DIGIT-AL ART: HANDY COLLECTION UNVEILED
Here's a collection of art for the DIGIT-AL age as these fascinating illusions of landmarks, places and even a banana are made using just a pair of hands. The quirky collection of images were created using hand models and body paint to create visions of a castle, church, and two footballers flying into a tackle. London based photographer Ray Massey KNUCKLED down to capture the images with each of the designs each taking a day to paint and shoot with the help of hand artist Annie Ralli. Together they made a FIST of also bringing to life a pen and pencil pot, a ribbon, mosque and cute wildlife adaptations of a daisy and a ladybird. Each image sees the hands and fingers carefully crossed, bent, or partially hidden to the millimetre to cleverly angle the palms and digits into the lifelike images. The intricate detail was then painted on the shapes and blended in to create the illusions, including one creation that sees a hand arch down to appear to become a banana skin. In others a sporting trophy is created by two joined hands bending at the knuckles and two hands are cleverly pushed together to form what appears to be a cosy bed. Ray said professional hand models had to be used for the shoot because fingers are often so unattractive to look at. He said: "Hands are always particularly difficult to shoot, they are not pretty items, they're basically very ugly. "The benefit of a good hand model is not just having good hands, it is also important to be able to pose your hands. "So we had to employ professional hand models. Our biggest concern was to use proper body painting materials, in order not to damage their skin. "Most of the images took four to six hours to paint, the rest of the day is spent capturing images and the hand painting artist adjusting elements accordingly.
Other great stories
NAKED SLACKLINERS TACKLE NEW CHALLENGES
BALANCING 30 metres above ground, these slackliners take the expression of living dangerously one step further, by tightrope walking NAKED .
WORLD’S ONLY ONE ARMED PRO-DJ
DANCE guru Matt Howes leaves crowds in a spin when he gets behind the decks - as the world's only one-armed professional DJ .
FROZEN IN TIME LIGHTHOUSE
This frozen lighthouse in Michigan could easily be mistaken for a still from the snow swept disaster movie The Day After Tomorrow .
MUM TOLD GET DOWN GYM FATTY
Sarah Gould, before weight loss Mum told "get down the gym fatty" -A 20 stone woman who was told "get down the gym fatty" on a night out has shed a third of her weight in time for her dream wedding .
INCREDIBLE BABY DREAMS BROUGHT TO LIFE
WHETHER FLOATING through space or diving underwater, a lucky baby boy enjoys once in a life time experiences - in his DREAMS .
STAG SHOWS OFF IMPRESSIVE HEADDRESS IN LONDON'S BUSHY PARK
A proud stag attempts to impress the females by donning an enormous fern headdress in London's Bushy Park .
THE WORLD'S MOST EXPENSIVE BABY COT
A LUXURY baby cot has hit the shelves with a price tag just shy of 10 MILLION POUNDS .
CHRISTMAS SNOWMAN ATTRACTS CURIOUS SQUIRREL
Peering curiously into a basket hanging off the arms of a snowman, this little squirrel appears fascinated by the snowy figure .
IT'S BEHIND YOU: PHOTOGRAPHER IN WALES IGNORES GIANT WAVES
Southern England, the south-west and west Wales have been warned to expect more wild weather, with heavy rain and high tides possibly leading to coastal flooding and travel disruption over the weekend .
FATHER-OF-ONE STUNS WIFE AFTER REVEALING POLE DANCING SECRET
A father-of-one stunned his wife of twenty-five years after revealing his secret love of POLE DANCING .
SEAL GETS READY FOR HIS CLOSE UP
WIDE EYED and staring straight down the lens of the camera, this intrigued seal is ready for his close up .
GIANT CANYON SWING
FORGET Thorpe Park this summer as this is a 50 mile-per-hour ride over the Colorado River CANYON .