15 incredible photos of Disney characters in real-world settings

Here at Creative Bloq we're fascinated by the artistic possibilities of miniatures – most recently, this brilliant street art on the theme of homelessness. And being big fans of the House of Mouse as well, we can't get enough of these specially commissioned shots by macro photographer Kurt Moses.

He's been working with Disney in general and their Disney Infinity characters in particular, to promote the launch of Baymax from Big Hero 6 today. In this brilliant series, he takes some of the best-loved Disney characters, places them in unusual situations across the USA and photographs them in his signature style.

Moses uses a fish eye lens and shallow depth of field, enabling him to capture the characters clearly but with a dreamy, out-of-focus background. He and his wife travelled the country to find the perfect setting for each scenario, mindful of factors such as angles, lighting, background and composition. You can see the results below, as we reveal how and where each image was created...

01. Mr Incredible hits the car wash

Mr Incredible

  • Location: Lil'DogCar and Pet Wash, Two Harbors, Minnesota
  • Props: bucket, towel, suds
  • Materials: dish soap, bucket, paint, wire, cotton fabric, glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

02. Rapunzel lets her hair down on deserted ledge

Rapunzel

  • Location: Leif Ericson Park, Duluth, Minnesota
  • Prop: artificial hair
  • Materials: doll hair, glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

03. Sorcerer Mickey stares down a broomstick in a park

Mickey

  • Location: Schiffman Fountain, St. Paul, Minnesota
  • Prop: broom and buckets
  • Materials: sticks and coconut hair, clay, balsa wood, paint, gaffer tape, glue, Nikon DF DSLR

04. Aladdin rides his magic carpet by the Palace Fountains

Aladdin

  • Location: HeffelfingerFountain, Minneapolis, Minnesota
  • Prop: dollhouse rug
  • Materials: tin foil, wires, glue, tape, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

05. Barbossa and Jack Sparrow survey the horizon

Barbossa and Jack Sparrow

  • Location: Historic Guard Rail (1939), Gooseberry Falls State Park, Minnesota
  • Materials: glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

06. Elsa from Frozen tells a wolf to let it go

Elsa

  • Location: Ancient Lava Flow Rock Formation, Gooseberry Falls State Park, Minnesota
  • Props: Ice cubes, toy wolf
  • Materials: hammer (to crush ice), paint, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

07. Merida ventures into the woods

Merida

  • Location: River View Trail, Gooseberry Falls State Park, Minnesota
  • Prop: plastic bear
  • Materials: glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

08. Wreck-it-Ralph pulls the plug

Ralph

  • Location: Adventure Zone, Duluth, Minnesota
  • Prop: electrical wires
  • Materials: wires, glue, flashlight, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

09. "I know what we're going to do today – visit the Minnesota State Fair!"

Phineas

  • Location: Minnesota State Fair, St Paul, Minnesota
  • Prop: admission ticket
  • Materials: glue, state fair ticket, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

10. Baymax prepares to take to the skies of New York

Baymax

  • Location: Union Square, New York, New York
  • Materials: flashlight, glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

11. Lone Ranger and Tonto keep watch in the wild west

Lone Ranger and Tonto

  • Location: The Foundry Home Goods, Minneapolis, Minnesota
  • Props: old wooden crate, vintage toy rail tracks
  • Materials: screw driver, hammer, pliers, glue, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

12. Davy Jones swims with the fishes in underwater tank

Davy Jones

  • Location: Amazing Grace Bakery & Café, Duluth, Minnesota
  • Materials: Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

13. Lightning McQueen and Holley Shiftwell race through the streets of New York

Cars

  • Location: Times Square, New York, New York
  • Materials: Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

14. Maleficent looks magnificent in this fireplace

Maleficient

  • Location: Historic Campground Shelter (1937-38), Gooseberry Falls State Park, Minnesota
  • Prop: fire with green flame
  • Materials: Boric acid and methanol, flashlight, tin foil, lighter, glue, Nikon DF DSLR,Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

15. Buzz Lightyear prepares for takeoff

Buzz Lightyear

  • Location: Historic Pump House (1940), Gooseberry Falls State Park, Minnesota
  • Props: space ship, hammer, nails, blueprint
  • Materials: balsa wood, tin foil, wires, modelingclay, nails, glue, blue print, gaffer tape, Nikon DF DSLR, Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens

Images: © Kurt Moses and Disney

Have you seen a great example of the use of miniatures in photography? Let us know in the comments below!

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Tom May

Tom May is an award-winning journalist and editor specialising in design, photography and technology. Author of the Amazon #1 bestseller Great TED Talks: Creativity, published by Pavilion Books, Tom was previously editor of Professional Photography magazine, associate editor at Creative Bloq, and deputy editor at net magazine. Today, he is a regular contributor to Creative Bloq and its sister sites Digital Camera World, T3.com and Tech Radar. He also writes for Creative Boom and works on content marketing projects.