50 “Perfectly Timed Pics” That Might Make You Look Twice

Ever since the 'Perfectly Timed Pics' page graced the Twittersphere in 2013, it has been providing its followers their daily dose of fun and inspiration by sharing pictures snapped at just the right moment. Self-describing itself as "the first perfectly timed picture account on Twitter", it shares some of the most memorable images ever taken, from the funny photobombs to the totally absurd confusions.

It’s safe to say that impeccably timed photos are an absolute joy to look at, no matter if they’re taken through careful preparation and calculation or completely by accident. Whether intentional or not, you can’t argue that the effect created by these images is usually shocking (and often hilarious!) to behold.

These works of art definitely make you look twice and then once more while making you wonder how people managed to capture these captivating snaps before the moment disappears forever. Whatever you want to call them — once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, optical illusions, or pictures taken at the right angle — they are brilliant and hilarious because they totally twist your perception of reality.

Some of these pictures make use of forced perspective, a technique that employs optical illusion and manipulation to make objects appear larger, smaller, farther, or closer than they actually are. These unique visual elements also twist the viewer’s senses by making things of sometimes radically different sizes or compositions seem related.

Perspective makes the world of photography advance with new ideas, Hugo Suissas, a self-taught photographer and art director from Lisbon, Portugal, told Bored Panda in a previous interview. "It brings a whole new world of possibilities and diversity. But most of all, it offers people the opportunity to see something never seen before in that way."

"Anything seen from a completely new angle attracts a lot of attention because it makes you see things for the first time. And this is exciting for everyone," the photographer explained. "It takes a lot of work and requires a lot of focus, but it's with new angles that we manage to come up with innovative photos and kill the clichés. We often worry about the brand of the camera and waste time changing lenses, etc. But in reality, what matters and has to work is our mind and the time we invest."

Having 10 years of experience in photography, Hugo Suissas wanted to remind you that nothing is impossible. "There are no excuses. There are no lucky ones," he said. "In reality, what exists is work, focus, persistence, criteria, organization, discipline, and love for what you do. If these factors live in harmony, big things will happen to you."

But some of these entries also reveal that you don’t have to be the best photographer in the world to take a wonderful photograph. Sometimes, all you need to do is find yourself in the right moment. You don’t even need high-end equipment or a cutting-edge DSLR, as your phone camera may be all that is required. More often, you don’t even realize the level of mastery you accidentally managed to achieve until you really look at the photo later on. And then feel blown away by something completely unexpected and original.

Of course, skills and technology can help, and photography is a craft that demands enormous patience and dedication to master. And if you add a little planning and luck to the mix, there’s seemingly no limit to what you can do. However, that doesn’t mean you should stop improving your skills and just wait for that one and only coincidence.

The master of timing, French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, also known as a virtuoso of the candid shot, coined the term decisive moment. "In a photograph, composition is the result of a simultaneous coalition, the organic coordination of elements seen by the eye. One does not add composition as though it were an afterthought superimposed on the basic subject material, since it is impossible to separate content from form," Cartier-Bresson wrote. "Composition must have its own inevitability about it."

"But inside movement, there is one moment at which the elements in motion are in balance. Photography must seize upon this moment and hold immobile the equilibrium of it."

In an interview with A Photo Editor, photographer and director Vincent Laforet explained the decisive moment is still the number one most difficult thing for him to do. "By now, after 21 years of shooting, I can expose without a meter. I can frame a shot without thinking about it too much. And I can most of the time either autofocus or manual focus relatively easily by now."

"The one thing that’s going to make me miss or succeed as a photographer is capturing 'the' moment, because that involves anticipation and predicting the future," Laforet continued. "It involves a lot of skill, a lot of guesswork, and experience. And I think ultimately knowing when to press that shutter is one of the greatest skills you can develop as a still photographer."

But sometimes, the one and only element needed to snap a spectacular picture is finding yourself in the right place at the right moment (and, of course, swiftly grabbing your camera!) And as you scroll through this list of examples when savvy snappers picked the perfect moment to click away, you can’t help but feel the urge to recreate some of these wonders. So don’t hesitate to get out there! There’s no telling what entertaining or downright stunning moments you might capture.