Photographic manipulation is a popular technique that allows artists to embody the most daring and surreal ideas with the help of Photoshop. If you are new to this field, you may find some inspiration by following the leading photo manipulation artists. We invite you to get acquainted with some of the outstanding photographers who create unique projects combining photography and illustration in Adobe Photoshop. Their pictures are a prime example of the use of innovative methods that are different from traditional photography.
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
Unique style: Landscape manipulations
Let’s start, perhaps, with the most famous representative of this surreal movement Erik Johansson. This Swedish photographer and retoucher has a wit and excellent sense of humor, which forms the basis for his photographs. According to Erik, he draws inspiration for his photo manipulation ideas from the most usual things, but what he has in the end – it is not exactly the usual one.
To succeed in photo manipulation, you need the right skills and a lot of time. If you have poor experience in picture editing or are limited in time, then you can turn to specialized services, such as WeEdit.Photos, for help. They will provide you with stunning results at very reasonable photo editing prices. Professional photo retouchers will quickly deal with both basic and advanced manipulations, taking into account all your needs.
Location: Derbyshire, UK
Unique style: Surreal self-portraits
Rosie Hardy is known for her creative self portrait photography ideas implemented through photo manipulation techniques and dreamy settings. In her projects, she covers such topics as inspiration, loneliness, and social media. She positions herself as an escape artist. To learn more about Rosie and her work, you can visit her blog.
This photo manipulator prefers to use somber romantic colors to create an atmosphere of tranquility and romance. Despite extraordinary props, Rosie manages to create realistic worlds thanks to her incredible skills. Rosie Hardy enhances her images using the power of GIMP features. This program is a popular photo editing software for photographers.
Location: Portland, Oregon
Unique style: Self-portraits in abandoned locations
Abandoned homes were among the things that inspired Kyle to take up photography. You can still see similar objects in his pictures. However, now she is more interested in self-portraits taken in deserted places. Kyle forges a deep emotional connection with the audience through the display of the darker side of human nature. His pictures often give off depressing feelings of loneliness and emptiness.
Being one of the best digital manipulation photographers, Thompson can create raw and haunting portraits that won’t leave anyone indifferent. Although he works primarily in the self-portrait genre, the photographer often hides his face so that a viewer can imagine himself as the main subject in the image. Another unique feature of Kyle’s work is that he only uses the basics of Photoshop composting.
Location: Los Angeles, USA
Unique style: Dark and moody themes in square format
Brooke is a famous fine art photographer. She often creates an amazing world through photo manipulation. Since Brooke is a shy person, it is not easy for her to collaborate with models. That’s why she started taking pictures of herself and making amazing dark self-portraits. Through her work, Brooke tries to convey the essence of the juxtaposition of light and dark sides in every person.
Looking through her photos, you may think that they are illustrations for a fantasy storybook or taken from the museum walls. Initially, she did not use a professional computer for photo editing and was also short of resources and equipment. Brooke is one of the top digital photography artists these days, but she continues to model for many of her projects.
Location: Moscow, Russia
Unique style: Human interaction with nature
Platon Yurich is a Russian photographer known for his unusual combination of fine art and the surreal world in his graphics. Platon is an experienced filmmaker, a classy surrealist, and a creative director.
A special connection between humans with the interaction of nature is the basis for his surrealistic scenes. His professional image manipulation skills allow you to turn ordinary landscapes into marvelous pieces of art.
Location: Bruxelles, Belgia
Unique style: Manipulations with paint and other fluids
Photographer Christophe Gilbert is one of the top and most talented advertising photographers. The works of Christophe are known and sought-after, but little is known about the master of the lens. Christophe Gilbert is one of those photo manipulation artists who pay great attention to detail. He believes that the smallest details can be critical to getting your message across.
His portfolio includes tons of impressive photographs. There you can see his incredible manipulations with paint, water and other similar fluids. Christopher has collaborated with many famous brands.
Location: Derbyshire, UK
Unique style: Surreal self-portraits
Rosie Hardy is known for her creative self portrait photography ideas implemented through photo manipulation techniques and dreamy settings. In her projects, she covers such topics as inspiration, loneliness, and social media. She positions herself as an escape artist. To learn more about Rosie and her work, you can visit her blog.
Do you remember the popular Pringles’ Hot&Spicy advertisement? Riccardo is its author. He is known for his catchy ads that stand out from the traditional product pictures. Ricardo aims to get viewers interested in the product and make them know the brand better.
Location: Beirut, Lebanon
Unique style: Underwater manipulations
Lara Zankoul mastered all the basics and principles of photography on her own. She has achieved amazing results through continuous experimentation with settings, ideas, and the like. Lara continues to hone her skills despite already participating in several international galleries. Everyday people’s behavior and social issues are the main themes of her work.
This photo manipulator tries not only to convey her idea but also to make people think about this or that problem. You can see amazing and varied work from Lara. She creates colorful pictures with strong lines and patterns.
Location: Toronto, Canada
Unique style: Environmental motifs
Andric Ljubodrag is a Yugoslav-born photographer who lives in Canada. He specializes in advertising photography and creates unique, inimitable works subtly combining humor with wit. Andric’s hyper-realistic photographic style is a unique blend of refined atmosphere and effortless visual simplicity.
The photographer creates fantastic illusions by editing images on his own. Andric Ljubodrag has worked on advertising projects for famous brands, such as AT&T, Corona, and Capital One.
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Unique style: Funny manipulations
Frank is one of the most talented Belgian digital manipulation photographers. He shot advertising images for Volkswagen, Delta Lloyd, Peugeot, and other companies. Also, his portfolio includes photographs with a hilarious combination of children and animals.
Frank is known for his ability to convey the subtlest emotion through his work. He pays great attention to detail, uses photo manipulation skills to the fullest, and tries to direct a viewer in the right way. All this allows him to tell a whole story with one photo.
Location: Hamburg, Germany
Unique style: Urban photo montages
He is an art director and professional photographer who has won numerous awards for his work. Besides, he is one of the most popular photo manipulation artists. His Instagram page has over a million followers.
This artist uses his iPhone to take photos for his digital manipulations. His images look mysterious, surreal, haunting and attract a huge audience. Robert Jahns further refines his pics with various iPhone photo editors so that people can enjoy his awesome imagery.
Location: Puglia, Italy
Unique style: Sky montages
Charlie Davoli specializes in making montages and collages from edits of pictures he took with his iPhone. His series of surreal works takes our breath away and makes us look at our reality from a new angle.
His photo manipulation work is different from classic pencil vs camera ideas. When editing his photographs, Charlie Davoli uses a wide range of digital manipulations, including blending different places into the same scene.
Location: Nuremberg, Germany
Unique style: Surreal landscapes
Tim El-Helou is a talented 23-year-old photo manipulation artist. He often plays with objects’ resemblance to place them in an out-of-place environment, and change their size. You can find tons of useful tips on editing by subscribing to his YouTube channel.
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Unique style: Manipulations with animals
Jose’s love for nature and animals manifests in his work. He places animals in mystical and magical settings. Most of his work conveys the tranquility of nature and heavily features blue toning. The most impressive part is that he is a self-taught photo manipulation artist.
Location: Mechelen, Belgium
Unique style: Controversial themes
Frieke is not afraid to tackle controversial topics, which makes her work so eye-grabbing. She likes using elaborate sets with props and adding another dimension to an image with the help of photo manipulation. Her original work is often featured in ads, as well as on covers and posters.