Forced perspective

This article is about the photography technique. For the Fringe episode, see Forced Perspective (Fringe). For the 2015 documentary film, see Forced Perspective (film).
This image makes the Paranal Observatory's laser guide stars "meeting point" feel closer than it really is. In reality, the beams extend to an infinite distance.

Forced perspective is a technique that employs optical illusion to make an object appear farther away, closer, larger or smaller than it actually is. It manipulates human visual perception through the use of scaled objects and the correlation between them and the vantage point of the spectator or camera. It has uses in photography, filmmaking and architecture.