18 BEAUTIFUL SURREAL IMAGES OF 360° LANDSCAPES

Introduction

In his Alternative Perspectives series, photographer and filmmaker Randy Scott Slavin creates surreal images of the world around him. He has figured out ways to distort a normal landscape into a magnificent swirl of circular patterns. The foundation of the landscape is always visible but he takes up to one hundred pictures to build the final, distorted scenes.

As the patterns shift and merge together, I am somewhat reminded of looking through a kaleidoscope. When speaking about his photography, Slavin states, “I developed a technique that could realize my desire to turn the real into the surreal. The result is something rebellious, beautiful, and provocative. My Alternate Perspectives series is a collection of the works culled from these photographic explorations.”

I love the mystery involved in each scene. The viewer can find intrigue not only in the final product, but also in the process itself. Slavin takes the everyday landscape and turns it into a magical experience.

"Empire State" by American photographer and filmmaker Randy Scott Slavin, who makes us view the world in another light. In his Alternate Perspective series he can take up to a hundred pictures of a scene to build up a 360 degree image before stitching them together to make a stereographic projection.

In this image, a beach is seemingly held in a huge rocky hand. Randy travels across America to seek out landscapes for his work, taking in views ranging from California to Florida. He says that the calming nature of the work is an antidote to his fast-paced New York lifestyle.

Randy chooses his location in different ways; sometimes stumbling onto an ideal shot or at other times knowing exactly what he is trying to capture. "I found the location for "Sea and Moon" while driving on the Florida coastline. As the sun was setting there was a moment maybe lasting for ten seconds where the sunlight was so golden it felt unreal. A minute after I got the shot the clouds opened up and it started to pour."

"While on a vacation with my fiancée I took the image entitled "Big Sur". Northern California is a magical place where epic elements collide. It's really hard to take a bad photograph there. We spent the day on top of a cliff and the clouds had rolled in below us. It was like being in an plane. I ran to get my gear and just barely caught the sunset. The scene was surreal even before I touched it in post."

"Battery Park", New York. Randy says: "The photographing of the images is the actually least time consuming part of the process. What takes the longest is finding the places that are worthy of shooting and getting to the spot that's best to shoot them from. You can't light landscapes so it's important to figure out what the best time of day is to take a photograph. Sometimes this means long hours of waiting and watching."

Battery Park Night, New York.

Palms, Florida.

Redwoods, Big Sur, California.

Everglades, Florida.

Tudor City Night, New York.

Cell, Rocky Point, New York.

Fore, Florida.

In a Glass, Connecticut.

Train Tracks, Connecticut.

Dock, Westport, Connecticut.

In Dreams, Florida.

In Dreams II, Florida.

Alice, Florida.

For more stunning images, go to Randy Scott Slavin’s website.

Top image: 360^o landscape image from Randy Scott Slavin Alternative Perspectives

All pictures: Randy Scott Slavin/Rex Features

Sources:
1. Alternate Perspectives: Surreal landscape photography by Randy Scott Slavin
2. Randy Scott Slavin Alternative Perspectives
3. 100 Photos Merge to Form Swirling 360-Degree Landscapes (introductory text source)