Simultaneous Contrast

Simultaneous contrast is the set of art rules we can get out of Lateral Inhibition. They're very, very useful when communicating in the visual language. Simultaneous contrast comes in three types.

1. Infinite Scale

Threshold for this scale is 2x in each dimension. Go above it for something to be "bigger," and below it for the difference to be surpressed.
Examples of an infinite scale include size and time. Things can be infinitely large or infinitely small.

2. Finite/Absolute Scale

Threshold for this scale is 20% of the scale.
Examples of a finite scale include value (black to white) and saturation. (Note that absolute scales on a computer differ for every monitor. As such, this example sucks.)

3. Circular Scale

Threshold for this scale is:
0-60 degrees is suppressed.
60-120 degrees is actual.
120-180 degrees is amplified.
Examples of a circular scale are limited to the color wheel.

This logic is useful when you're picking colors or values for a picture you're making. For example, in Bambi they had lower values for the backgrounds. When they added the characters, they used higher values, breaking the 20% threshold and making them stand apart.

See also Successive Contrast?

Unfinished