Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3

We’ve always suspected our camera was a neo-postmodernist.

Always subverting the establishment, our humble DSLR likes to challenge the limits of art and convention. We’d easily say it belongs up there with the best of Dadaism.

Now our camera has joined forces with our tablet and phone to throw our minds for an even more psych-optic monkey wrench.

By cleverly overlapping gadgets and photos, you can make picture-in-picture art that makes your electronic gizmos look completely transparent. Your meta masterpiece is waiting to be made!

Make Crazy Awesome Picture-in-Picture Art

p.s. Our pals at Bausch + Lomb are celebrating the release of their new hi-def contact lenses with a photo contest for Photojojo prizes. Enter here!

The Basics

The idea behind picture-in-picture art is to make it look like your electronic gizmos’ screens are completely transparent – so that your brain will think you’re seeing right through them! Whoa.

It’s pretty nifty, and easy to pull off too! And no, it doesn’t require you to cut actual holes in your expensive gizmos. Whew.

FYI, you can totally use digital cameras, phone cameras, tablets, desktop monitors, laptops or virtually anything with a screen for this project.

What kinds of things can you make with Picture-in-Picture Art? There’s:

• Handheld calculators
• Self-portraits
• “Trapped in Technology” photos
• Photos of fruit
• Transparent desktop monitors
• Infinity laptops
• iPad coasters
• And more!

For this tutorial, we’re just going to do a two-layer self-portrait using our iPad and iPhone.

Photo by Ben Seese

The Necessary Stuff

• A camera
• A gadget with a large screen (we used an iPad)
• A gadget with a small screen (we used an iPhone)
• Plain backdrop to take photos against, such as a wall in your house
• A lovely photo-taking assistant

STEP 1: The Eyes Layer

We suggest taking the photo with your non-phone camera, just so you can make it look nice and edit/crop if you need to.

Standing against a plain backdrop, have your lovely assistant Vanna take a photo of your eyes. Keep the photo closely framed, and if you need to, do some cropping afterward in Photoshop or your favorite photo editor.

Then, load this photo from your camera onto your small screened gadget. We used an iPhone here.

After that, open up the photo and display it full-screen on your small screen gadget. Hold it up to your face and you’ve now got a new set of eyes!

Tips:

• If you’re using your smart phone, you can always resize your photo by zooming in if you find your photo is a bit off.
• Make sure your photos have consistent lighting.
• You can adjust the brightness on your iDevices in order to get them to match the ambient lighting.

STEP 2: The Face Layer

Next, let’s prepare the photo that you’ll display on your big screened gadget. We used an iPad here.

Hold your new set of digital eyes up to your face, with your lovely assistant helping you line things up with your real eyes. Then, with your regular camera, have her take a new photo of your whole face.

Now load and display this new photo up onto your big screen gadget (i.e. iPad).

STEP 3: The Final Photo!

Hold your iPad or other big screen gadget, which should now sport a stunning new photo of your face, up to cover your actual face. Line things up, and make sure that your hand is positioned so that it looks like it’s holding the small screen gadget behind the big screen gadget, too.

Then…

Have your assistant take a new, final photo with your regular camera. Tada!

Boy, this final photo’s a real keeper, we say. And wasn’t that easy?

Of course if you want more layers—perhaps with different devices for each eyeball or facial feature, or if you just want to create a swirling vortex of optical feedback—then repeat the basic step above as many times as you need. Even more ideas below!

Can You See Me Now?

• Draw on each photo, MS Paint-style, before displaying it. Mustaches and unibrows galore!
• GO BIG. Attila Acs used a massive screen for his see-through image which he took with the help of a friend!
• Grab stuff INSIDE your screen.
• Get inspired with see-through gadgets in the Flickr group for “Transparent Screens”!
• Turn your desktop photo from boring to brilliant by making it see-through! Check out Al McNulty’s awesome Pac-man inspired see-through desktop photo for inspiration!
• Mo’ gadgets = mo’ layers = mo’ fun! Use different photo gadgets for each eyeball, facial feature, or body part to piece together a new, bionic you!

Credit to Daniel Bigler for writing this amazing tutorial. Daniel is an educator based out of the Pacific Northwest with a background in children’s studies and play.

Many thanks to photographer Dave Polette, who inspired this tutorial from his DIY Photography post.

1. Make a Photo-Roll Pencil Holder Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3 Your photographs are good at being held *in* things: albums, boxes, frames … But are they good at...
2. How to Make Glowing Photo Spheres Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3 We’ve seen record temperatures this summer. Sometimes, it’s just too hot to be outside! But that doesn’t mean...
3. DIY: How to Make Photo Lollipops Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3 Aaah Fall, how we’ve missed you! The cooler air, colorful leaves, and pumpkin-spiced latte photos? Yup! That’s right....
4. Photo Bookmarks You Can Make Out of Your Friends, Enemies & Frenemies Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2 It’s guest time here at Photojojo! Please give a rousing Photojojo welcome to… all the way from Rochester, New...
5. Photo Fabric Dye: Make Multicolored Sun Prints! Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3, 4 What do you call dye that uses sunlight to develop photos on fabric? Frakkin’ amazing, that’s what....

Want more?
Photojojo covers the best photo projects,
DIY ideas, and gear, twice a week.

Subscribe by Email We solemnly swear: "No spam, not ever"

or, Grab our RSS → What's RSS? | How do I use it?