Okay, kind of a stretch for the theme...but I'm still trying to think of something ;). This is just some shadows and light (but just one photo). The only photoshopping is the usual (levels and sharpening). I suppose it could be an illusion--if you think of it as a scene and perhaps dimension that do not exist.
Hi Simon! Actually that's not normal image noise (at least I don't think it is), it's just the texture of the paper surface (a black folder). I leaned a black folder against a large book (to stand it upright), and lined up a couple of objects in front of it. Then I aimed two flashlights at the folder and past the objects, aiming in slightly different directions. One of them I handheld. Melanie
Melanie, I'm driven to ask - how did you do this? (although knowing might destroy the illusion (is that an Eden premise? :)). This, to me, feels Egyptian and conveys a time either in the distant past or future. Would be nice to see without noise but losing the subtle shadow detail would be a crime. - Simon Bennett.