The light all around us comes in a multitude of polarization states. By splitting an image into four components, represented here by the colored shadows, a specialized camera can capture them all. Imaging the ways that objects can transform the polarization of the light that hits them is a task four times as complicated, but that can now be done with a compact device based on optical metamaterials. To learn more, turn to page 12 . (Image by Freddie Pagani.)