This photographer will make you see London in a completely different way

Conceptual artist James Popsys puts a surreal spin on the capital and other destinations
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Liz Connor18 August 2017

Photographer James Popsys says his passion in life is to make people smile.

The conceptual artist has gained a cult following on Instagram for his playful photographs of London and other destination cities, using Photoshop to transform everyday scenes into playful optical illusions.

Included within his witty pictures are familiar scenes that many Londoners will recognise, each with an unexpected twist that will make you take a second and third look.

There’s a London Underground station entrance in the middle of the countryside, Big Ben wearing a sleep mask and headphones and a District Line carriage flying through the clouds.

“When I first got myself a good camera, I would do my best to get out and find pictures that hadn't been taken before,” Popsys told The Evening Standard.

“Invariably though I would notice that several other people were aiming for the same shots as me.

“After that happened a couple of times I knew I needed to find another way to create original stuff. That's about the time I found Photoshop.“

The series started as a hobby for the London-based photographer, when he would spend his weekends walking around the streets of the capital and filling up memory card after memory card of pictures. It’s since become a full-time career.

Normally the 27-year-old photographer uses a Nikon full-frame DSLR, but he says that some of his most popular images were created on his iPhone.

“If you can match the perspective and light in all the photos you want to stitch together there's no reason why any camera can't do the job,” he says.

Popsys says that Japan and China are next on his list of destinations to shoot, but admits that there are many places in London he's yet to aim his lens at.

Follow James Popsys on Instagram: @jamespopsys

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