How Perceptive Are You?

If every picture tells a story,
what story does this picture tell?
Think fast. What flashes through your mind at first glance?
The guy’s got his eye on that girl?
Those brick steps are really cool?
Oh, her boots are to die for?
Did you do a double-take? Got a nagging feeling something’s a bit off kilter? If so, you get a cookie for being perceptive!

So, what’s up that photo? There are clues.
Some of you have already figured it out. Others, like me, who suck at puzzles, are still trying to piece it together.

Focus on the bricks.
Now, check out that wall.
Look at her body language. Does she look comfortable?
What color is the sky?
(Okay, that was a BIG hint.)
Here’s another hint: GRAVITY
Hmm, what’s up with her hair? Bad hair day?
Or, bad hair moment?
There’s no defying GRAVITY, although more hair spray would have helped.
Do you love a good novel with twists you didn’t see coming?
Kinda like that picture, in a way. It’s got a twist to it. A sideways twist.
Time for the BIG REVEAL (in case you’re still stuck.)
If you have a laptop, turn your screen. If not, tilt your head sideways.
The guy and the girl are on the sidewalk. What looks like brick steps are actually parts of a building that jut out. You can’t see the sky because that’s the street at the top of the photo.
?
?
?
?
?
Here’s what the scene actually looks like. This couple’s having engagement pictures taken near Union Station in Los Angeles.
The trick photo was the guy’s idea, and the photographer went along with it, just for fun.

IMG958623

For Pete’s sake, stop checkin’ out her boots. I love ’em, too, but I’m trying to make a point here!
This is what the setting looks like in proper perspective.
Same setting from another angle.


It isn’t that they can’t see the solution.  It is that they can’t see the problem.
~G.K. Chesterton


A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe if you hold it close enough to your eye.  ~Samuel Grafton


The moment one gives close attention to any thing, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.  ~Henry Miller

Do you strive to notice extraordinary aspects in ordinary things? Turn things sideways, upside-down,
or stand on your head to find a new perspective or add dimension? If not, try it sometime!

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37 Responses to How Perceptive Are You?

  1. It took me a minute, but the hair was the big clue for me. Great quotes!

  2. E.R. King says:

    Very cool! I didn't see that they were laying on their sides in the first photograph. Hmm, I thought I was more perceptive than that. Guess not! : )

  3. Ha!! clever trick! I didn't notice immediately. I was busy trying to work out what little treasure she'd stolen from him…like a cookie 😉

  4. LynNerd says:

    J.A. – Good job. You'd make a good detective. Do you write mysteries?E.R. – Don't feel bad. I didn't get it either. I'm not good at Where's Waldo either.Lynda – Aha, the cookie comment threw you off. So it served as a red herring! That's good to know.

  5. Old Kitty says:

    They're lying down on the pavement? Is that hygienic?!!? LOL!Yay for perception!! And gorgeous boots! Take care x

  6. I love this! And it was her awkward body language that gave it away for me (although it took me a while to figure out what was wrong). I love when we can build in subtext like that (hint: something's wrong here…) and lead the reader to that twist. Nice! 🙂

  7. Little things I notice. Husband says I miss the big ones. Like the huge sign at Popeye's Chicken the other day saying what was on sale. Shakes head.Once I got past those boots, I saw the hair and knew.

  8. I had to look a little closer because I knew there was more to this picture than meets the eye. I think I'm pretty perceptive, but sometimes, I don't notice things right in front of my face!

  9. Talli Roland says:

    Yikes, I'm terrible with things like this, but the hair was indeed a clue! 🙂

  10. LynNerd says:

    Old Kitty – Yep, they're on the sidewalk! Haha! Glad you like those boots, too!Carol – I'm the same way. As a writer, I feel like I should be much more perceptive. Yep, those boots served as a red herring! Haha!Melissa – I know what you mean about not noticing things right in front of your face. It seems like I do that when I can't find something, and my husband will look in the drawer I just looked in and he finds it right away!Talli – Yes, the hair was a good clue! Glad you figured it out!

  11. Hey, I got that one pretty quick! I think it's the architect in me. That spot where her boots are resting looks strange. Cool analogy!

  12. LynNerd says:

    Good eye, Nancy. Yes, if you're an architect, you'd figure it out right away!

  13. ha ha! And love the pic you used! Perception is a funny thing and often depeends on each individual person What I do know is, though, that for a writer, the more pereptive you can be about your surroundings the better. It's the litle things that we as writers notice that make readers smile.

  14. nutschell says:

    I love how you used your daughter's prenup pictures for this activity. They are beautiful by the way!nutschellwww.thewritingnut.com

  15. Oh, that was fun! I didn't notice anything odd about the picture at first! Great quotes, too. I like the reminer to look at writing – and life- from different angles!

