Make it smaller.

vroom vroom. 

I have been experimenting with tilt-shift photography.

Well...

That's not quite true.  I have been experimenting with photoshop and creating a tilt-shift effect on photographs I took ten years ago.

"Tilt-shift" is a method where you actually tilt the lens of your SLR camera in order to achieve a more shallow focus.  This effect can cause objects in your photos to appear to be miniature.  Many times they end up looking like toys, or meticulously constructed dioramas for use with model trains.

I have fallen in love with the effect.  It presents the world as a land of playthings.  Nothing here is dangerous or serious.  Everything is whimsical and trivial.  Smaller.

Its a trick of course.  Smoke and mirrors.  Tilt-shift photographs are nothing more than specifically placed blur effects and over saturated colors.  It's not even hard.

That's why its appealing.

The world is a harsh and severe place.  People get bombed at marathons in Boston and fertilizer plants explode in Texas.  I have high blood pressure and my daughter needs dental surgery.  I crave the simplistic trickery of an altered perspective that makes it all seem manageable.  Smaller.

Orange County History Center.

If you want to see more, this video is probably the best example of this method done right.  I love the helicopters landing and taking off. Check it out.