Erik Johansson is an ace Swedish photographer and retouch artist extraordinaire. He specializes in producing some of the craziest portfolios ever seen. He mastered his art through pure self coaching, practice, and his own innovative applications. Believe it or not, but Mr. Erik never adds any photograph in his portfolio without retouching it during post production. But, there’s a keen sense of application and careful cognitive process that goes into this enigmatic procedure of his.
What’s more, even though he delves into the sublime and enigmatic world of innovative retouch photography, his images still possess a sense of realism. Viewers will be compelled to believe that he actually managed to shoot these images; such is the mastery and dexterity with which he retouches them. What makes his viewers really connect with Johannson is the fact that apart from admiring his great skill, meticulousness, and unique talent, they can also relate to how his retouched pictures look like everyday scenes. Johannson believes that no matter how incredible he wants his images to appear, he also ensures that they imbue a feeling of realism and normality. This work ethic of his echoed in an interview with “Don’t Panic” magazine where he explains the motifs behind his photography. “My goal is to make pictures as realistic as possible, but at the same time impossible. Many photographers try to look weird, so I try to make my shots as plausible as possible. I would say I try to use humor a lot and I rarely have a didactic message. Sometimes I want to tell something, but mostly I want people to interpret,” said Johansson.
The conservationist that he is, Erik also tries to conceal subtle hints towards environmental preservation in his works. Sometimes, if his pictures denote an urban setting, there’d be a smart underlying message showing what might happen to our flora and fauna in the near future. In other cases, if his pictures are about an interior setting, they could signify whether the insides of our abode might become the new outside in the future. Let’s take a look at some of the most unbelievable and enigmatic pictures from the repertoire of Mr. Erik Johansson.
Johansson is forever persevering to reinvent his work, while maintaining his signature flair of realism and conservationism amidst all the craziness. Erik had another piece of brilliant advice to offer to budding aspirants who’d like to follow in his footsteps. He says, “I think the most important thing is to make a note of every idea, otherwise it might be gone in a few seconds.”
Photo Credits - Erik Johansson
You can also watch his TED talk here.