You will never look at ants the same way after seeing these pictures!

I stumbled across these pictures taken by Andrey Pavlov, a professional Russian photographer. They depict ants performing various tasks that he stages, and then photographs using a macro lense. Supposedly these ants are 100% real and 100% alive. Amazing pics if you ask me- almost make me think they are human.

Here is a link to the website they were taken from (there are many other pics on this site)

Pics below:

adorable but in no way real

S and f. The ant doing clean and jerks is sweet.

Not to be a boo-bird, but I am calling fake on a lot of these pictures. They are very cool, but almost definitely fake.

Well.. Obviously the scene setting and staging is not real..and Photoshop is a wonderful toy, isn't it?

Aside from all that though...WOW... I *AM* impressed. This is another thread to show people in my digital photo class. I am sure they'll be as speechless as I am on the skill of the Photographer. Indeed... Nice catch!!

Very cool digial art - love the two ants with the
button, thread and needle.

This guy is obviously skilled at what he does. I am not sure if they are fake or not (and I'm not sure if there's any way to tell). Obviously, he staged the scenes, but the ants look real do they not? Macrophotography is certainly real Link and he has published what camera he uses:
Camera: Panasonic DMC-G3
Exposure: 1/160; focal number: F/22, 0
focal length: 97mm; ISO 200
Software: Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows

Anyone with common sense can tell these are forged and fake as a 3 dollar bill.... most likely a bored 8 year old ats member here

What he does is set up scenes in the path of an ant colony's foragers and waits for them to walk around on the set in a way that looks like they are doing somehting much more interesting

reply to post by steve95988


I'd love to see you do something just as creative and then be ridiculed as having the talent of an 8 year old

I HATE those little devils no matter how you present them!

Originally posted by Mkoll
reply to post by steve95988

 

I'd love to see you do something just as creative and then be ridiculed as having the talent of an 8 year old

edit on 25-4-2012 by Mkoll because: (no reason given)

let me get Photoshop pro and i will!
Its very obvious miss denial...

This is a description of how he supposedly does it (Link):

Andrey Pavlov wasn’t particularly interested in macro photography until seven years ago, when a spinal injury caused him to remain immobilized. That’s when he fell under the charm of these amazing earthlings called ants. He started reading books about them and their behavior, and became fascinated with the way the ant community cares for its weaker members – the children, the old, and the disabled. That’s when he realized they were creatures that commanded respect. This civilization that for the last 150 million years has mastered so many environmentally sustainable ways of surviving and evolving at the same time, really impressed him. So he made it a hobby to observe and take photos of these incredible insects.

Andrey Pavlov’s photography has been called many things, but whether it was “fake” or “photoshoped” they all pretty much suggested the same thing. And you can’t really blame people for thinking that while looking at his stunning photos. Let’s face it, it’s hard to believe anyone can train ants to pose for the camera like his subjects seem to do. But the truth is, the Russian photographer has indeed found a way to do just that. Although staged, believe it or not, Pavlov’s photography uses live characters! And here’s how he does it: as I mentioned above, he spent a lot of time studying ants, and he learned that they all follow a very specific path when they’re working. So all he has to do is find them, put the props right on their trail, set up some flash backgrouns and light reflectors, and just stand on the sidelines photographing the ants.

But how does someone train ants to do stuff like what we see in Andrey’s photos? He says it’s a proven fact that ants are very fast learners. It’s enough to grab the attention of just one member of the community, convince it to perform a trick, and the others will soon follow suit. He uses all kinds of things to attract the insects, from shiny coins, to his own fingers. It took him about three years to understand and get in touch with the tiny creatures, but now he knows just how to deal with them. He builds all the props himself in the several months he dedicates to his hobby. That’s right, every year, from May to October, Andrey Pavlov moves to a cottage in the countryside, where he likes to photograph red forest ants.

Those are awesome photos, both real and the "faked" ones!

Ants don't get enough credit. They are very interesting critters.
I actually feel bad for all of the any wars I have waged through-out the years.
I vow here and now to not disrupt their hills anymore.
Seriously.

Cool pics they have to be fake but still really cool

The photos is real. The background scenes is made in photoshop or whatever, BUT the ants is real and the objects they interact with. Ive followed this guy for a while now and read many articles about him in my photomagazine that I subscribe to. What he does is that he stage a set for the ants to interact with, and do their thing. He has patience, stays outdoors for many hours at the same spot where he knows ants will be, like on a "ant-path" and just take photos of them. You know, its not like he takes one photo of them, he probably takes like a thousends for every scene and pick one that is great.

I´ts so sad to read those stupid (and brobably jealous) comments that they are fake and Photoshop this and that. "I can make that in 5 min" Damn, whats up with you. Give the man some cred, he is an amazing artist that dont deserve BS from ignorant people that lacks EQ.

Originally posted by netlas
The photos is real. The background scenes is made in photoshop or whatever, BUT the ants is real and the objects they interact with. Ive followed this guy for a while now and read many articles about him in my photomagazine that I subscribe to. What he does is that he stage a set for the ants to interact with, and do their thing. He has patience, stays outdoors for many hours at the same spot where he knows ants will be, like on a "ant-path" and just take photos of them. You know, its not like he takes one photo of them, he probably takes like a thousends for every scene and pick one that is great.

I´ts so sad to read those stupid (and brobably jealous) comments that they are fake and Photoshop this and that. "I can make that in 5 min" Damn, whats up with you. Give the man some cred, he is an amazing artist that dont deserve BS from ignorant people that lacks EQ.

edit on 25-4-2012 by netlas because: (no reason given)

Its not jealousy. Its knowledge of photography. These are staged photos. The ants may be real, but at best they are superimposed onto backgrounds and setting. More than likely, each individual ant is added to the photo by itself.

The pics are great. They are not real.

jburg6

I think this is an amazing thread ..I love how Andrey Pavlov trains ants to pose for the camera with all the things he knows about the ants the pictures he has taken are breathtaking..

Now only if we could get a human collective in this day and age to do something just as positive, we might be able to save ourselves.
Ants,as annoying as they may be,are amazing and never fail to amaze me with their behavior.
peace,sugarcookie1 S&F

Actually getting ants to do these things is not as hard as you think.

As others have mentioned, ants follow a path.

What happens is that a scouting ant looks for a food source, leaving an enzyme trail for others to follow, if the scout ant finds food and comes back, you now have a steady stream of ants follow the scent trail.

You can experiment with this if you find a trail of ants, spray cleaner on the trail and then you will start to see the rest start wandering around.

Ants are very industrial, if they come across objects in their path, they will inspect them to see if they can be used in the nest or if they are a food source.

And they can lift objects many times their own weight.

So these pictures, shot at just the right time, are conceivable. Though some are obviously photshopped.

reply to post by steve95988

Ouch..... I'm paying a lot to learn how to have no common sense... lol

I wouldn't have the skill that photographer apparently does if I had a lifetime to work on it. He has talent I just lack....however, the technique he's using IS real enough and the core of the pictures are most likely as real as your own photo on your ID. No need to question quite everything. As I've learned this year in class, the limits of digital photography are FAR FAR beyond anything I knew in 35mm SLRs of the past.

Now..If I COULD shoot pictures like this technique makes possible, I wouldn't be in school...I'd be living comfortably and paying my loan debt with my pocket change.