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Incredible optical illusion photo looks like it’s been edited, but it’s completely untouched: can YOU figure out what’s happening in the image?
- Photo submitted to Japan’s wildlife photo contest appears to have been edited
- However, it has not been touched at all and is an extraordinary optical illusion
At a time when AI has created images of the Pope in a huge white puffer jacket and Donald Trump being arrested, you might think this extraordinary photo has been digitally altered.
Even before the rapid growth of AI, photos have long been edited by social media users to improve the look of their photos.
That’s why the first thought when looking at this beautiful photo of an egret taken by Kenichi Ohno is that it must have been fabricated somehow.
The photo itself is impressive enough, but the fact that it’s completely untouched has left some speechless — and others in denial.
Mr. Ohno, from Saitama Prefecture in the Kantō region of Honshu, Japan, entered the 39th Japan Nature Photography Contest organized by the All-Japan Association of Photographic Societies with ‘Gap’.
This incredible optical illusion photo looks like it’s been edited, but it’s completely untouched: can you figure out what’s happening in the image?
The photo shows the white-feathered bird stepping into the sea, creating a ripple effect as it wades through a muddy bank into the water.
An optical illusion makes it appear as if there are two separate scenes, with only the bird connecting them.
It looks like the bird is walking out of a yellow-orange scene on the right and walking into the deep blue water on the left.
But in reality, the sun hits a wall — seen in the top right corner — at the perfect angle to cast a straight-line reflection on the water.
The wall itself has a yellow tint, which creates the strong contrast with the blue water.
The horizontal line in the photo is the bottom of the wall, while the yellow-orange water below is its reflection.
Confused social media users couldn’t understand how the photo was edited.
One of them said, “This is impossible photoshopped!!!”
Meanwhile, another added: “Almost after 13 am I get the picture. It’s a big illusion.’
At a time when AI has been able to create images of the Pope in a huge white puffer jacket and Donald Trump being arrested, you might think Kenichi Ohno’s extraordinary photo had been digitally altered
A third said, “No, this is not by AI. A human named Kenichi Ohno took this award-winning photo that will blow your mind.”
And a fourth confessed: “That fooled me for a minute. I thought that must be an edit.’
In fact, even those who rated the photo chose it from 5,600 photos entered in the competition.
According to My modern encounter, they said: ‘A strange photo with a strong impact. It’s interesting that we can’t immediately understand how it was taken.
“It’s one taken because of the windless conditions. It shows us that the smallest difference can make a big difference in a photo.
“It’s difficult to photograph nature when man-made objects come into view, but in this case they play a good supporting role and enhance the image.”