This animation was on my laptop for quite some time. I had it for almost a year. Today anonymous user submitted me this gif version, and when I opened it, only then I realized how great this illusion actually is. If you look at the spinning girl’s silhouette below, you will think it is spinning clockwise, probably. When you check her shadow below, momentarily the spinning direction changes in your mind, and now the girl is spinning counter-clockwise. It can be quite hard at the beginning to notice switch of the spinning direction, but eventually you’ll manage. I posted more simple illusion of this kind while ago, and you can see it here. Now, be honest – how long did it take you to see it spin in both directions? Not as easy as the hidden tiger, ayeh? I lost the link to the original artist, but best I could come up with is the place I found it on.
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If you cover up everything but the feet it sort of looks like she’s just oscillating back and forth (instead of spinning).
I can’t believe people don’t think this is a “real” illusion. The skips in animation are annoying (I have too many windows open), but that’s not when she changes direction.
This one didn’t work for me. I just saw the woman spin counterclockwise from the start. In fact, I can’t make myself see the opposite. I guess I’m just wired differently.
I think its the leg thats sticking ut that changes the direction! I’m 3rd!
I see it. But after it spinning counter clockwise I can’t make it back to spin clockwise!
For me it works like this: If I blink with the right frequency she becomes an oscillating 2D-shape and as soon as I stop blinking the direction is reversed.
Wow that is bizarre. I was staring at it for the longest time, all I could see was counter. Then when I covered everything and just looked at the feet and shadow, I FINALLY saw clockwise. I still can’t get it to “switch” without covering everything but the feet/shadow and then slowly raising my hand to reveal the rest.
I have created a somewhat more polished version of Mr. Kayahara’s original concept. Please see ‘Braindancer’ on my website.
Since I started from scratch to redo Noboyuki Kayahara’s original work, I decided to make two animations, each with its own native rotation, one c/w, the other cc/w. You can switch back and forth, and also give the spinning dancer a spinning male partner.
These are Poser 4 models which I rendered in 3D Studio Max and imported to Flash where I created the animations.
This is definitely a real illusion. I was watching her turn anti-clockwise whilst my mother who was stood behind me was seeing her turn clockwise. She then changed direction for me but not for mother, then changed for my mother but not for me, and so on.
I found the easiest way to make her change is to just look to the side briefly.
Awesome.
To get the direction to flip “at will”, try changing in your your imagination which of her legs is outstretched. left leg out = CCW
Damn now I can’t stop it flipping!
ok look … guys who ever saw this ..its not an illusion.. theres no trick.. the picture spins clockwise to counter clockwise at the whim of your brain. If you are one side of your brain.. it goes right if you are using the other side of your brain it goes left. Try this.. look at the picture but draw something.. or think about drawing.. it will go clockwise.. not think about complex math equasions and solving them it will go counter clockwise… try it.
I have seen this “illusion” a couple of times. The is no illusion! All it is a girl spinning anti clockwise, it never flip, changes or anything. Drawing does not change it, blinking does not change it, looking to one side does not change it. It always goes anticlockwise!
This trick I saw with a window pane before but it’s looks better on the internet!
left or right brain, it doesn’t matter, I saw her spin in both directions. it may take a min or two, but it seems that her legs switch places after a while.
left leg is down when spinning clockwise and counter clockwise when the right leg is down
In response to Carter, it spins clockwise for me, so something’s different.
This IS an illusion. I can make it change whenever I want to, you just have to know the right timing. Try to keep her facing backwards. When the legs cross over is when she can change direction. Instead of her leg coming around and towards you, try to make it go back and forth without coming around, if you know what I mean.
its switching ._. definitely i kept my eye on it one moment she goes counter the other she goes clockwise .-. no illusion
I think its a fake. When you wait long enough the woman changes the direction by her own, it is no illusion-.-
TACTIC: try and look down at your keyboard, whilst only seeing her feet at the top corner of your eyes and just think with all your mind to make her spin in the opposit direction, feel it and believe it and when the leg gets to the botton left corner imagine it swinging the other way, look up whilst still imagining her spinning the opposit way and it should work, i’ve sucessfully taught 2 people this method ^^
original website: http://www.procreo.jp/labo//silhouette.swf
She spins a lot faster here…a bit harder to make her spin in the opposite direction.
I don’t see her spinning, I get her going left, and then going right and then left and then right.. >>
When I make my both eyes staring at it, she looks like spinning counter-clockwise. When I cover her body with my left eye closed, making me see only her foot, she looked like spinning clockwise! :))
this is a really great illusion. there is absolutely no depth information in the animation. your brain tries to resolve the image as spinning in one direction or another. once you can see it as flat and symmetrical it’s pretty easy to maker her flip back and forth.
This is one of the best illusions ever. Thanks!
Also wanted to mention that you left the ‘l’ out of the word ’silhouette’ in the title.
this works for me: when i look at it and concentrate i see it goin conterclockwise , and when i look away for a minute, i see it switch out of the corner of my eye :) i love this illusion
it took me about 3 second no lie I am good with optical illusions
oo now I am making it go this way that way this way that way its fun
i want its html code so I can post it places if you know it can you just like put spaceas in it or tell me where it is
It definitely can be seen both ways and is definitely not a trick. I have a gif version of the slides where I can manually go from each sequence on my own. Sometimes it spends left and sometimes it spins right. Another weird thing is I have it shown on two monitors and sometimes both goes cw, or both goes Ccw and sometimes they both go in opposite direction. So I wonder if we have this set up in like a 4×4 grid(16 images) will everyone see them all go same direction, or will it be a mix? I guess it depends on how some people’s brain are wired.
Wow that is amazing! I saw it switch from clockwise to counterclockwise pretty quick. It’s the way her leg and arms are sticking out I think. Wow good illusion!
For me, there’s no illusion. Just click the ‘ESC key’ and It will surely stop spinning.