Photographer Recreates GTA San Andreas in Magnificent Fashion

Russian photographer Dennis Volkov, who specializes in hyper realistic reenactments, launched his sights (and lights) on Grand Theft Auto, San Andreas for his latest project. Grand Theft Auto is one of the most successful, and morally deplorable video games ever created.

It has been cheered and vilified for its open-world, do whatever you want game play, which allows gamers to follow missions, or just run people over with their cars, whatever they fancy. It’s a completely unbridled “Westworld” experience at their finger tips.

The game geography is based on parts of Los Angeles and Nevada, fictionally called Los Santos (LA), San Fierro (San Fran), and Los Venturas (Vegas). The plot follows Carl “CJ” Johnson, a former gang member, turned enforcer for corrupt cops, then reactivated gang member.

Johnson returns home after his mother is killed in a drive-by shooting, and a series of unfortunate events rockets him back into his past life. Despite the reprehensible nature of the game, which we play as often as we can, Volkov does a masterful job a creating a fully immersive photographic experience that shows expert light balance, post production, framing, and creative direction.