50 Photos That Provide “Alternate Angles” On Events, Places, And Things You Might Not Have Seen Before (New Pics)
InterviewIt all depends on your perspective. Changing how you look at things—and we mean this quite literally—can really make you reconsider what you think you know… and spark your creativity while you’re at it.
The r/AlternateAngles subreddit does exactly what it says on the tin, and it does it well. Members of the online community share photos of iconic events and places. However, there’s a twist! The pics are taken from different angles than we’re used to seeing on the news, in history books, and on social media.
It’s a fresh way to look at history, art, and landmarks, and we’re so in love with the very idea that we couldn’t wait to share their best new featured photos with you, dear Pandas. As you’re scrolling down, upvote the photos that impressed you the most, and be sure to go and follow the subreddit to see their latest pics. Forget what you think you know, you’re about to see a different side to everything.
Bored Panda got in touch with the friendly team running r/AlternateAngles for a follow-up interview, and they were kind enough to answer our questions. Check out what a representative of the moderator team told us as you scroll down!
Oh, and what’s this? The previous article Bored Panda put together about r/AlternateAngles? Well, would you look at that? Why, that’ll be perfect if you want a follow-up after you’re done enjoying this list, Pandas.
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The 15 Mile-Long Shadow Of Mt. Fuji In Japan
One of the moderators who helps run the entire r/AlternateAngles community shared with Bored Panda their take on why the subreddit continues to be so popular and why people are so fascinated by entirely new perspectives.
"We are a unique subreddit that offers pictures that you don't normally see in other subs or the internet in general," they told Bored Panda, adding that sometimes you do see cross-posts from other subreddits or taken from the internet, e.g. from Facebook.
"I think the fascination of, for example, the back frame of the Mona Lisa, is something most people never get to see. We generally don't allow pictures of cats, dogs, food, and generic houses with some spin, but require famous artwork, people, monuments, or events—something everyone will recognize from all the famous photos that are published, but not from the perspective of the photo posted in our sub."
Under A Mushroom Cap
Forbidden Angle
The worst angle for a picture of a seal
In the mod's opinion, the perspective can completely change the tone and feel of the photo. However, they noted that most, if not all, of the images shared on r/AlternateAngles "aren't from professional photographers but instead by Joe Average with an iPhone instead of the latest and greatest digital camera" which means that the sub really is open to everyone. The angle and the idea behind it are more interesting than all the other technical fluff.
"It's those alternate angles that aren't well published that give people a unique perspective of a location, event, or artwork that they had never been made aware of."
The Inside Of A Cello
Saturn's North Pole Is A Hexagon
World, Pacific Ocean View
The mod took the Mona Lisa example a bit further to show the unique perspective (pun not intended) that the sub brings even more. "Everyone can go on the internet and see a picture or travel to the Louvre Museum. It was at an odd time while they were fixing the location that a few people could see the back side for the first time. The same could be applied to taking a photo of the Statue of Liberty looking straight up or a photo of 9-11 from an amateur that hadn't been published before. I think people are fascinated by that," the moderator shared with Bored Panda.
"Personally, I feel the quality of the photo has little to do with the popularity but rather the uniqueness of the photo and perspective. The centering of the photo, the proper color gradient, and the perfect focus have little to do with popularity. I think also it is very subjective as to what users are interested in, however, the more unique the perspective plays a large part into how popular a post is."
Don't Know About You, But I Very Rarely See Images Of The Grand Canyon Taken From Right Down At The Bottom. It's A Very Long Way Down, And In A Sense A Much Longer Way Back Up - That Might Be The Reason
Last Photograph Of The Last Run Of Ladder 118 As It Crosses The Brooklyn Bridge... None Of The Firefighters Would Survive
Hedgehog Getting An X-Ray
Created relatively recently, at the start of summer in 2019, the subreddit has become the home to nearly 150k redditors since then. The community has a very unique way of looking at history, art, landmarks, and life in general, and it’s what keeps its members coming back.
The content is as educational as it is entertaining, and odds are that you’ll end up sending quite a few of these pics to your friends if you’re anything like us. And the cool thing is that once you realize that r/AlternateAngles is a thing, you can’t help but start considering events, well-known places, and even ideas from different sides.
Previously, my colleague reached out to the mod team helping run the entire r/AlternateAngles community, and they were kind enough to answer some of Bored Panda’s questions.
They told us a bit about the origins of the group: “A comment in another subreddit of famous pictures suggested that someone should create a sub of different views of famous pictures, which led to the creation of r/AlternateAngles by u/Murkon and another Redditor who decided to step down and is no longer a moderator.”
The Sahara Desert With A Snowfall On It
The Two Sides Of A Neon Sign
Looking Up - The Eiffel Tower
According to the mods, the concept of r/AlternateAngles “can be summed up by a rule: Limit all submissions to alternate views, or unique perspectives, of well-known locations, items, people, and events. An alternate angle of your kitchen does not qualify but Gordon Ramsay's kitchen does."
