Take a step back in time and visit the local Chevrolet dealer. This is not just a photo of a vintage dealership, this is a photo of a couple of die-cast cars in a diorama that looks like a dealership.

It is tough to argue the fact that life is built on perceptions. It’s sad, but it seems like everyone feels that someone else has it better. Perceptions can be a good thing, as hopefully it makes a person what to improve him or herself. How you look at yourself and others can put things into perspective. Sometimes though, a person’s perspective can be misleading. It can make you think that something is real when it is not. Take for instance all of the images we have included here today. Would you believe that none of these images includes a real, fully-functioning vehicle? That’s right, these are all die-cast models.

There are a lot of model builders that take photos of their creations, but you can probably count on one hand, those that put as much effort and craftsmanship into the projects as Michael Paul Smith. He is a true artist that has taken model building and photography a step further. Simply put, his photos force your mind to travel back in time.

We cannot find anything in this image that would suggest it was a small diorama.

His photos of automotive history are helping him create an imaginary town that he calls Elgin Park. The images are so life like because of his choice of backgrounds, lighting, and subject matter. In order for Michael to make his images so believable, he has studied what makes a photo look like an old photo.

With the help of Photoshop, he is able to get the look of an old black and white image, further enhancing the realism. Let’s also be clear, Photoshop is not used to alter the image, it merely applies a filter to create the black and white vintage appearance.

In case you didn’t notice, there are no people in any of Michael’s images. By not placing people in the images, it allows the viewer to actually imagine themselves in the image. The cars that are the subjects of his images are from his collection of Danbury Mint and Franklin Mint die casts.

If you think that the trees, factories, and houses look real, that’s because they are. Getting the perspective correct means that Michael strategically sets his models up on a card table near a street or parking lot, and then positions his camera in a way that lines up the camera angle and the horizon to match that of the model. It’s all about getting the perspective just right. The lighting looks correct, because the sun lights both the background and the model at the same angle. Michael also does night time images, which are typically photographed inside his apartment using a very simple lighting setup. He also duplicates different weather conditions like rain-soaked roads or curbs drifted with snow that is made of baking soda.

Although we have chosen a few of Michael’s images to show you, you can see all of his work by checking out his web site about his imaginary town, Elgin Park.