I’m confused. You originally asked “how it is that the top of this seal is reflecting light when no other part of the paper around it is lit?” I answered and said that it was lit but that the bumps in the seal are getting light at a different angle which makes them look brighter. And now you post a picture that answers your own question. I'm sorry. I think I gave you too much information to process. If you go back and read what I said, you'll see that what puzzled me is the following: The outer ring, and ONLY the outer ring, of the Seal is illuminated, but not the inner ring, not the top of the crest, nor anything else above the fold.
There is no reason why this should happen. The outer ring of the Seal is no more raised than any other part of the Seal above the fold.
I tried my best to replicate the effect. I tried to illuminate ONLY the outer ring of the Seal, but I couldn't, and I concluded that it cannot be done without modifying the image, flattening the other parts of the seal, or aiming a thin slit of light on it (but, from where would it come?).
Look again. Here's the Seal in #6
Here's the Seal in #5, and as you can see, all is lit equally.
They moved the light. They moved the camera. They did not the subject.
Does that clarify it now?
polarik wrote:
” I’m sorry. I think I gave you too much information to process. If you go back and read what I said, you’ll see that what puzzled me is the following: The outer ring, and ONLY the outer ring, of the Seal is illuminated, but not the inner ring, not the top of the crest, nor anything else above the fold.
There is no reason why this should happen. The outer ring of the Seal is no more raised than any other part of the Seal above the fold.
I tried my best to replicate the effect. I tried to illuminate ONLY the outer ring of the Seal, but I couldn’t, and I concluded that it cannot be done without modifying the image, flattening the other parts of the seal, or aiming a thin slit of light on it (but, from where would it come?).”
Basic physics says that it can be done without modifying the image or flattening the other parts of the seal. Since light travels in a straight line, if that portion of the seal is at slightly greater angle as the incoming light then only the outer ring will be illuminated because the outer ring will block the light from hitting anything inside the ring.
If you look at photo 6 you can see that the outer ring is actually made up of two rings and that pieces of the inner ring are being illuminated by light hitting them that’s coming between the spaces of the outer ring.
Because the birth certificate wasn’t being held down by someone’s thumb in photo 5 the light came in at a higher angle and allowed all the parts of top part of the seal to be illuminated. I don’t see anything unusual at all.