You might think Ysabel LeMay’s works are hyper-realistic paintings but they’re created through an innovative technique called photo fusion. The Quebec-born, U.S.-based artist takes hundreds of photographs for each piece, attunes the light and visual properties, then assembles one detail at a time in a painterly fashion to form a single composition. Each work takes 4 to 8 weeks on average.

I photograph individually each flower, branch, leaves and assemble one by one using Photoshop. I usually work with hundreds of images to form one landscape. I don’t use much filters or manipulation. I respect the beauty of the plant and work with it. I create my images the same way I paint a canvas. I glaze and work the details like a painter. The final work is presented on c-print or lambda, plexi face-mounted on aluminum. – from LeMay’s artist statement.

Ysabel LeMay began work in 1987 as a graphic artist, before opening her own firm in Vancouver.  She made a transition into fine arts, studying at Emily Carr University, then left the world of corporate advertising in 2002 to work full-time as an artist. She turned her attention full-time to photography in 2010, adapting the new technique.  She was the 2011 winner of the Rising Star art program in New York, through the KiptonART Foundation.  For a closer look, run through this video of the Artist’s Project in New York, where her large-format photography debuted.

Ysabel LeMay’s website, here.