Cone opponency in the near peripheral retina

Abstract

Changes of color perception in the peripheral field are measured using an asymmetric simultaneous matching paradigm. The data confirm previous observations in that saturation changes can be neutralized if the test target is increased in size. However, this compensation does not apply to hue shifts. We show that some hues remain unchanged with eccentricity whereas others exhibit substantial changes. Here the color shifts are plotted in terms of a second-stage cone opponent model. The data suggest that the S-L+M channel is more robust to increasing eccentricity than the L-M channel. Observations are interpreted in terms of the known underlying morphological and physiological differences in these channels.