Optical illusion: Is this woman floating on ‘magic carpet’?

A photo captured by Nick Hannes created an optical illusion in which a woman was seemingly floating on a magic carpet during her speech at a Belgium beach.

The photographer Nick Hannes captured the mind-bending photo of the woman speaker who was addressing a European Union (EU) event in which she appeared to be floating in the air – seemingly on a magic carpet – above a Belgium beach.

The shadow seen underneath holds the clue to the visual phenomenon at play – an optical illusion. The photo has long fascinated people by manipulating perspective and depth perception.

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At first, the viewers tend to perceive the speaker as floating in the air above the sand. However, a closer look reveals that the podium-like platform, on which she’s standing, has flat edges.

However, a closer look reveals that the podium-like platform, on which she’s standing, has flat edges.

So what exactly caused the microphone stand to hover over the Belgian beach? If the podium is, in fact, floating, why does it appear to have a wavy surface?

It’s not heat shimmer and most definitely has nothing to do with atmospheric distortion that causes the apparent displacement of objects above the horizon.

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It’s the result of a stunning interplay of light and shadows that gives rise to this optical illusion.

The woman reading out her speech is standing on a podium which actually sits on the sand itself. The shadow seen “underneath” the platform is cast by a flagpole. The flag itself is not seen in the camera’s field of view (FOV), helping create the impression that the female speaker is floating above the beach. Have a look on the photo again.