We’ve all seen countless images of the Eiffel Tower, Empire State Building and Mount Rushmore in our lifetimes, and while these cherished landmarks emanate beauty in any photograph, the old adage, ‘seen one, seen ‘em all’ is very fitting.

Enter Los Angeles-based infrared photographer Kaitlin Kelly, who’s made it her mission to photograph the world’s most recognizable places using an infrared camera.  Her portfolio to date, which includes photos of Yellowstone National Park, the London Eye and Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, is both beautiful and otherworldly. 

In infrared photography, the film or image sensor used is sensitive to infrared light, an invisible radiant energy with longer wavelengths than those of visible light.  By blocking out the visible light spectrum, Kelly’s photographs seemingly teleport iconic structures to a dreamlike, alien world.

Speaking with Petapixel.com, Kelly explained how she became obsessed with this unique realm of photography:

“My dad worked abroad and I’d spend summer traveling with him. We’d go to these major locations and I’d get so annoyed; I wanted to take pictures of the Eiffel Tower, the London Eye, but I wanted them to be different than everybody else’s… and then I realized, wait, I have a skill that most people don’t. I made the decision to exploit this beautiful spectrum of invisible light to transform landmarks from something familiar to something alien.”

Check out a selection of Kelly’s work below and visit her website for more stunning infrared photographs.

Photos courtesy of Kaitlin Kelly