How vividly are you able to intentionally visualize things?

[ektomorph55]

For example, try to think of the image of a purple tiger. What do you see in your mind? How much detail do you picture, is it in colour, and is it animated or still?

 

Just wondering if Tulpamancers tend to have higher visualization skills than usual.

[Akecalo]

I see a purple tiger. I know how the muscles flex when it moves, how rhe fur lays and blows in the breeze, how the light reflects in the eyes. It is as if I am looking at it with my eyes, but it is in my head.

 

Edit: Just to be more clear than I was in the my original post (sorry), I responded with only the visual impression of the tiger itself, as that is how I interpreted the original question, and I kept the answer short as I was posting from a mobile device at a campsite.

 

As Mistgod wrote, when I imagine things I often include a background with a similar level of detail, and engage all of my operating senses in the experience. My images have sound and touch too, especially as my brian is wired with synaethesia. Scent isn't generally involved with me, as I have no sense of smell, but otherwise, everything plays a role in making the imagined thing more detailed and real.

[sushi]

Just wondering if Tulpamancers tend to have higher visualization skills than usual.

 

Depends on whether they've been working on visualization or imposition, I'd imagine. People like Mistgod have amazing visualization skills, whereas people like me, not so much. For me, the tiger is much more vague than Akecalo describes. In spite of being here for two years now, I haven't made visualization a daily practice -- our anything close.

[Guest Anonymous]

I see a purple tiger. I know how the muscles flex when it moves, how rhe fur lays and blows in the breeze, how the light reflects in the eyes. It is as if I am looking at it with my eyes, but it is in my head.

 

Yep, I'm pretty much right there about this level. I also add in its surroundings, the jungle, the dappled sunlight, the buzzing insects, the roar of a nearby river rapids. I feel the jungle heat and hear the tigers breath and the sound of its roar.

[Linkzelda]

[Luminesce]

Just wondering if Tulpamancers tend to have higher visualization skills than usual.

 

Nope. We've got the creativity-pros and the strict-scientists like everywhere else. I can't explain how visualizing things looks to me, exactly. I'd say I see a purple tiger. It's purple with black stripes. But I only kind of know what it looks like, I don't entirely see it. The real image is very spotty, ie. I can see the body when I think about it or the face, or the general figure. But there are almost no details past that. It exists in ~a void.

 

Those with naturally good visualization skills can't imagine what it's like for us without them, and we can't imagine anything. Though most people are at least at my level and can see blurry bits and pieces with the occasional trouble with specific body parts, some people literally can't visualize anything. But regardless of your natural ability, you can improve with practice. That's true for everyone without some sort of brain damage. There was a time I spent multiple weeks practicing imposition almost constantly, and by the end of two weeks I was pretty comfortable with the illusions of my tulpas overlayed over my actual vision. I've since lost that clarity (took as long to lose as it did to gain), but I know I could get it back with some dedication.

[ReisOtherHalf]

higher visualization skills than usual.

 

It might be the case that there's significant overlap between the set of people who naturally gravitate to tulpamancy and the set of people who already visualize things easily, yes, but, really, I think it's like anything else; these skills can (and indeed, should) be learned and honed with time and practice.

 

For what it's worth, Rei briefly appeared purple the first time we read this, so I may have had a little help...