Inside the Eye
After passing through the lens, light reaches the retina at the back of your eye. Think of the retina as the "screen" where light gets converted into neural signals your brain can interpret. This conversion process is called visual transduction - basically turning light into brain messages.
The retina contains specialized cells called rods and cones. Rods detect shades of gray and work well in dim light (think night vision), while cones detect color when light is plentiful. Remember this simple trick: "cones = color."
At the center of your retina is a tiny area called the fovea, which is packed with color-detecting cones but has no rods. This special spot gives you your sharpest, most detailed color vision. That's why you turn your head to look directly at something when you want to see it clearly!
Your retina also has a blind spot where the optic nerve connects - this area has no rods or cones, so it can't detect light. Your brain cleverly fills in this gap, which is why you don't normally notice it.