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How to levitate by standing next to a wet spot on the sidewalk

Mark Frauenfelder at 11:59 am Tue, Feb 9, 2010

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201002091158 I like this illusion.

Mark Frauenfelder is the founder of Boing Boing and the editor-in-chief of MAKE and Cool Tools. Twitter: @frauenfelder. Come and hear Mark speak at the ALA conference in Chicago on July 1.

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  • motus-anima

    Photoshop or not, this is a nice illusion.

  • Anonymous

    Who pissed on the sidewalk?

  • Anonymous

    You can however see the shadow under the toe of his right foot. Remember kids photo shop exists.

    The Smith.

  • Anonymous

    Just cover the wet spot with your finger tip and the illusion disappears !!

  • Anonymous

    But how did the wet spot get there to begin with?

  • Anonymous

    I am not convinced. The light looks strong enough to cast a shadow, but I don’t see any shadowing, not even between his feet. If I zoom in on the pram in the right, I can see some shadowing.

  • Anonymous

    Once you see… you can’t un-see…

  • Anonymous

    this illusion is simple, can be done on ANY DAY.

    doesn’t matter if it is sunny or cloudy, all you need is photoshop to edit the picture to remove your shadow.

    a very well done image though.

  • joeposts

    Is that how David Blaine does it?

    • merreborn

      First thing I thought of as well.

      For the record, Blaine uses a combination of camera tricks and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balducci_levitation

  • roryrhorerton

    Also, to take this photo without ‘shopping, you’d need to do it at the exact time the sun is directly overhead, or else your own shadow is gonna ruin things. Also, you better hope you’re no wider than your feet, or else your shadow will give you away then, too.

  • suburbanburn

    Do not attempt this illusion on a sunny day. Shadow will destroy illusion.

  • Anonymous

    Only works on an overcast day, eh?

  • Anonymous

    I still can’t get my mind to show me him levitating.

  • Precarious Loaf

    I do the same illusion in bed.

    • oheso

      You beat me to it!

  • gollux

    And after watching that Mandelbrot thing, I see him alternatively hovering and standing. Bad visual acid trip…

  • Chris Spurgeon

    All I can say is thank goodness that that guy isn’t holding a pink Oujia board.

  • InsertFingerHere

    Homeless people call the ‘Doug Henning’.

  • Anonymous

    he actually stand on road and the wet spot is on his north east few inches away. lol

  • Anonymous

    It seams that Romanians can levitate.The picture was taken in Iasi Romania.Cool!

  • coop

    Anon @6

    Don’t look at his feet, look at his face or chest, and ‘just barely notice’ the spot. It does look like a shadow over which he is hovering.

    neat

  • Anonymous

    at high noon