Forced Perspective

Forced perspective is a photographic technique that uses an optical illusion to make something appear larger, smaller, closer, or farther away than it is (think of people holding up the leaning Tower Of Pisa). The photographer literally forces her viewer to see the scene as she wants to present it to you. Sometimes it's as simple as flipping the image upside down or 90 degree counter clockwise, other times it's by using shallow depth of field, and often it takes some forethought. Check out this tutorial by J Fotography on how to do forced perspective with bokeh. Or Michael Paul Smith who makes model cars and creates a fictional town with his forced perspective photography. ​

Forced perspective with bokeh :: from J Fotography

Assignment:
Photograph 10 different forced perspectiver images. Consider the scale of your images, the seriousness or humor,  or whether or not you want your audience to believe your image or be confused by it. Each of the 10 forced perspectives should be strong. You will be passing in all 10 images and printing your top 3 images.

Steps:
• Start small and easy--don't be overwhelmed by large ideas at first, just have fun with it
• Consider the scale of your images, do you want to make something small feel much larger or vice versa?
• Pay attention to your f-stop--large f-stop will aid in making the background a part of the image, low f-stop will create a dreamier effect or allow you to use bokeh to your advantage​
• Consider drawing or making a scene yourself if you are having trouble finding it in nature

​Resources: J Fotography,  Forced Perspective Pinterest board