People stunned after discovering one of the most seen images of all time is actually a photo

When it comes to the most seen images of all time, there are probably a few candidates out there.

The Mona Lisa is an obvious one, or maybe 'Earth Rise' taken from the Moon, but while these images are famous, they're not the most seen.

So before we get started, what would be one of the 'most seen' images of all time?

Well, probably the one which everyone who uses one of the most widely-used computer operating systems uses.

Think the stock backgrounds used on Windows computers, like that big grassy hill stretching out.

It might not be too difficult to believe that hill is actually a photograph of a real place, and you'd, of course, be right.

But what's extraordinary is that another Windows background is also not the product of CGI, but a photo.

So, which background is this?

This is the image! (Microsoft)

It's the stock background for Windows 10.

This is the trademark four-paned window with pale blue light streaming through in straight lines into a deep blue nothingness around it.

You would be forgiven for assuming that this was actually the result of CGI manipulation, as it looks about as CGI generated as it could get.

But the truth is that this is actually the result of extraordinary practical effects.

This was an installation put together by designer and director Bradley Munkowitz, also known as GMUNK.

So, how did they manage to achieve the image?

They took a cut out frame of the trademark Windows window, which was facing a wall of black curtains.

This then had blue lasers directed through it in lots of different patterns, which created some extraordinary images.

The other side of it! (Microsoft)

Finally, from all the different patterns available on the film, they selected the best one, and there you have it!

We might live in a world of CGI and now AI-generated images, but underestimate a good old practical effect at your peril.

People took to the internet to share how astonished they were to find out that it was a photo.

One wrote: "At first I was like woah how'd they do that and then I remembered that practical effects exist. Remember those? I miss practical effects so much."

Another posted: "Damn this background is so much cooler to me now", while a third said: "Looks like you CAN create art without using AI.. who could have known."

Meanwhile, a fourth joked: "The lengths people went to to avoid paying for photoshop."