“Pencil vs. Camera” by Belgian artist Ben Heine

View all photos from “Pencil vs. Camera” project by Ben Heine

The idea of mixing drawing with photography came to him in 2010. Heine says it was the result of a long graphic exploration and a logical consequence of his artistic evolution. “Pencil vs. Camera” mixes drawing and photography, imagination and reality, through illusion and surrealism. In this project, Heine usually focuses on architecture, portraits and animals. Among many others, the main themes approached in “Pencil vs. Camera” are love and friendship. Heine says: “I just make art for people. I want them to dream and forget their daily troubles. I used to write poems many years ago, I want to convey a poetic meaning into my pictures, each new creation should tell a story and generate an intense emotion, like a poem, like a melody”. This series had a large impact on the graphic design community. Heine says the initial idea of this “Pencil vs. Camera” concept came by coincidence while he was writing a letter. Some of his “Pencil vs. Camera” creations have also been related to optical illusions. (From Wikipedia)