Does anyone here actually have a true photographic memory, or is it a myth?
 

We’ve all seen characters in TV shows who read a page of a book in two seconds and can perfectly recall every single word years later. But does "photographic memory" actually exist in real life, or is it just a convenient Hollywood trope? I've met people who claim they have it, but it always seems like they just have really good study habits rather than a literal camera in their brain.

I'd love to know if there's any actual scientific proof of adults possessing this ability, or if it's limited to childhood.

It is mostly a Hollywood myth, at least in the way it’s usually portrayed on television. In scientific circles, they refer to it as "eidetic memory," and while it does occasionally show up in young children, it almost always fades away as they grow older and develop language-based abstract thinking. If you want to separate the pop-culture hype from actual cognitive science, you should definitely read https://memoryos.com/article/all-tru...eidetic-memory. It does a fantastic job of breaking down the real neurological facts behind visual recall, explains why true "photographic" memory in adults is incredibly rare (and highly debated), and shows how most "memory champions" are actually just using highly trained mnemonic systems rather than a biological superpower.