Credit for photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_search#Feature_search
By looking at the photos above, were you able to spot the letter "B" without struggle? If so, that's very impressive! This is because we use "feature channels" which determine what we are looking for such as shape, color, depth, motion and spatial layout. Our eye movement is planning what we need to look for and eliminates what we already know about the object. Feature Hierarchy and Visual Search are much similar in many ways. For example, Feature Hierarchy uses "the pop-out effect" which points out certain areas on the object and Visual Search uses levels to depict what you are looking at in different orders. In addition, we are aware of what is familiar and what isn't to us when overlooking something or someone. If I were to view the photos above without knowing what to look for, I would assume nothing is wrong with it. Although, with brief seconds of scanning the pictures up and down, I would spot the letter "B". As my eyes became fixated on the different shape in the first photo, I was preattentive on what to look for in the second photo. An application I would want to design for would be album covers. I was always fascinated by how abstract and creative some albums are which lead me into becoming a Visual Communications major. In addition, album covers show the audience what the record is about through illustrations and photos that grab their attention.