Tilt-shift photos look like tiny model towns, with toy cars and little people. The trick is blur: only a narrow band is sharp, which is how a close-up of a small model looks. You can fake it on any photo. Here is how to add a tilt-shift effect online free.
Make a miniature in three steps
- Open the free Tilt-Shift Miniature Maker and upload a photo taken from high up.
- Move the focus band over your main subject and set its size.
- Set the blur and saturation, then download.
The sliders
- Blur (0 to 100): how blurred the areas outside the band are.
- Focus position (0 to 100): where the sharp band sits, top to bottom.
- Focus size (2 to 90): how tall the sharp band is. Narrow looks more like a miniature.
- Transition (1 to 60): how gradually sharp turns to blur.
- Angle (-45 to 45): tilt the band to follow a diagonal road or river.
- Saturation (0 to 100): brighter colours make the scene look like painted toys.
Which photos work
The effect only works on photos taken from above, looking down. That is how we look at a real model. Good examples:
- A busy street from a balcony or a rooftop.
- A city view from a hill, a tower or a plane.
- A beach, a stadium, a market or a railway station from high up.
- A ghat, a harbour or a car park full of tiny shapes.
Photos taken at eye level, selfies and close-ups do not work. They just look blurred.
Tips for a convincing miniature
- Keep the band narrow. A focus size around 20 to 30 often looks most real.
- Put the band on the action: cars, people, boats.
- Raise saturation a little. Toy colours are bright.
- Match the angle to the scene. If a road runs diagonally, tilt the band with it.
- Crop out the sky first with the free crop tool. Models rarely have much sky.
Common questions
Is this the same as a tilt-shift lens? A real lens creates the effect in the camera. This tool fakes the look afterwards with blur, which is enough for most photos.
Is my photo kept? No. It is processed in memory and not kept on our servers.
Like tiny worlds? Copy a free prompt for a 3D chibi diorama from the Chibi collection, or download Trendy AI Lab and make one of yourself in the app with a plan.
Coming soon