Some photographers have made names for themselves by creating and photographing extremely detailed dioramas: miniature tabletop scenes that are so realistic that viewers often mistake them for the real world. Belgian photographers Maxime Delvaux and Kevin Laloux of 354 Photographers have put an interesting spin on the diorama photo concept by Photoshopping real people into their miniature scenes. The series is titled “Box“. Read more…
We first featured photographer Matthew Albanese’s Strange Worlds project back in 2010, not too long after the project’s inception. His amazing images appear to show beautiful outdoor scenes, but were actually shot on a tabletop in his studio. He creates extremely detailed dioramas that take months to complete, and then uses various photographic techniques to make the scene look like the real world. It’s like the opposite of using tilt-shift lenses to turn the world into a miniature model. Read more…
Seattle-based photographer Bill Finger creates and photographs amazingly realistic small scale dioramas showing various imaginary locations. The things contained in each miniature model are 1/6th to 1/12th the size of their real world counterparts. Finger builds each of the dioramas while looking through his camera’s viewfinder, which ensures that everything he constructs conforms nicely to the perspective limits of his lens. Read more…
Upon first glance, photographer Frank Kunert‘s photographs may look like they show pretty ordinary places. Look a little closer, however, and you’ll start to notice that each one has something wrong about it, and that none of the scenes would actually exist in the real world. They’re actually miniature scenes that are meticulously built by hand! Read more…
Photographer Kim Keever creates large scale landscape photographs using miniature dioramas. He first creates the topographies inside a 200-gallon tank, and then fills it with water. He then uses various lights, pigments, and backdrops to bring the scenes to life for his large-format camera to capture. Read more…
You’ve probably seen (and taken) forced perspective photos before, but South Korean artist June Bum Park goes one step further, using footage from cameras in high places to control cars, pedestrians, and other things in the scene as if playing with a miniature world. Read more…
Some photographers try to make miniatures look like the real world, while others aim to make the real world look like a miniature. “The Village” is a charming portrait of a tiny Portuguese town, made to look like a miniature via tilt-shift and time-lapse.
Photographer Lori Nix spends weeks and months creating extremely detailed miniature scenes — called dioramas — and then photographs them using an old fashioned 8×10 large format camera. This video offers a look at what goes on behind-the-scenes at Nix’s Brooklyn studio, and how she goes about creating her unique images. You see some of her photos in this post we published a year ago featuring her photography.
