Right you are Hristo! Only thing is most people only see these planes in movies or on TV/tape which makes people thing that the stoboscope effect is how it really is. Only time you should see it in real life is when you are looking through one prop at another m(or are iluuminated by a stobe or some other regularly flashing illumination.
Real props have the tips painted and all you see when they are running is a transparent circle or circles caused by things like prop decals, the tips, lettering on the blades, etc. How bright they are depends on how well illuminated.
Point of interest (or not depending on your point of view), but B-17 pilots would sync the 1&2 and 3&4 engines by looking at the area where the prop arcs overlapped. There you will see a strobe effect and when you get the dark shadow to stop moving up or down the engines are in sync.
