Surrealism is more than just a concept, it is an intellectual and creative mental process committed to representing the world in strange and abstract ways. This artistic movement first began in France during the 1920’s as both visual artworks and writings. It committed itself to otherworldly and unconscious expressions that were often bordered between reality and dream in order to disturb the viewers recognition. Some key words that describe surrealism are bizarre, unusual, weird, freakish, unearthly, absurd, and dreamlike.

There are many techniques that can be utilized in order to successfully develop a surrealistic image; some which are very simple and others that are much more involved depending on the degree of Surrealism that the artist wants to achieve. Although editing software such as Photoshop can be a key tool to create surrealistic art, it is not a requirement. Some simple techniques that can be done “in camera” include long exposures, unusual perspectives, photographing objects out of place (Juxtaposition), intentional camera movement, abstract forms, and many more. If you enjoy or wish to manipulate images using photo editing software, some examples to achieve Surrealism include multiple exposures, Infrared or monotone, HDR or over-processing images to make it look unrealistic, adding unusual objects to the image, or manipulating the scale of objects or features such as eyes and mouths to create strange looking scenes or portraits. Whichever technique you choose during your creative process, remember that the goal is to create an unusual and dreamlike image.

I encourage you to seek out Surrealism and Surrealistic images to give you an idea of the style you wish to achieve and for additional inspiration. There have been many past Photochallenges that have involved Surrealism including the annual Halloween challenges, Levitation, Forced Perspective, Picception, Infrared, Out of Place, Translucent Long Exposure, Unusual Perspective, Abstract Portrait, Abstract Landscape, Harris Shutter, Juxtaposition, and the most representative “This is Not a Pipe”. You can click on any of these past challenges which will link you to the challenge write ups for a more detailed description. You can also search these past challenges on our Facebook page to see more great examples.

Below are some other examples from past challenges that embrace Surrealism, many of them which did not require Photoshop. Remember to keep an open mind, be creative, and have fun!

To recap this week’s challenge:

• Take a new photo that represents our reality in strange and abstract ways defined as Surrealism
• Post your photo during the week of Sunday, September 1st and Saturday, September 7th.
• Please remember to comment on at least FIVE photo submissions this week by answering the question “why?” in your comments. In other words, “why do I like (or not like) this photo? or “why did this photo catch my eye?”

The friendly community guidelines are pretty simple:

• Take a new photo for the current weekly theme, not something from your back catalog or someone else’s image.
• Post your photo each week to our active communities on Facebookor Flickr (or both). Tag the photo:  #2019photochallenge #photochallenge #tempusaura
• Don’t leave home without your camera. Participating in the 2019 Trevor Carpenter Photo Challenge is fun and easy.

Now retrieving an image set.

Sony a7 III (ILCEM3K/B) Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable-Lens Camera with 28-70mm Lens with 3-Inch LCD, Black

(2165)

$1,698.00 (as of 25 August 2024 12:10 GMT -04:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)

Now retrieving an image set.

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

(16929)

$125.00 (as of 25 August 2024 12:10 GMT -04:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)