make
this even more decisive to you. Two slits are now in the ordinarily
bright spectrum, one in the red, and the other in a green which is
near the E line of the solar spectrum. Instead of using one lens to
form a single colour patch of mixed light, two parts of a lens,
appropriately cut and of the same focal length as the large
combining lens, are placed in front of the slits, one bit of lens before
each. This artifice enables us to throw the patch of red on one white
surface, and the patch of green light on another adjacent to it. By
opening or closing one or other of the slits the brightness of the two
patches of light are so arranged that there is no manner of doubt
but that the red is the brighter of the two. The absolute energies of
the rays forming each of the patches are proportionally reduced by
closing the slit of the collimator, as before. At one stage both
patches appear of about the same intensity. This might be taken for
an error in judgment, but to make the change that takes place
perfectly plain to you, the rotating sectors are introduced in front of
the two slits, and the rays now pass through them. The apertures of
the sectors are gradually closed, and we now come to such a
reduction that the red is absolutely invisible; but the green still
shines out. It is losing its colour somewhat, and appears of a bluish
tint. The reason of this change of hue in the latter we shall shortly
see. The sectors are withdrawn and the red re-appears, and is as
bright as the green. The slit of the collimator is next opened, and
there is no doubt that the red is much brighter than the green, as it
was purposely made at the beginning of the experiment. The same
class of experiment might have been repeated with the green and
violet or the red and violet, and the same kind of results would have
been obtained. The violet would have been the last to disappear
when the green was so reduced in luminosity that it appeared in the
ordinary brilliant spectrum to be equal to the violet ray selected.
When the green was of the luminosity given by a slit equal in width
to that of the violet, the violet would have disappeared first, owing
to its feeble brightness to begin with. Now, if we measure a feebly
illuminated spectrum we must adopt some special means to exclude
all light, except that of the comparison light and the ray to be
measured. This we can do by the box which is shown in the next
diagram (Fig. 24).
 Fig. 24.

At one end of a box, shown in plan, is an eye-piece, E. The other

end has at its centre a white square of paper of 1½-inch scale. The
monochromatic beam a, coming from the spectrum through the slit
S and the reference beam b of white light, are reflected from glass
mirrors M₁, M₂ to apertures in opposite sides of the box, and from
close to these apertures by the right-angled prisms P₁ P₂, so as to
fall on and cover S. Rods R₁, R₂ are inserted in the box in the paths
of the beams, so that the opposite halos of S are illuminated.
Diaphragms inside the box cut off any stray light, and rotating
sectors placed at A and B regulate the intensity of the beams as
required. The sector A is rotated with a previously determined-on
aperture; the white light coming through B is altered till the
luminosity of the two on the screen, as seen through E, are the
same. Every part of the spectrum can be measured in this way; the
result is shown in the diagram. Fig. 25 (the measures will be found
at page 215 in the appendix). In this case the orange light at D
where it fell on the screen was equal to 1/132 of an amyl-acetate
light, which, in its turn, is closely ·8 of a standard candle. In the
same figure the luminosity curve of the ordinary bright spectrum is
given for reference, and it can be seen how the point of maximum
luminosity is shifted into the green, lying almost over the E line of
the solar spectrum. The maximum, of course, has been made 100 as
before, for had it been drawn to the same scale as the other, the
form of the curve would not have been demonstrated. There is a
remarkable resemblance between it and the curve of luminosity of
the monochromatic vision, and such a resemblance can scarcely be
fortuitous. As a matter of fact, in this we seem to have come to the
final curve for low luminosities, and is almost the same as that
observed when the spectrum is reduced to such an extent that it is
colourless throughout, a condition that it can assume, as we shall
see very shortly. When the spectrum is rather more luminous, it
gives a curve of luminosity which is similar to that of the ordinary
spectrum when measured by a red-blind person. Here, then, we
have an indication that a person with normal vision passes through a
stage of red-blindness, as the intensity is diminished before he
arrives at absolutely monochromatic vision.
 Fig. 25.

