The World’s Most Perfectly Timed Photos: Through Chaos, Comedy, & Confusion
When life itself is just one big laugh, what understanding can be extracted? This is my attempt to understand what many have taken centuries to figure. The truth is, life is absurd, if you really think about it. But for the vast majority of us, thinking is not something we do often, if at all. When we do, we cannot fathom the stupidity of some of our acts, which we usually pass off as harmless (even under the medical banner of “afflictions”). We make and admire silly little sculptures and goods that serve no purpose, except to signify our oddness. Indeed, this is a life’s work, and imagine a saint, if you dare, either as someone who does all this or as an artist who is so far gone as to be a figment of some stoned friend’s brain.
1. Headless Ice Skater
Now, this is as good as it gets in the realm of athletics. A gymnast is so remarkably skilled, so incredibly bendy, that her head has just chosen to not even take part in the performance. And you know what? She’s not at a disadvantage. In fact, she might be at an advantage. Because this routine could be called, with all due respect, the most efficient gold medalist in the history of the sport.
2. Whose Hand Is This Anyway?
If there’s a secret to mastering the art of photobombing, this man has surely uncovered it. He has the photobomb down to an exact science, and we’re not entirely sure if that’s more impressive or creepy. You really have to hand it to her. No, seriously, we might have to hand him a medal or something. The degree of difficulty seems high, yet the payoff is pure, dumb fun.
3. Statue of Liberty Harnessing Lightning
If you ever had any doubts about whether or not Liberty was watching over the Big Apple, this image should put those thoughts to rest. Here she is, with a slight tilt of her head, seemingly commanding the power of Zeus, all in a day’s work for the Marvel Comics superhero that Lady Liberty so closely resembles. And what better way to remind us that Liberty really is “electrifying,” as in, our freedom should be “charged” with so much energy that not even a lightning bolt could flicker a flame of doubt in our tender hearts.
4. Dog with Human Legs
Canine with Human Limbs Try to picture this unending image. A perfect dog with human limbs that are not proportioned correctly. Once more, we have not only a pet but also, as can be inferred, a co-adventurer that goes with us on the beach. This image suggests a new way for dogs to be man’s best friend, and I give it images of weirdness for that reason.
5. Giant Bug on the Highway
Highway Insect Apocalypse Observe, ladies and gentlemen, the coming apocalypse of the grasshoppers. While what may seem to be a regular ol’ grasshopper might appear harmless on your windshield, the image has actually been photoshopped to make the thing look like a towering monster that’s ready to devour 1:10 scale model cars.
6. The Amazing Bubble Dog Coming to a Circus Near You
The bubble dog is a really amazing circus act defying the very laws of both nature and physics. I’ve always wondered if the bubble dog’s creator ever saw a dog take flight in a bubble before dreaming up this act. Or, was the bubble dog just something that popped into someone’s head as another wild, imaginative act that nature and art now conspire to produce?
7. Man Throwing Lightning
A Man Casting Lightning Illusions of eminent innocence may simply lead us to the beach, where we can enjoy a day spent in the sun and surf. Yet nature may once more beckon us to contemplate its boundless and sometimes fearsome energy. Here’s a guy putting a powerful force of nature (lightning) to work in this case, for some rather modest artistic ends. Божественище. кресля. Guy says E=mc². Then he casually tosses some bolts in the direction of the ocean, asks the ocean to do a little berimbau action, and voilà.
8. This Optical Illusion Ruined a Day
The optical illusion of day picture was not intended. Yet, it seems to have happened, no doubt due to the camera angle. A young man contentedly sits with his hand on a knee. But whose knee? There are suggestive signs, or at least the illusion of them, which make it seem like the young man is cheating, right out there in the light of day. On the other hand, or angle, make pretend that the camera was taking the picture at an angle that looked more like a normal scene. And with that perspective, the young man is doing nothing that any loved-up person hasn’t done before. Or, in other words, sometimes it really does take two to tango, but sometimes it can also take just one man and an optical illusion.
9. A Human Hydration of Dominance
Once more, humans have shown their supremacy over nature. A plastic water bottle, purchased from a roadside gas station, is now a universal remote for commanding waterfalls. Erosion over several millennia? Negated. Nature’s immense forces that make Earth’s hydrological cycles happen? Halted. The natural place where water is supposed to go? Not going there. Somewhere, Aquafina’s board of directors and enshrined executives must be laughing, with tears of pride, over being able to stick “natural” on their product and sell it for a profit. Quiet as it is kept, Earth is the place we live, day in and day out should be rewarded with an eye roll for being such a pushover.
