Build a recursive image
Each level places another transformed copy of the original inside the previous frame. Scale per level controls the size ratio, Rotation per level accumulates a turn, and Recursion depth sets the number of nested copies.
Inset X and Inset Y move the recursion center away from the geometric middle. This lets the copies follow a held frame, screen, sign, or open area already present in the photograph.
Choose a source with a frame
The Droste illusion reads best when the image contains a clear region that can plausibly hold another copy. Screens, picture frames, cards, mirrors, and doorways supply that visual boundary. Without one, the copies float over the scene instead of appearing to belong inside it.
Strong single subjects also work: a face or product shot becomes a tunnel of itself even without a literal frame, especially with a few degrees of rotation per level.
Example: phone screen tunnel
Photograph someone holding a phone with its screen toward the camera. Set Scale per level so one copy roughly fits the screen, then walk Inset X and Inset Y until the second copy sits on the display. Every deeper level lands automatically, because each copy carries its own smaller screen in the same relative spot.
A depth of 6 with the default scale is usually enough; the seventh copy would be smaller than the screen’s pixels. Add 5 to 10 degrees of rotation per level if the straight tunnel feels too static.
Depth and resolution limits
High depth does not create infinite visible detail. A 62% scale halves the copy area roughly every two levels, so even a 4000px source runs out of pixels after 8 or 9 nestings. Export at the source’s full resolution when the inner levels matter, since the preview renders at a reduced size and merges the deepest copies sooner than the download will.