What is the retina?

RetinaRest

The retina is the thin, light-sensitive film inside the back of the eye. It is less than half a millimetre thick and converts light into tiny electrical signals that travel along the optic nerve towards the brain.

Like the film in a camera, each part of the retina "sees" a different part of the visual field. That is, the central part of the retina (macula) sees the part that you are directly looking at, and the peripheral parts of the retina see around this. When having a conversation with someone, for example, you are using the macula to look at the other person's face and the peripheral retina when you notice someone else walking into the room.

When a part of the retina doesn't work properly, there is loss of vision in the area it serves. With macular problems, this usually means that whatever you are looking at directly is either unclear or missing, or often a combination of both.