The principal of forced perspective can make for a really fun photograph. Basically, you position yourself in such a way that there’s a really tall object in the background or a really small object in the foreground, then you pose with it. That way, you end up looking like you’re posing with a giant banana, exhaling Old Faithful, or touching the top of the Eiffel Tower. It’s an amazingly simple trick that makes for some awesome photographs.
If it sounds like an old trick, that’s because it is. Bert I. Gordon, the best B-movie filmmaker to ever come from Kenosha, Wisconsin, used forced perspective to make a ton of giant radioactive (fill in the blank) terrorizes small town movies. He also used the similar technique of rear projection, which involves actors in front of a screen with a projected background. Of all the old-school special effects, that’s still one of the most popular and useful as rear projection is what allows the weather man to stand in front of a moving radar screen.
Tags: forced perspective, camera tricks, unusual images, photography, special effects, Bert I. Gordon