The British Royal Navy was the undisputed champion of the seas until World War I when the German naval submarines entered the fray. To evade the deadly submarines, the Brits considered a handful of ideas: make their ships look like whales, cover them with reflective mirrors, or even turn them into floating islands. The idea they pursued was painting patterns on the battleships as camouflage.

The concept sounds outrageous, but it worked! Geometric patterns of contrasting colors, curves, and shapes helped mask the size of a ship and confused the enemy about its shape and where it was heading when observed through a periscope. A pattern of wavy curves made the ship look smaller and shifted the perceived movement in a different direction, making it extremely difficult to target ships with torpedoes.

In the 21st century, dazzle camouflage has moved from marine warfare to automobiles. Automakers wrap test-model cars in skins that have intricate swirls, zigzag patterns, haphazard calligraphy, and skewed checkerboards to hide the cars’ true contours and lines. Photographers can make up to $10,000 for shots, and while camouflage skins don't hide everything, they do prevent cameras from making out the finer details.