This video was created entirely through the manipulation of still photographs. Our task was to convince people to correct their vision and improve how they see the world. Our approach was simple: Make people realize that it’s not a matter of what you’re looking at, but rather what you’re missing out on.

To accomplish this, we utilized a stunning visual technique called parallax, which separates a photograph into layers, creating the effect of dimension and movement. Supporting this, our voice over suggests that without clear vision, perhaps we’re not seeing and appreciating the true beauty that exists in the world.

Given that the message of our video centers around “seeing the world differently”, it only seemed fitting to employ a visual style that reflected this. We wanted to create an experience where our viewers would be treated to a visual effect they were not used to seeing.

Applying the parallax effect to stunning still photography shots allowed us to achieve this in a breathtaking way. Still photographs already provide an unmatched level of detail and beauty. And by breaking these images into layers and adding fluid motion, they came to life in ways that traditional film or video could not deliver. We kept the speed of each movement slow and subtle so that the viewer would take the time to focus on and appreciate these “moments in time.”

Our first challenge was selecting the right images. Each shot had to be carefully selected based on a number of factors. First, the images had to be highly detailed so that we could emphasize the things that the human eye normally misses. Second, in order for the parallax effect to have the biggest visual impact, we needed images that already had a sense of motion to them. And when strung together, each image had to transition seamlessly with the one before and after it. Drifting leaves would become falling snowflakes, and a flock of birds would fade into lanterns floating in the night sky.

The process of image selection required countless days of stock photography research. Despite the extensive search, there were still a few images that we couldn’t find. In these cases, we ended up shooting our own photographs to match our criteria.

Once all of our images were chosen, applying our visual effect posed its own set of new challenges. Since we were applying motion to the subjects, portions of each photo would need to be recreated in order to fill the space that would now be missing. The addition of motion also meant having to create new elements that actually required additional research. For example, what would the eyelid of a bird look like when it blinks, or what does a snowflake do when it hits a branch? This video relied on the beauty of small details, so we knew there could never be a compromise on accuracy.

In the end, we didn’t want our viewers to simply “watch” this video. We wanted them to experience it. Once you hit play, time would slow down, giving you the opportunity to visually “stop and smell the flowers.”

At time of writing this award entry the campaign had just launched (a week prior), so tangible results are not available. However, we’ve received anecdotal feedback from a number of optometrists that the iLASIK video goggle display was causing quite a buzz and that they had made significantly more referrals to their ophthalmologist counterparts who perform the procedure.