Saturday, June 4, 2016

Forced Perspective Images That Would Totally Deceive You



Forced perspective isn't just for still images. This forced perspective gif has been viral for a while. It's mesmerizing. People have lost full minutes staring at this. What exactly is going on?
It's not trick photography. It's all forced perspective. It's from the YouTube channel Quirkology. It's full of amazing optical illusions like this.



You can do really beautiful things with forced perspective. This photograph is by photographer Waleed Almotar. There's more than just camera tricks going on here. The photo also plays with light. The subject is in silhouette. The warm dusk light in the background is in stark contrast. Together they create an image that's almost surreal. It's like a game of soccer among the gods.



The Lord of the Rings used a lot of forced perspective. They made the hobbits look small by positioning them further away from the other characters. This photographer has accomplished something similar here. When the camera is at one angle, the seated woman looks very small. Then the camera shifts. It's really a normal-sized woman seated further away. The Lord of the Rings wasn't the only movie to use this trick. Harry Potter employed the same technique to make Hagrid look like a giant.



This is not a photo of tiny people. They're just super far away. And these desert-dwellers only wish this was a giant bottle of water. It's just really close to the lens.
Once everyone was in place, the photographer just lined them up. There was probably a lot of "a little to the left -- no, your left" going on. But this awesome photo is totally worth it.



The Eiffel Tower hasn't had a makeover. Those are cleverly placed Legos. This photo is by Michael Hughes. Mr. Hughes is credited with getting the internet interested in trompe l'oeil. That's a French word for an art technique that tricks the eye into seeing what isn't there.
Have you seen the chalk optical illusions drawn on public streets? You've probably seen Michael's work. In 2005, Michael added trick photography to his impressive repertoire. That's around the time that this picture went viral.



That's the most literal light saber we've ever seen. Once you're into forced perspective photography, you'll see opportunities all around you. The light saber was a clever move. You could also turn the photo on it's side. Then he'd be cutting through the rock with his laser gun. Getting on the ceiling of that cavern would be hard. Staying up there would be even harder. But the photo would totally be worth it.



This man looks like he's in trouble. It doesn't look like his friend is going to make it to him in time. The man casually catching some rays as he hangs on for dear life is not his friend. Forced perspective isn't always about distance. You can play with axis too. This trick is even easier. There's a lot less lining up. But you do have to convince your friends to lie on the ground. Once you have willing participants though, the fun is endless.



We know all about forced perspective now. But is this a really large woman or a small model of The Sphinx? Forced perspective plays a big role in comedies. Most of them make better jokes than we doOne of the earliest examples was the 1930 Laurel and Hardy movie "Brats". They used forced perspective and trick photography to portray themselves and their sons at the same time. Filmmakers have been using forced perspective to get a laugh since then. It's still just as funny today.

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