In the mods’ opinion, what’s well-known is very subjective. “The occasional post of an obviously non-well-known picture slips through, but we strive to keep with the original objective,” they told Bored Panda.
Some posts actually turn out to be fakes or have been photoshopped, which goes against the rules of the subreddit. The moderators rely on the help of their “fantastic and active user base” to help out with filtering out those.
Those of you who plan on posting, not just lurking, on the sub should keep a few additional rules in mind. Obviously, you shouldn’t be manipulating or editing any photos to try and trick the internet. That’d just mean (and frankly, we don’t really see the point).
Great Pyramid Of Giza (From The Sky)
Sunset From Space
A Flying Giant Squirrel From India (Petaurista Philippensis) Caught In The Act On A Sunny Day
I've Never Walked Directly Under An Electricity Pylon Before! There's Some Brilliant Symmetry
What’s more, you should aim to write descriptive titles that let redditors know exactly what they’re seeing. Adding dates is also “highly encouraged.” Meanwhile, if you’re posting a photo of a structure or landmark, then it must bring some unique alternate value. For instance, you might share a pic of a building while it’s being renovated or what it was like while it was still under construction. In short, show the subreddit an alternate temporal angle, too, not just a spatial one.
The Iconic Photo Of Michael Jordan Which Turned Into The Logo
New York’s Manhattan Without Skyscrapers
Photo from 1931. https://viewing.nyc/this-incredible-vintage-aerial-photograph-shows-manhattan-from-above-in-1931/
Alas, if you’re a fan of memes, then r/AlternateAngles is definitely not the place for those. What’s more, the mod team wants everyone to have a great time, so there’s a zero-tolerance policy for personal attacks on other redditors. You can end up being banned if you don’t follow the rules (which might provide a very unusual angle to the whole subreddit experience, but that’s way too meta and it’s better not to risk it).
Albert Einstein Before His Famous Photo With His Tongue Out
An Elephant Trunk Seen From Below
News Anchor From The Other Angle
Very recently, Bored Panda spoke about angles and perspectives with professional photographer Dominic Sberna, from Ohio in the US. He stressed that perspective really does mean a huge amount in photography.
"The angle of vantage for the photographer can really change an image," he told us during an earlier interview.
Venice From Above
A Picture Of The Colosseum From The Sky
Penguin Feathers
"It all depends on what you're going for. It's best to play around and try different things to see what looks best and what works best depending on your subject," he said that photographers should play around with angles and see how they can change what the audience feels.
Mount Rushmore Before The Presidents Were Carved In. It Was Called Six Fathers At This Point
It was better that way (Edit: Abandon all hope, ye who enter this comment section)
The Oval Office Between Presidents
The Sphinx From Above
"Make sure to not lose sight of what you're trying to achieve in your image. Have a clear goal in mind with what you're trying to convey,” expert photographer Dominic said that professionals and amateurs alike should remember to focus and always keep their goals at the forefront of their minds.
Cars Never Claimed From Giants Stadium Commuter Lot After 9/11
Not Sure If This Counts But, The Grand Canyon View From A Plane
Mary Poppins Movie, 1964
"Follow the rules of composition and don't make things too small. I have photos of rock climbers at a national park in Nevada, where I personally feel the overall perspective is a bit lost," the photographer noted that everyone has photos that turn out differently than they’d hoped.
"Make sure the audience is able to understand what it is they're supposed to be seeing and comparing the perspective to the surroundings at hand.”
John & Yoko Waiting For The Maid To Make The Bed So They Can Continue Protesting Against The System
cannot stand John Lennon, beat his first wife, left her and Julian to run off with Yoko and was a bully to him when he was around jumped on any popular planet saving idea and was all about living without religion and possession but drove a Bentley
Aerial View Of Over 400,000 People At The Woodstock, 1969
A Photo Of Central Park During The Great Depression (1933)
I can see the rental ad now... "FOR RENT: 1 bed, 1 bath, cozy bungalow. Centrally located, with panoramic city views, on a large lot. Yard needs a little work. $3,400 a month." 🤔
William D. Nuñez Took This Picture Of Aa Flight 175 On September 11th, Seconds Before The Plane Hit The South Tower
A Picture From The Boom Operator Of Me Refueling On My 100th Mission Over Afghanistan
Yep. ‘If you ever feel useless, just remember the USA took 4 presidents, thousands of lives, trillions of dollars and 20 years to replace Taliban withTaliban.’
Load More Replies...Hey haters, the soldiers are not making the decisions, our law makers are. Elected officials by the people of the United States. Your political decisions are what decides how efed our country gets. Thank you to all our veterans and soldiers for keeping american safe, and for putting your lives at risk, your families aside, and your physical and mental health on the line for us to be able to not have the knowledge of what it really means to put every aspect of our lives in danger. I appreciate the troops and would never disrespect them. They do everything to keep us in this bubble of this 1st world country.
