# Haunting Hybrid Photography This Surreal Photo Manipulation Series is Mysterious and Poignant By Farida Helmy | Published 2014-06-10 | Tech Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/surreal-photo-manipulation-series References: [mymodernmet](http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/alex-timmermans-collodion-photography) & [alextimmermans](http://www.alextimmermans.com) This monochrome and surreal photo manipulation series is eerily poignant and mesmerizingly mysterious. Captured using a [unique photography technique](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nonnas-cam) called the wet collodion process, the surreal photo manipulation series will make you question what you see in the images in front of you. Created by self-taught Dutch photographer Alex Timmermans, the series uses updated traditional photographic techniques to produce his dreamy and unusual portraits and [fine art photographs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/still-life-1). To create only one of these images takes an extensive amount of work -- but as you can see it is definitely worth it. "Seeing a picture changing in the fixer bath—from a negative to a positive—is a magic spectacle which makes it worthwhile to spend so much time and energy on it," says Timmermans. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 3.4/10 - Popularity: 50% | Activity: 44% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Tech](https://www.trendhunter.com/tech) > [Photography](https://www.trendhunter.com/photography) ## Key Themes ### Key Themes Behind This Trend - **Monochrome Photography:** The trend towards monochrome and highly stylized photography is influencing many photographers in a variety of industries to get creative with their image production. - **Surrealism Art:** The trend towards surrealism is creating opportunities for artists and photographers to push the bounds of imagination and produce work that is enigmatic and ethereal. - **Traditional Art Techniques:** The trend towards using traditional art techniques, such as wet collodion process and film photography, is encouraging artists and photographers to explore unconventional image production methods. ### Where This Applies - **Fine Art Photography:** Fine art photography industries can take advantage of the monochrome and surreal trends, using them to produce unique images and draw attention to their work. - **Fashion Photography:** Fashion photographers can use the surreal trend to create dreamy and ethereal images that capture attention and stand out among a sea of competitors. - **Advertising Photography:** Advertising photographers can utilize the trend towards traditional art techniques and unconventional image production methods to create visually striking and attention-grabbing campaigns. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Painting-Immersive Photo Exhibits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/new-ground-exhibition.md) - [Blurry Abstract Photography Exhibits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/optical-allusion.md) - [AI-Generated Retrofuturistic Objects](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/retrofuturistic-objects.md) - [AI-Generated Real-World Transformations](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ai-generated-world.md) - [Artistic Photography Instant Cameras](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/moir-21-instant-film-camera.md) - [Otherwordly Art Exhibitions](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/william-monk.md) - [Paper Curvature Lights](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/paper-curves.md) - [Statement Street Art](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/surreal-street-art-1.md) - [Time-Altering Digital Portraits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/time-machine-feature.md)