On Perspective: The Pupil Widens in Dark and Narrows in Light
A star seen through a pinhole or beside a candle appears diminished as the pupil shrinks
Continuing as De prospettiva, Leonardo observes that the eye with the larger pupil sees objects larger, and that the pupil grows in dark places and shrinks in bright ones. He explains that when an object is very luminous the pupil contracts so that the object's image reaches it diminished in both brightness and size, letting the sense bear the glare. As proof he cites a bright star viewed through a pinhole in paper, or beside a candle flame, which appears smaller because less of the pupil is engaged and because much of the surrounding sky also passes through the aperture.
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The wider pupil sees larger, and dilates in darkness
The eye whose pupil is larger sees things larger. The pupil grows larger the darker the place and becomes smaller in places of greater light.
Every object fills the whole pupil; glare contracts it
Every object of the eye is present throughout the whole and in every part of the pupil's surface. When the object is strongly luminous the pupil, unable to endure it, contracts so that the image reaches it diminished in splendour and magnitude, and thus the sense can bear the glare.
A star seen through a pinhole appears diminished
One of the larger stars viewed through a small hole in paper held near the eye appears much reduced, because only part of the pupil is used. This is not because the hole cuts off part of the star, since a great part of the surrounding sky passes through it as well.
A star beside a candle flame shrinks with the pupil
Set within or beside the light of a candle placed before the eye, the star appears smaller in proportion as the excess light contracts the pupil. Likewise a splendour seen suddenly after emerging from darkness seems to diminish in light and body as the pupil narrows.
