Trouvelot felt that typical scientific methods of describing celestial objects and events lacked specificity. He advocated for trust in the human eye and hand, emphasizing the limits of photography.

He also found scientific observations of his time lacking in sensitivity to color and form. According to Trouvelot, artists could see a greater variation in color: "The equatorial belt [of Saturn] has always appeared to me to be slightly tinged with a delicate carmine red, very much like the equatorial belt of Jupiter; only the pink color of the former is much fainter. In no instance could I compare the color of this band to 'brick red,' as it is commonly described."