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#2499 TECHNIQUE DISCUSSION: Forced perspective

Forced perspective is difficult to achieve, and these builders absolutely nail it! Trick your eye with these builds, and learn a clever cinematic technique along the way.


Number 2499 TECHNIQUE DISCUSSION: Forced perspective. Forced perspective is difficult to achieve, and these builders absolutely nail it! Trick your eye with these builds, and learn a clever cinematic technique along the way. Use optical illusion to create dynamic scenes rich with storytelling. This post will demonstrate mind- bending techniques! Front page build shows a Minas Tirith MOC by @jnj_bricks

What is forced perspective? Forced perspective is a technique that manipulates an audience’s visual perception. When done successfully, forced perspective makes objects appear to be farther away, closer, larger or smaller than they actually are. Objects are scaled in relation to the camera angle to “force” the viewer into perceiving an optical illusion. This MOC by Ru Corder on Flickr is a superb example to start with. The street becomes thinner while the buildings get smaller towards the back. This makes the buildings in the back look further away! See how the window size decreases to assist this effect.

LEGO has released two sets that showcase forced perspective. The San Francisco skyline shrinks the second bridge tower to give the effect that the Golden Gate Bridge is receding into the distance. The Peter Pan set uses a variety of scales to replicate this iconic Disney scene. The base is the set’s background built in microscale, using 1x2 arches for bridges. Big Ben is also replicated at a small scale, but larger to create a midground, appearing closer to the minifigures than the city below.

A minifigure in front of a microscale structure is a great technique to achieve forced perspective. Place your minifigure in the foreground so the small scenery seems much grander in the distance. Both builds here, one Minas Tirith by @jnj_bricks and the other a snowy medieval scene by @littlejohn_brickbuilt have details in the earth like claw pieces to make the foreground more textured and focused than the flat tiles and smooth parts used in the mid and backgrounds.

Forced perspective gives a cinematic effect, making it perfect for recreating movie scenes. This Wizard of Oz display by Livin’TheBrickLife on Flickr combines techniques we learned in the previous slides. A shrinking yellow brick road, going from 16 to 2 studs wide, leads up to a microscale Emerald City. These two techniques together make the city appear much further away!

When building a microscale background, consider what NPU you can incorporate to get your idea across with minimal parts. @letrangerabsurde creates a nuclear explosion MOC that uses a chef hat and minifigure neck frill for the explosion. In a Jack and the Beanstalk MOC, @grantdvs1 layers 4x4x11 panels to create the illusion of a winding road in the distance.

Forced perspective allows you to create striking scenes without using too many parts. These two MOCs, one Barad-dur by @hubba_blooba and the other the Ratatouille sign in Paris by @hunblebricks are fully in microscale! Here, forced perspective is achieved by familiarity with the depicted objects. We know both Sauron and Eiffel’s towers are massive, which tricks our eyes into seeing the Black Gate and La Ratatouille sign up close.

If you can’t get enough on this topic, check out these two fantastic articles by BrickNerd on forced perspective that feature some incredible builders! Follow @bricknerd on instagram and follow the URLs in our description!

Builds by @jnj_bricks @littlejohn_brickbuilt @letrangerabsurde @grantdvs1 @hubba_blooba @humblebricks and Ru Corder and Livin’TheBrickLife on Flickr


Also check out these @bricknerd articles:

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