Photo mosaic

A photo mosaic of a balloon

Elfstedentocht monument (photo mosaic) on a bridge near Giekerk

Photo mosaic 800 years of Anhalt with the motif from the Bauhaus Dessau

A photo mosaic is a picture, usually in Posters - or poster size , made up of many small photos. The concept is based on the technique of mosaic , in which a pattern or image is created by joining different colored parts. Viewed from a distance, the small pictures merge into a large overall picture. The creation of photo mosaics is made possible in a short time with computer programs.

There are numerous aspects to consider in order to create a photo mosaic. The main thing to consider is the size of the individual images in relation to the overall image. A single image should be so large that it can still be seen clearly and sharply and the effect looks interesting. At the same time, there must not be too few, too large individual images so that the main motif remains clearly visible.

term

The photo mosaic is the modern descendant of the mosaic . The mosaic is an art term that stands for the technique of joining individual particles. It is a surface decoration. For this purpose, murals or floors are decorated with individual, differently colored pieces of clay, wood, stone, glass or similar materials. A characteristic of the mosaic is that the individual parts are arranged in such a way that they in turn create a new image or pattern. The term itself is derived from late Latin. The Musaicum was a work dedicated to the Greek muses.

Origin and history

The original mosaic has been known since ancient times. The art of mosaic is one of the oldest art techniques. Forerunners of the mosaic were already 3000 years BC. Manufactured. From around the 8th century BC. Pebble mosaics appear. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC The Greeks revolutionized the mosaic by incorporating figures and pictures into their mosaics. For the first time, colored stones were used that were cut uniformly. These cut stones are called tessera in the mosaic art .

The further development to the photo mosaic

It is obvious that an art movement that has developed and is widespread over the millennia will continue to develop. Photography and image processing enabled the production of photo mosaics in the 90s.

The specialty of the photo mosaics is that the individual "stones" are themselves photos and contain image motifs. An image is created from many images. The adjacent pictures together form a main motif. This creates the effect of two image levels for the viewer. If the photo mosaic is viewed from a distance, only the main image can be seen. When you get closer, the underlying image level becomes clear and the individual photo tiles become visible.

Photo mosaic techniques

There are currently three options for creating a photo mosaic:

Color value: Each photo tile receives a color value and is put together to form a photo mosaic.

Color matching: The individual photos are sorted according to their color and put together to form the main picture.

Coloring: The tiles are tinted and placed with the color of the main photo.

Arrangement of the pictures

There are numerous options for arranging the individual photos in the photo mosaics. Multi-layered mosaic structures are more pleasant to human perception than simple, clear structures. A system of confusing-looking placement of the photo tiles has established itself. In this variant, photos in portrait and landscape format alternate at random. The next simpler arrangement variant is the staggered structure, in which the individual photos are placed horizontally shifted.

Calculation example

Based on a typical photo format (4: 3) and a poster size of, for example, 60 cm × 45 cm, the following relationship arises:

60 × 60 = 3600 individual images are required to display the overall image. Each individual image is 10 mm × 4.5 mm in size, assuming an aspect ratio of 4: 3 for the individual images. If fewer individual images are used, the main motif appears less clear. Using a smaller poster size, the 3600 individual images very small and ordinary are Ausbelichtungsverfahren z. B. 300 ppi no longer recognizable. This is also the case in the example of the balloon mosaic above.

Freeware software generally trims the square center of the photo and loses the edges. This can be disadvantageous for many subjects. Mosaic pictures only make sense from a size of 80 cm × 60 cm - optimally from 100 cm × 70 cm or similar. Then with approx. 1000–1200 mosaic stones individual picture sizes of 2 cm × 2 cm to 3 cm × 3 cm result. These are then also very easy to see on printouts.

Web links

Commons : Photo mosaics - collection of images, videos, and audio files