There are five types of magic effects: optical illusions, mirages, auditory illusions, touch illusions and stage magic. You commonly see the use of optical illusions in stage magic. An optical illusion is a distortion of the viewer's vision. An auditory illusion is a distortion of the viewer's hearing. Mirages are a type of optical illusion caused by distortions in the atmosphere.
Optical illusions can be anything from illusions in pictures to illusions used in stage magic. To use an optical illusion in stage magic, the musician must be quick with his hands. An example of an optical illusion in a stage show is the ping pong ball and three cups game, wherein the viewer thinks the magician put the ball under one cup, when in reality, he put it under a different cup.
There are many different types of auditory illusions. A common illusion is to "move" sound from one speaker to another, to give the illusion that something is moving from one area to another. If you are listening to one noise, making the noise louder in one ear than the other gives the illusion that the object making the noise is moving from one side of you to another side of you.
A mirage happens when light rays bend, producing a displaced image of a distant object or objects. The rays bend because cold air is thicker than warm air. The cold air has a higher refractive index. When the light goes from cold air to warm air, the light rays bend. The rays also bend when going from warm air to cold air. In both cases, the boundary between the hot and cold air must be sharp. A common mirage is the sky being reflected on the ground, causing the viewer to think he or she sees water where there is none.
Touch illusions are not commonly used in stage magic, though it is a type of "magic effect." There are several touch illusions that can be done, such as putting one hand in a bowl of hot water, the other in a bowl of cold water, then immersing both hands in lukewarm water-the person will still feel the hot and cold water on the respective hands. Another touch illusion example is wearing a baseball cap for a long period of time-when you take it off, it still feels as though the baseball cap is still on your head.
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