Things Required:
Clear plastic CD case
Pen
Blank sheet of paper
Lamp (if available)
Directions:
Place a blank sheet of paper alongside an image you wish to trace. Remove the cardboard insert from a clear CD case. Open and position the case so that the clear plastic section may be aligned along the border of the two papers.
Look into the plastic. Do you see a ghost-like reflection? You can increase the intensity of this reflected image by shining a bright light on the original copy while dimming the light over the blank copy sheet. By following the image outline, you can trace a copy of the original onto the blank paper. How is this copy similar to the original? How is it different?
This Is What Happens:
The clear plastic case has some reflective qualities. Light from the original drawing travelled to the plastic case. Some of it was reflected off the surface and back to your eyes.
When you looked through the plastic case, you were able to “project” this reflected image onto the blank sheet of paper. The drawing that you created was right/left reversed, since it was a copy of a reflected mirror image.