  16. LynNerd says:

    Nutschell – Aw, thanks! Glad you stopped by. It's always nice to hear from you. Margo – I'm glad you had fun with the pic. That's why I used it. Yes, the photo and the quotes do remind us to look at things in different ways, just take a few extra seconds to look closer! Thanks for your comments.

  17. Judy Croome says:

    Lynn you made your point in a brilliant way! How often do we not look at the little clues and hints that turn an ordinary situation into an extraordinary one. I really must try to be more observant!! (Which is a bit of a trial for someone who walked right past her fiance at the airport just because he shaved off his beard – thankfully in nearly 20 years of marriage he's never shaved again, possible because he's nervous I may not recognise him again!) 🙂Judy, South Africa

  18. Excellent Point! I only noticed the weird hair style.Have a nice day Lynn 🙂 And by the way, thanks for your recent comment on my Bounty Hunters post. ~Ron

  19. You sharp-eyed woman you! *hides face after realizing the boots really weren't the point of Lynn's post*xoxoxo

  20. LynNerd says:

    Judy – I'm the same way. Sometimes I just have tunnel vision! I'm working on paying more attention to the little things.Ron – Hey, thanks for stopping by. Nice to have you visit and leave a comment. Thanks!Robyn – I heart you, lady! You are so much like me! LOL!

  21. Munir says:

    Wow, I could never have guessed that that was a side walk. To me they clearly looked like steps and that the guy is checking out the girl and the girl is kind of tense and happy at the same time. I guess I would never make a good detective. The bookts certainly got my eyes.How is the baby? How are the new parents?

  22. It took me a minute but I noticed those strange squares between the bricks and thought they'd be a safety hazard if they were the pavement lol. Great picture.

  23. LynNerd says:

    Munir – Haha! I wouldn't make a good detective either!Catherine – Very perceptive! Thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment.

  24. Bish Denham says:

    Excellent Lynn, simply excellent! I figured it out pretty quick.

  25. Great points!It was the surface beneath her feet that made me pause when I saw the picture–it looks like a door. 😛

  26. That was a lot of fun, Lynn. The bricks were my first clue, and then the way her hand looked so posed there on her knee instead of relaxed. Wonder why I didn't notice her hair sooner? Hmmm. Maybe I was distracted by the boots =)

  27. Nicely done. I caught her hair right away. Thought the wind might be blowing. But seeing he was "leaning" also, led me to believe they were laying down. Took about ten seconds, but I got it. Thanks. This was fun!

  28. Amy says:

    Hey Mom,Thanks for using my pictures. I love the quotes that you used towards the end of the blog. I love you Mom, keep it up!Love Amy 🙂

  29. LynNerd says:

    Bish – Good going!Golden Eagle – That's really perceptive about the surface beneath her feet. I didn't even notice it when I studied the pic.Inluvwithwords – You are pretty darn perceptive about the bricks and the position of her hand, even if the hair didn't register with you. But those boots are definitely a distraction! Haha!Stephen – Very perceptive, especially how you noticed that he's leaning. Amy – I'm glad you like those cool quotes. Thanks for the love!

  30. That first photo is really clever! Wow, if I was still doing portraits professionally, I'd try that trick. And the fact it was a portrait setting WAS the first thing I noticed. Always the photographer…

  31. LynNerd says:

    Diane – That's really something that the first thing you noticed was that it was a portrait setting. I guess you'll always have a photog's eye. Yep, you should try this trick sometime with your family members. It's a hoot!

  32. cleemckenzie says:

    Totally captivating and such a great way to stir the brain to active. Those details, that unexpected twist, the fun in the discovery . . . all perfect for the writer to consider.Thanks, Lynn

  33. LynNerd says:

    Lee – That's an awesome comment! You definitely have a way with words. Good thing you're an author b/c you should be! LOL!

  34. Caitlin says:

    I love pictures like that!I've never stood on my head (so not coordinated enough for that), but I've laid on the couch or bed with my head hanging off for the upside down perspective. Double points for doing it with my glasses off and trying to figure out what things actually are!

  35. Beautiful pictures!As soon as you mentioned something being off I caught it right away. Guess my mind just works that way.

  36. Julie Musil says:

    I LOVE this! Yep, the hair gave it away for me right off the bat. What a cool idea for a photo shoot. I try to see things differently, but I'm not always successful!

  37. LynNerd says:

    Caitlin – LOL, hanging your head off the couch! Yep, you get double points for doing it with your glasses on. Oh, heck, let's make it triple points!Debra – Thanks for visiting my blog. You're perceptive, so you get a cookie. It's a little stale. Hope that's okay!Julie – I knew you'd catch on. Glad you like the photo shoot. I thought it was a cool idea, too. I think you're pretty darn perceptive.

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