A Trusted Friend in a Complicated World

25 Photos of Everyday Things Taken from a Side You Rarely See

Sometimes, the camera can give us a completely new perspective on things.

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Extreme macro of Swallowtail butterfly wing
D. Kucharski K. Kucharska/Shutterstock

A butterfly’s wing

A butterfly’s beauty will stand the test of time, much like these photos of lasting interest.

2 / 25
delicious mushrooms texture, extreme closeup photo
Perutskyi Petro/Shutterstock

The underside of a mushroom cap

These rivets are riveting when looked at zoomed in.

3 / 25
Many small bubbles in a glass. Champagne pouring and foaming over holiday. Christmas celebrating concept
Anatolii Mazhora/Shutterstock

Bubbles forming on the top of a glass of champagne

When you’re sipping bubbly, how often do you stop to look at the bubbles? This photograph shows an inside look inside the champagne glass.

4 / 25
Half split walnut macro
Soifi/Shutterstock

A walnut split in half

They say not to play with your food, but they never said anything about photographing it.

5 / 25
Yellow micro fiber cloth in true macro close up revealing it's texture
Anatolii Mazhora/Shutterstock

The fibers of a cloth

The micro-fibers of this cloth look more like the fur of a stuffed animal. Can you identify these other objects in these close-up shots?

6 / 25
Star shapes formed where six Cube houses tilt into one another and intersect in Rotterdam, a quirky bright yellow architecturally unusual angular cube shape apartment block
Brian S/Shutterstock

These cube houses

As if these six cube-shaped houses in Rotterdam, The Netherlands weren’t unusual enough, this photographer caught them while looking up and noticed they form a geometric pattern.

7 / 25
abstract overhang wedding dress. unusual upward angle view
mik ulyannikov/Shutterstock

An airy wedding gown

At first glance, this may seem like some under-the-sea coral, but this floating wedding dress takes on an ethereal quality when shot from the hem. Check out what these other everyday things look like from a closer angle.

8 / 25
View from below of large electric environmentally friendly wind turbine with aeroplane flying high in the sky - unusual angle
Hadrian/Shutterstock

A wind turbine

When looking up, you can hardly see the blades of this wind turbine spinning hard due to their speed.

9 / 25
Sinking house on Montmartre hill taken with an unusual angle, Paris, France
Alexandr Piddubnyy/Shutterstock

This sinking house

A clever camera trick makes this house in Paris, France looked like it’s sinking into the grass.

10 / 25

View of beautiful drawings on ice from cracks and bubbles of deep gas on surface of Baikal lake in winter, Russia
Nickolay Vinokurov/Shutterstock

Ice cracks on the surface of a lake

Cracks and bubbles of gas form an intricate pattern on Baikal Lake in Russia. Don’t miss these other nature photos almost too stunning to believe.

11 / 25
Close up shot of tooth brush bristle
Sergei Aleshin/Shutterstock

The bristles of a toothbrush

Upon closer investigation, toothbrush bristles look like a child’s building blocks. See if you can tell what’s wrong with these altered photos.

12 / 25
Internal watermelon fruit structure macro close up
Audrius Merfeldas/Shutterstock

Inside of a watermelon

This may look like the inside of the human body, but it’s actually inside of a fun summery treat –– a watermelon.

13 / 25
upside down bedroom
Thiti Sukapan/Shutterstock

An upside down bedroom

The Upside Down House at an amusement park in Pattaya, Thailand gives you a flipped view of the world…literally. These pictures of optical illusions will also make your brain hurt.

14 / 25
Flower field from above
Stock Rocket/Shutterstock

A flower field

Somehow, these rows of flowers look even more beautiful when getting a bird’s eye view.

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Pine mature wood cross section. Light microscope slide with microsection of an evergreen conifer in the genus Pinus. Plant anatomy. Biology. Photo.
Peter Hermes Furian/Shutterstock

Pine wood under a microscope

Trees are beautiful enough, but putting slices of trees under a microscope is fascinating. It makes you appreciate the beauty of life.

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When cold desert air meets warm ocean air at the start of the winter, Dubai witnesses a unique sight of world’s highest skyscrapers drowning in fog. Dubai, UAE.
Kertu/Shutterstock

Heavy fog over a city

This incredible shot from Dubai was the result of cold desert air meeting warm air from the ocean around the start of winter.

17 / 25
Mangrove above and below water surface, half and half, with fish and a jellyfish underwater, Caribbean sea
Damsea/Shutterstock

The roots of a mangrove tree

Known for growing in tropical habitats, this photo shows all the life that coexists with the mangrove tree. Here’s what some famous landmarks look like zoomed all the way out.

18 / 25
Crystal clear sharp icicles hanging down in frozen cave, lake Baikal, Olkhon island, Siberia, Russia. Beautiful winter wallpaper.
Rubeus Olivander/Shutterstock

Icicles

Growing in a frozen cave in Russia,  these winter staples look deadly when hanging above you.

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he total cross section of camera lens
yoojiwhan/Shutterstock

A camera lens

This lens certainly as effective this way, but it’s interesting to see its inner workings.

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Boat Loop on the sea
Alessandro Colle/Shutterstock

The wake of a boat

This shot gives us an overhead shot of how a boat breaks waves.

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Lonely curled yellow cherry leaf covered with rime hanging on a branch against winter sky
Marykit/Shutterstock

A leaf in winter

This cherry leaf is the lone survivor of what seems to be a harsh winter, based on the ice encompassing it.

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Many red chinese lanterns from below
Sergii Rudiuk/Shutterstock

Chinese lanterns

These paper lanterns are often associated with festivals. But how often do we look up at them?

23 / 25
lotus stem(cross section) prepare for food,shallow DOF.
sakhorn/Shutterstock

Lotus stems

Lotuses are known for their beauty, but there’s also a certain geometric appeal to their stems, seen here from the bottom.

24 / 25
Thunderstorm over a wind farm
Igor Kovalenko/Shutterstock

A thunderstorm over a wind farm

These wind turbines keep going even in the worst of weather.

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Small and lovely ground squirrel on a meadow among flowers during warm spring sunset. Very surprised, with its mouth opened. Peaceful, relaxing, amazing and funny
Jan Stria/Shutterstock

A snacking squirrel

Squirrels are commonplace enough, but how often do you see one like this? This photo could be on par with the most amazing animal photos of 2018.

Erin Kayata
Erin Kayata joined Reader’s Digest as an assistant staff writer in March 2019, coming from the Stamford Advocate where she covered education. Prior to this, she was part of a two-year Hearst fellowship program where she covered crime and education in suburban Connecticut. She graduated from Emerson College and spent part of her undergraduate career writing for the Boston Globe. When she’s not writing articles about useful facts and pop culture, you can find Erin enjoying the local theater scene and working toward her goal of reading 50 books a year.