10. Zen and the Wave Apocalypse
The Tsunami and the Zen Woman She depicts a calm that is almost too good to be true. Not a single droplet of the furious water that is the wave behind her has soiled her serene state. In fact, quite the opposite: the furious water is intensifying the calm of her “omedatou gozaimasu” state. I find her situation inspiring, and if I were not so addicted to watching the video loop of the calm-mongering Poseidon woman, I might actually be gutsy and inner-peace-y enough to emulate it.
11. The Stork Returns to Its Roots
The Stork Goes Back to Its Roots Here we have clear evidence that the stork delivery service is not as dependable as claimed. The bird has brought the package to the incorrect place; it has, apparently, dropped the valuable cargo in midair and has left the father to play a superhero role in delivering a present that can’t go back to the stork. The baby? Living in the kind of swimming dream that would make a mermaid jealous. The stork? Most likely wondering why it keeps taking jobs that have it dropping babies when its real talent lies in delivering other kinds of packages.
12. When Chairs and Fashion Collide
The chairs in the following image are aligned with such precision that they seem almost to defy nature. Or perhaps align with some higher-functioning, above-reproach aesthetic?
13. Nature’s Cruelest Prank
The joys of parenting a peaceful moment. A mother laying down with her baby resting on her stomach. So wholesome, right? Until you notice it. THOSE FEET!!! Perfectly positioned to create an illusion no one was asking for. At first glance you do a double-take and question everything. And then wonder if this photo caused an awkward pause in the family group chat.
14. Higher Consciousness, Literally
It appears this Buddha statue has discovered an alternative way to enlightenment; involving rolling up a little aircraft special. With perfect peace and a stone-cold expression, he is definitely “stoned” as he casually holds his meditative aid while contemplating the meaning of life. It’s safe to say he’s on another plane… both figuratively and spiritually.
15. Spray of the Day
It’s unclear what he is up to, he certainly doesn’t seem to be enjoying himself in any park-like sense. One thing is clear. The park fountain is not helping matters. Despite all of its apparent efforts, it is not keeping water where water ought to be. Is this guy serenading the fountain? To what in what is going on before us should we even be giving our attention? Is it any of our business? It seems quite rude for someone to go about in such a public setting to do what we typically expect to see done in private.
16. The Eagle Has Engaged Turbo Mode
The speed at which the eagle flies is nearly superhuman. For a bird that is not flapping its wings to climb, to gain height or lift, it has almost perfect dihedral wings: wings that angle up and down in a way that captures air underneath and pushes air above it, creating lift. My impression of this eagle’s almost leisurely pace is deceptive, however. This is not an eagle that is just kind of chilling in the air.
17. When the Sign Speaks the Truth
This image demonstrates a moment when two women were found next to a directive sign for train passengers. But what “LOOK” signifies here really translates to “DON’T LOOK.” It is a metaphor for “unbecoming.” At a metaphorical level, it works quite well because the image does show a crowd of people making a collective agreement, thanks to the sign, to not leer at each other. I also really loved this shot when I took it. The two women do look as if they are having a splendid time. And in terms of a scene as being free of both the burdens of looking and the burdens of not looking at someone, that’s what I think these two women and the crowd around them shown in the image are enjoying.
When Reality Becomes the Punchline
These images serve as a reminder that every so often, the universe treats us to a few spectacles that are good for a laugh and seem to carry no real significance. But we could just as easily say that these pictures represent a cosmic invitation to examine life’s not-so-serious side. I’m working from what seems to be the quite unremarkable appearances of these ordinary objects in what otherwise appear to be quite extraordinary and very headlight-mocking ways. I mean, really, what are the odds that you’d find yourself here in this existence where such appearances can be made? And where for just a split second, you could see such appearances as anything but ordinary?
We are on the cusp of showing off an entirely new set of visuals that defy the known limits of visual insanity and operate on a scale and in a realm that is just beyond crazy. The next visuals we will show you are truly some of the most astonishing illusions that we have ever had the joy of encountering. And while we encounter many incredible visuals in our work, the thing that really blows our minds is that these next images are in no way altered what you’re seeing is the genuine article.
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