Please tell me, how was Afghanistan or the Iraq such a big threat to the United States, that your military had to invade these countries?
Load More Replies...Hey guys… stop getting all mad at people who have served in the military… they have much more courage than you, and have put their lives at the line for your freedom. Please be thankful and remember that it’s not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.
How is it courage to destroy countries for the wealthy?
Load More Replies...pretty sure this guy is a bad a*s and yall are complaining about b******t that has nothing to do with this picture. have some respect and patriotism jeez.
I'm not maligning the OP, but does patriotism mean we have to unquestioningly support every decision of our government and our military? Far from it; nothing could be more patriotic than recognizing our nation's faults and working to make her better and improve the lives of all her residents and the rest of the world too.
Load More Replies...I had no idea you all flew so high. How many miles/kilos in atmosphere are they?
Service to whom? Mankind? Afghans? Arm dealers?
Load More Replies...The US military carpet bombed my birth country (& Laos) for having the audacity to exist in the exact same location as their search for the Vietcong. "In secret". Repeatedly. They murdered 3 gens of my mom's family, turning her into an orphan & a child soldier who'll go on to put the fear of the foreigner's own God into them as one of hundreds of "jungle ghosts". ALL of my older siblings are child soldiers. I had 14. Only 3, not counting me, made it. US mil also promised us safety if both sets of my grandparents helped them. It took 15 years & whole a*s genocide, one that the US mil directly contributed too, for them to remember us. By then, both grandmothers & my maternal grandfather had died. How guilty do they feel? My entire family were given special greencard that never needs to be renewed or updated & was only minted between 1979 and '89. If THAT isn't a guilty conscience I don't know what is. EDIT: This was a response but I'll post it here, too. Also, English is hard, okay.
*this soldier was not in control of the entire war. #followingorders #doingtheirjob
You know was great in saying 'I was following my orders?' Many Nazis after WW2
Load More Replies...No matter why or what was not accomplished….thank you for your service
The war was going on for 10 years and achieved nothing, just dead people on both sides, men, women, children. I do not blame soldiers, since they have little choice, but I blame the governments who were okay with it
Load More Replies...Badass the pilot and badass the refueling crew! The other day I was watching Top Gun with my sister, and in the initial scenes on the plane carrier, she said: “geez, look at all the deck crew! They're just as deeply trained as the pilots, but they usually don't take any credit”.
Sir, this is an awesome picture! Thanks for sharing. Skills only a few on this planet possess. Would you how how many? Counting both pilots and squad members per plane this takes. It's amazing no doubt. What a thrill.
Oh, it did accomplish something; the renewal and resurgence of the Ta!iban.
Didn't like the war, but I respect the soldiers who fought in it. This is a seriously cool picture.
That is a pretty neat photo Thank you for your service to this country
The fact that refueling can be done while flying still amazes me even after all these years they've been doing this.
Thought this was supposed to be about interesting photos from odd angles, Not a place to spew your personal political opinions. Cool pic BTW
Thank you for your service. For a brief while, your presence allowed that community some peace and freedom. And now the Taliban has once again destroyed everything
Very true. The welfare system needs far more funding. Now that this stupid war is over, maybe we can stop investing in so many WMDs and focus on the citizens.
Load More Replies...Michelangelo's 'The Creation Of Adam' As Seen On The Sistine Chapel Ceiling
Queen Elizabeth Wax Figure
Underside Of A Horseshoe Crab
View Of Taj Mahal From One Of The Corners. Photo By Me, November 2021
If you asked me what this was I wouldn't know it was the Taj Mahal. It's always photographed one way. This really shows how much work was put into it.
Golden Gate Bridge Under Construction
C-3po
Ghostbusters Firehouse Cleaned Up
A Mall Christmas Display From Above. Also A Little Funny
I'd Never Seen This Angle Of The Sydney Opera House And It Looked Different To Me
Alternate Hairstyles For Dorothy [wizard Of Oz]
She was so beautiful. But she was abused and used and ended up a tortured soul.
The Space Shuttle From The Top
Daft Punk Without Their Helmets On
I can see why they kept the helmets on without them they just look like any weekend dad band
A Rare Picture Showing Michael Jackson's Vitiligo
geeze i am ridiculously uncultured for not knowing this right??
The Mushroom Cloud From An Atomic Test Is Seen From Fremont Street In Downtown Las Vegas, 1955
Las Vegas Police Facing Mike Tyson After He‘D Just Bitten Evander Holyfields Ear Off 1996. What He Saw
Note: this post originally had 111 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
People CHARGE for a wedding reception? I know it’s a dinner, but if you don’t have the $ to pay for it, just have finger food. Asking folks to pay for a sit down meal is just RUDE.
People CHARGE for a wedding reception? I know it’s a dinner, but if you don’t have the $ to pay for it, just have finger food. Asking folks to pay for a sit down meal is just RUDE.