The Eshima Ohashi Bridge Ramp

[media=https://youtu.be/ox6GrsnGLNo]
In the photo and 15-second video posted above, the ramp to the Eshima Ohashi Bridge in Japan looks like it’s almost at a 90-degree angle. The incline is so steep that you’d think it would be impossible to drive up or down the ramp, yet people are apparently doing so without difficulty.

But what you’re seeing is an optical illusion and the slope really isn’t as precipitous as it seems. The illusion is due to the angle and distance from which the ramp is photographed or filmed, the use of a telephoto lens, and the height of the bridge.

An article in The Japan News explains this in more detail:
https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/features/japan-focus/20210508-62433/

The photo below, taken from the side of the bridge, provides a more realistic view. The incline still looks pretty steep, but certainly less formidable than it appears in the video and first photo…

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JohnOinger · 41-45, M

@Rutterman Will I Meet All Of My SW Groupies & Tik Tok Groupies Inperson

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JohnOinger · 41-45, M

@Rutterman cant wait for these answers

Rutterman · 46-50, M

@JohnOinger Yes to the first two questions.

He will make a comeback on the big screen and will have his own TV show.

JohnOinger · 41-45, M

@Rutterman Nice

Vivaci

Wow! That optical illusion is mind-blowing! 😲

I have this fear of heights and somehow steep roads like these don’t help either. I remember driving uphill in SF towards the city center and there’s this road that leads straight to the old bridge 🌁 and it feels like you’re on a rollercoaster 🎢 lol…there are so many slopes and slants that it’s impossible to see ahead when you’re driving uphill, and parking at that angle is scarier. 😬 I used to be particularly scared if there was slow moving traffic so that meant I couldn’t accelerate and my car could slide backwards…😖😖😖😰

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Vivaci

Phew 😮‍💨 For a moment I thought you had moved back there…coz I know you’re not living in the city per se….haha…

It sounds exactly like SF! It’s never ending traffic and expensive parking is a major deterrent for me…Does it have good seafood like SF too? ☺️@Rutterman

Rutterman · 46-50, M

@Vivaci Yes good seafood and grossly inflated housing prices, just like San Francisco. 😅

Vivaci

@Rutterman 😅 How coastal-ly posh!

ElwoodBlues · M

Telephoto lenses are wonderful things, especially the way they seem to compress distance!! Here's the same bridge with a more ordinary lens:

Rutterman · 46-50, M

@ElwoodBlues Yes. You can see how the telephoto lens exaggerates the steepness of the incline when compared with your photo.

Massageman · 70-79, M

Yup. The telephoto lens foreshortens the distance, making it look like a shot to the moon.

BridgeOvertroubledWaters · 61-69, M

Cool, interesting 👍

Rutterman · 46-50, M

@BridgeOvertroubledWaters Thanks. I found it interesting too.

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