This investigation is of practical as well as theoretical interest, as

General Festing and myself quickly discovered when we first made it.
The curious colour of a moonlight landscape is entirely accounted for
by it. White light becomes greenish-blue as it diminishes in intensity,
and the reds and yellows, being reduced or absent, are not reflected
by surrounding objects. Hence, moonlight is cold, whilst the sunlight
is warm owing to their presence.
When measuring these low luminosities, the various colours will
in a great measure disappear. Part of the spectrum will be of that
peculiar grey which was shown you in the experiment with the
incandescent light (p. 34). By further experiment it is possible to
arrive at an approximate determination of the point where all colour
vanishes from the different parts of the spectrum. We use the same
apparatus (Fig. 24) as before, the only difference being that each of
the sectors is movable during rotation. The apertures of those
through which the colour passes are reduced till all colour on the
screen just disappears, the point being arrived at by a comparison
with the white, which is itself also reduced. The apertures of the first
sector alone need be noted, and from these readings the diagram
(Fig. 26) is made (for measures, see page 216).

Fig. 26.

This extinction of colour is one which often occurs, but is seldom

noticed. The figure tells us that the orange is about the last colour of
the spectrum left, some of the others still appearing as greys. The
next to retain its colour is the green, and the most rapid to lose
them are the red and violet. It must not be supposed that the
colours remain of the same hue up to the time that they vanish.
Pure spectrum red (red sensation) remains the same up to the last,
but the scarlet becomes orange, and the orange yellower, and the
green bluer. This is what would be predicted from the Young theory
if the order of extinction of sensation be red, green, violet. This we
shall see is the case. At nightfall in the summer the order of
disappearance of colour may often be seen; orange flowers may be
plainly visible, yet a red geranium may appear black as night; the
green grass will be grey when the colour of the yellow flowers may
yet be just visible. An early morning start in the autumn before
daybreak will give an ample opportunity of satisfying oneself as to
the order in which colours gradually re-appear as daybreak
approaches. Red flowers will be at the outset black, whilst other
colours will be visible as grey. As more light comes from the sky the
pale yellow and blue flowers will next be distinguished, though the
grass may still be a nondescript grey. Then, as the light still
increases, every colour will burst out, if not in their full brilliance, yet
into their own undoubted hue.
 CHAPTER IX.
Not only, however, may we lose a sense of colour, but we may also
lose all sense of light by reducing the energy of the different rays.
We have seen that colour goes unequally from the different parts of
the spectrum. We may therefore prognosticate that the light itself
may disappear more rapidly from some parts than from others. You
will scarcely, however, I think, be prepared for the enormous
difference which exists in the stages of disappearance of the grey of
the reduced red and of that of the reduced green.
 Fig. 27.

But how are we to measure this extinction of light at the

different parts of the spectrum? This is a problem which I have
attacked during the last few years by a variety of methods; but as is
the case with almost every scientific problem, when the mode of
attack is reduced to its simplest form, it yields the more readily to
solution. If we have a box, like that figured in Fig. 27, and combine it
with our colour patch apparatus, the problem is solved. B B is a
closed box 3 feet long and about 1 foot high and wide, having two
similar apertures 1½ inch in diameter in the positions shown. The
aperture at the side is covered on the inside by a piece of glass a,
ground on both sides, and a tube T is inserted, in which diaphragms,
D, of various apertures can be inserted at pleasure. The most
convenient form of diaphragm is that supplied with photographic
lenses—an iris diaphragm. E is a tube fitted at the end of the box
through which the screen S is viewed. S is black except in the
centre, where a white disc is fastened to it. A mirror, M, placed as
shown, reflects the light scattered by the ground glass on to the
screen S. The rotating sectors are placed where shown, and are in
such a position that they can be readily adjusted by the observer.
The patch of any desired colour of the spectrum is thrown on a, and
an appropriate size of diaphragm used, so that when the sectors are
not less than 5° to 10° open, the light totally disappears. We can
now make observations throughout the whole spectrum, and
knowing the value of the different apertures of the diaphragm and
the angular opening of the rotating sectors, we can at once find the
amount of reduction of the particular part of the spectrum that is
being required in order to just extinguish all traces of light from the
white disc at the end of the box. From these measures we can
readily construct a curve or curves which will graphically show the
reduction given to the different parts of the spectrum. Fig. 28 gives
the curve of extinction for ordinary normal colour vision. The
spectrum was of such a brilliance that the intensity of the square
patch of light formed on a of the orange light (D) was exactly that of
an amyl-acetate lamp, placed at one foot distance from the receiving
screen. Knowing this, the actual luminosity of all the other rays of
the spectrum can be derived from the curve of luminosity (see
Fig. 20). Extinguishing the various parts of the spectrum by this
plan, it is found that the red rays cease to stimulate the retina
sufficiently to give any appearance of light long before the green
rays are extinguished. It is only the rays in the extreme violet of the
spectrum, and which consequently possess very feeble luminosity,
that make any approach towards requiring the same amount of
reduction as the red rays.