High spatial resolution observations are essential for understanding the mass-loss mechanism in cool evolved stars. Recent progress in high spatial resolution observations has enabled us to probe not only the geometrical extent of the atmosphere but also asymmetric and inhomogeneous structures in the photosphere and the outer atmosphere. Furthermore, it is now possible to spatially resolve the dynamics of the photosphere - deriving information about the gas motions at each position over the surface of stars - just as in solar physics.