Ever wonder what the Google Street View camera looks like? Sure, you’ve probably seen the weird stick-like thing they put on top of cars. But a new Tumblr is showing off rare images of the hand-powered device that Google uses to create Street View inside of buildings like museums. It’s a little bit creepy.
The Camera in the Mirror is a project by Spanish artist Mario Santamaría that showcases moments when the indoor Google Street View camera accidentally catches itself in a mirror. The device itself appears to be a podium-sized metal case on wheels with a camera on top and a laptop on the side. In some of the photos, you can see a human operator. The images specifically come from Google’s Art Project, a pretty awesome three-year-old effort to create visual maps of museum interiors.
The images speak for themselves, and Santamaría keeps adding more. This little peek behind the scenes just raises more questions about Google’s strange Street View pursuits. Why, for instance, is the camera wearing a sparkly silver dress in some of the photos? Is it to protect the artwork in the event of a collision? Or is it to hide the surely proprietary technology Google uses for Street View?
Either way, it’s always a treat when Street View cameras become more interesting than the things they’re capturing. [Quartz]
Pictures: Google/The Camera in the Mirror