Younger and older observers were asked to detect the presence and identify the orientation of an orientation-based texture target presented at durations ranging from 15 to 75 ms. In Experiment 1a, an age by duration interaction indicated that older adults were less able to process the displays at short durations. In Experiment 1b, a group of younger adults was given the task under conditions designed to simulate age related changes in retinal illuminance. Their performance was indepen dent of luminance, and was still superior to that of older adults in Experiment 1a. Several mechanisms are potential contributors to these age deficits in lower-level processing that can influence higher-level visual perception.