{{citations needed, date=June 2019 Real image

optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultrav ...

, an ''image'' is defined as the collection of focus points of light rays coming from an object. A real image is the collection of focus points actually made by converging/diverging rays, while a

virtual image In optics, an ''image'' is defined as the collection of focus points of light rays coming from an object. A '' real image'' is the collection of focus points made by converging rays, while a virtual image is the collection of focus points ma ...

is the collection of focus points made by extensions of diverging or converging rays. In other words, it is an image which is located in the plane of convergence for the light rays that originate from a given object. Examples of real images include the image produced on a detector in the rear of a

camera A camera is an optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), with ...

, and the image produced on an eyeball

retina The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which the ...

(the camera and eye focus light through an internal convex lens). In ray diagrams (such as the images on the right), real rays of light are always represented by full, solid lines; perceived or extrapolated rays of light are represented by dashed lines. A real image occurs where rays converge, whereas a virtual image occurs where rays only ''appear'' to diverge. Real images can be produced by concave mirrors and converging lenses, only if the object is placed further away from the mirror/lens than the focal point, and this real image is inverted. As the object approaches the focal point the image approaches infinity, and when the object passes the focal point the image becomes virtual and is not inverted (upright image). The distance is not the same as from the object to the lenses. Real images may also be inspected by a second lens or lens system. This is the mechanism used by

telescope A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, absorption, or reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally meaning only an optical instrument using lenses, curved mirrors, or a combination of both to obse ...

binoculars Binoculars or field glasses are two refracting telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes (binocular vision) when viewing distant objects. Most binoculars are sized to be held ...

and light microscopes. The objective lens gathers the light from the object and projects a real image within the structure of the optical instrument. A second lens or system of lenses, the eyepiece, then projects a second real image onto the retina of the eye.

See also