We have collected the proof that real life can be far, far weirder than fiction. What you can do with a camera is amazing, and we have a lot of respect for all types of photographers. Perspective and reflections can be used to stage mind-bending images.
Some of the most impressive and cool photos from the internet, which are incredibly hard to believe aren’t photoshopped, are featured in our hand-crafted list. They are completely natural and unedited, with all of their illusory effects captured by accident.
If you want to see pics that look photoshopped to the max, scroll down and upvote your favorites.
Dominic Sberna, a professional photographer, was kind enough to answer our questions about photography, recognizing photo-editing in images, and the importance of camera angles. You can find our full interview with him below, so be sure to scroll down and read his thoughts.
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We wanted to get pro photographer Dominic’s opinion on what amateurs can do so they can react to awesome photo opportunities and miss a few of them.
“Take your camera wherever you go if feasible or at least bring it with you if it’s not on your person,” he said that having your gear with you is incredibly important if you want to be ready for everything.
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“Reacting to a quick situation is just something that takes practice and doing it over and over. Luck is probably a factor too, depending on the situation of course,” he told us that amateur photographers shouldn’t stress out too much about missing good opportunities; their ability to react to events will improve with time and practice.
Unless you know what you’re looking for, there isn’t a way to know if a photo has been photoshopped or not. It is possible to understand if someone has altered an image if you are familiar with different editing techniques.
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Dominic has had some experience with mind-bending images, but they are not what he focuses on. “I have taken some unique reflection photos, but it is not something I do regularly. Getting different angles also depends on the situation and what I’m trying to achieve with an image,” he said that the angle from which a photographer snaps a pic can change a lot about image, and it all depends on the pro’s intent.
“Often when people hear the word ‘Photoshop,’ they imagine Instagram girls which make their faces unrecognizable by “photoshopping” them and think that Photoshop is used just for that. Actually, people mistake it for other apps like ‘Facetune.’ Photoshop is a software package for working with digital imagery and is used not only for photography but also for design, video editing, photo manipulations, and more,” photographer Anna told.
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“When we talk about photography, there is no single proven way of using this software when it comes to editing pictures. Every single photographer or retoucher has his or her own style, way of editing, or set of skills used for making the best photos possible,” she told us.
“That’s why photoshopped pictures can look wildly differently: from waxy or plastic faces to an absolutely natural look. From drastic changes in the face or body features to just color corrections. And from creating a fantasy world around your subject to simply removing unwanted objects from the background,” Anna explained that every photographer has their personal approach.
“From personal experience, after many years of learning and experimenting, shooting takes the least amount of time in comparison to the other parts of the process—planning, and retouching,” she said that the editing part can be very time-intensive.
“I mostly take portraits. Usually, my clients are not professional models with heavy makeup, which covers all of their imperfections and barely requires any retouching. My models are people who want to have lovely pictures of themselves, who want to portray their lives and experience fun time while freezing those moments—without pressure or fear of being imperfect,” she told us a bit about how she works and what her professional philosophy is.
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“I do believe that my clients need to get the best result they can get. And making a regular picture great requires not only taking pictures correctly from a technical point of view but also adding some magic to each and every one of them,” she said that she retouches every single photo, even if it’s just a bit.
“And it’s not about changing features or making people look perfect and not representative of the way they look in real life. It’s about the small details, which make the photo stand out without making it look unrealistic. It’s about colors and lighting. About mood,” she explained why editing photos is so important, overall.
“Every person that I shoot has their own story and a unique aura. I want to make my pictures reflect the feeling I get when being with the person and share it throughout the final image. And it can take from half an hour to a couple of hours per image. Depends on the emotion I want to portray in the final picture,” Anna told.
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“If we are talking about portraits, I do believe that if you have a great team (assistant, makeup artist, hairdresser, stylist), you have a beautiful location with the lighting set up correctly, you have a model with clear skin and everything is under your control, then you can take really good pictures and editing could be almost unnecessary,” she said.
“But usually, you don’t have all the people and props which could help to create a great image. When you work alone, sometimes mistakes slip past the cracks as you need to cover many areas during the photoshoot,” the photographer pointed out that photographers can’t do everything perfectly, so they end up fixing small mistakes during the postproduction process.
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Good old films should be shot by those who want to create natural, unedited pictures. “Film cameras take lovely pictures. And it’s so fun to make. I would say, film cameras have a certain magic about them,” she said.
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