There are plenty of 'ibles out about camouflaging things, usually paintball guns etc, and there are a couple of ones about ghillie suits.
What happens if you, like me want to make some wearable camouflage that isn't a ghillie suit, or some of the usual army surplus?
Hopefully this Instuctable will give you enough info for you to start designing you own camouflage
This Instructable is a work in progress, as I'm still in the process of making my camouflage item
#Updated 15/5/11#- Much more info now
Step 1: How does camouflage work?
-Mimetic camouflage mimics an object in the environment that it is in, usually by the use of colours or and/or shapes
-Stick insects are a prime example of Mimetic camouflage
-Disruptive camouflage disrupts, or breaks up the outline of a figure
-This involves only patterns and colours, not physical shapes
-This is what all just about all the camouflage patterns used by militarys around the world use, hence the name of some being DPM (disruptive pattern material)
-The patterns on some snakes act as Disruptive camouflage
Here's a quick summary of a few things you need to understand before designing an effective camouflage pattern
If you want to know more about these things, I've thrown in a few links at the bottom
Focal vision/central vision (If you sound smart you can use the medical term- Foveal Vision )
- Colour plays a major role
-100% of visual clarity in the range of focal vision
- Relies on conscious input; ie looking at things
-In humans, colour does not play an important role in P.V., only movement and contrast.
-Animals have better peripheral vision than humans
-Plays a key role in threat detection
-More rod cells in peripheral zones of retina causes peripheral vision to work better at night
The brain’s perceptions
-Brain is more likely to perceive something as an object or figure if it is one solid colour
-Black in the environment perceived as depth. Shadows are a source of the colour black, as well as distance (the air will gradually absorb colours, creating grey-black)
Making Camouflage work
Confusing focal vision
- Using colours in the pattern that are similar to, if not the same as the colours in the environment
- To a certain extent, using shapes similar to that in theenvironment
- Different colours breaking up solid colours and forms will limit the brains ability to detect the object
Confusing peripheral vision
-Using environment-specific colours will reduce the contrast between the material and the surroundings
-While peripheral vision relies on contrast, reducing the contrast between the colours in the pattern will negatively affect the foveal confusing properties.
Confusing/Altering the brain’s perceptions
-The ‘dithering effect’ can be implemented to create the perception of more colours, confusing colour vision more by increasing the pattern’s ability to blend
-The use of black or other dark colours will create a perception of depth, adding a 3rd dimension to design
More info on how camouflage works >here<
Info on Peripheral vision >here<
Focal vision >here<
The Dithering effect >here<
lnfo on German 'Flecktarn' (this will help explain the Dithering effect a bit) >here<