What do you do if you’re a professional
photographer who is stuck at home because of a worldwide pandemic? Erin Sullivan’s work normally has her
traveling all over to capture moods and marvelous scenery. But, that’s can be a little hard to do when you’re confined to your home.
But this clever shutterbug decided not to let four walls keep her from shooting some incredible nature scenes while indoors. How? Like any talented
artist, she took advantage of her surroundings by repurposing things in her
home. And the results can not be believed!
Sullivan named this
photo series #ErinsGreatIndoors and shares the photos on her Instagram account, @erinoutdoors.
“When I was a kid and couldn’t fall asleep, I’d go under the covers and imagine adventure scenes. A fold in the
sheets could have been a mountain or a wave,” she
posted. “With all the time I have been spending at home lately, these scenes have come back to the front of my mind. I thought it would be fun to create them in my apartment while I’m not traveling. Staying home is literally a lifesaver right now, and your inner artist can thrive given any restrictions.”
Her first
photo in the series was created to look like an
ice cave and brave adventurers paddling through frigid waters. In fact, it’s bedsheets, some strategic lighting and photo editing:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-P6a_ZJ4t2/
Looking for something a little less chilly, but still on the
water? Sullivan created a sunny image that was inspired by memories of fishing with her grandpa. “On summer days we’d go stand on the pier and try to catch something,” she
wrote. And though I never really had the patience for fishing growing up, it was always about the time spent together anyway.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B_AdfZppAE1/
“This image was created with tin foil, a toothbrush, a lamp under a sheet, and tiny people from a train set,” she wrote on Instagram. When you swipe through all of the photos on this post, you can see the raw set-up in the final image — which makes her work all the more impressive.
Sullivan also created a slot canyon out of paper bags that, on first glance, looks just like a stunning sandstone landscape in Utah with a hiker trekking through. In the last images in this post, she also included a photo and video that show how she got the shot, so you’ll want to swipe through to see them all:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-YH5vIJl7R/
Not all of Sullivan’s images are exactly realistic. Have you ever dreamed of mountains of
pancakes and a river of maple syrup? Well, here they are brought to life, complete with a waterfall of syrup!
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-p5rVUpcQf/
To enjoy this entire series and get some more behind-the-scenes information on how Sullivan crafts these landscapes, you can head over to her
Instagram account to see all the images.