Ibn al-Haytham

Have you ever wondered how a camera or your eye makes a picture? Over a thousand years ago, a clever scientist named Ibn al-Haytham (also called Alhazen) asked that same question. Born around 965 and living into 1040 during the Islamic Golden Age, he wasn't a magician—he was a curious scientist who loved light. Today we'll focus on his greatest idea: how light and vision work, shown in his famous Book of Optics.

Ibn al-Haytham used careful experiments and clear reasoning—he tested ideas, watched closely, and wrote what he saw. He discovered that light travels in straight lines, that images can be formed by a small hole (a camera obscura), and that our eyes see because light enters them. He mixed math, experiments, and drawings to explain things step by step.

His work changed how people studied nature. The Book of Optics was read and copied across the world and later helped scientists build better lenses, cameras, and telescopes. Because he proved ideas by testing them, many call him a pioneer of the scientific method and the 'father of optics.' Next time you make a pinhole camera or take a photo, remember Ibn al-Haytham—the scientist who helped us see how light makes pictures.