Shrinking Mill Illusion Is Just 30 Minutes From Buffalo, NY

This optical illusion will have you turning your head sideways and asking, "How did they do that?" and it's only about 30 minutes from Buffalo.

Remember when you were a kid and there were always movies about people roaming a desert looking for water?  Suddenly, they would get to the crest of a hill and find an oasis filled with lakes of flowing water and palm trees just off in the distance.  But as they got closer, it would disappear and you would hear that it was just an illusion.

These kinds of things happen in real life.  Sometimes our eyes will deceive our brains and leave us asking what in the heck we just saw.

Where is the "Incredible Shrinking Mill Optical Illusion?"

There is an optical illusion that will blow your mind just over the border in Port Colborne, Ontario. It's between 30 and 45 minutes from Buffalo.  Of course, it could be longer depending on the wait at the border.  As you drive up Lake Shore Drive towards Lake Erie, you'll see a grain elevator in the distance.  This is where the illusion begins.

What happens during the optical illusion?

You will notice that the grain mill that is in the distance is framed by a bunch of trees at the end of the road.  As you get closer and closer to where the road takes a sharp left, you'll notice that the mill seems to get smaller and smaller.  It's not what your brain is used to seeing.  Normally as you get closer and closer to something, it gets bigger and bigger.  But in this case, the mill actually appears as if it is shrinking.

Don't believe me?  The illusion even works through video.

And here's another one...

Why does it do that?

That is super trippy!  So how does the mill appear to get smaller?  It's all about your perspective.  According to a commenter on Tik Tok, as the distance from the mill changes so does your perspective.