Cool colors in a cyprus swamp in Lake Mattamuskeet, Swan Quarter, North Carolina.
Photo credit: Jess Ica
Thank you to our Facebook friend Jess Ica for this photo. Jess wrote:
I did not add any color to these photos…this is what the cypress swamps look like when the cypress trees release their oils in to the swamps waters….the colors are absolutely breathtaking.
source::::earth sky news
natarajan
Nervous flyers may want to look away now.
These stunning (or horrifying, depending on your view of air travel) images show planes approaching huge, angry storm clouds that completely dwarf them.
The incredible snaps, which look like a scene from an apocalyptic horror movie, were taken by photographer Ramon Stalenhoef, 39, not from a plane or helicopter, but from the balcony of his apartment in Amsterdam.
Brooding: Photographer Ramon Stalenhoef has taken a stunning set of pictures of planes above Amsterdam flying into huge storm clouds
Room with a view: Mr Stalenhoeff took the pictures from his apartment near Schiphol Airport
+5Plane crazy: The pictures capture that moment of dread just before your flight enters a storm
He said: ‘Some people think I shot it from another plane. Or that I went up in a balloon or climbed the highest building in town
‘But the truth is even more surprising. I just shot it from my balcony. From the second floor of my apartment.
‘I live in Amsterdam and my balcony offers a great view of the flight paths of different aircraft that are on their way to Schiphol Airport.
Ready for its close up: Zooming in reveals that this is a KLM flight
Up, up and away: This 747 is about to fly into jumbo storm clouds
‘Thanks to the dramatic low hanging clouds and my large telephoto lens I was able to take pictures of which you think they are shot high in the sky.’
Ramon, who works as the Creative Director for an advertising agency, is inspired by photography that show a different picture than is possible with your eyes:
‘This is also an interesting aspect of photography. Photos always show a different picture than your eyes would see. Therefore photos work on peoples imagination.
‘In this case I wanted to tell the story of small and fragile looking planes high in the mighty sky.’
Ramon started taking photos in 2008 after buying his first DSLR:
‘I bought my first DSLR in 2008 and what drives me is the ‘instant satisfaction’ of taking pictures.
‘Within a fraction of a second you can amaze yourself and others. Think about it, it’s amazing to freeze time and to awe!
‘When I look through the camera I’m really aware of everything around me. I look for small details, great moments, amazing light, everything.’
To capture his images, he used a Canon 5D Mark II camera, a Canon 200mm f/2.8 L lens and a Canon 2x teleconverter.
source:::::mailonline.com UK
NATARAJAN
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2548628/Incredible-snaps-airliners-approaching-storm-clouds-Amsterdam.html#ixzz2rtOlAfIo
Old Moon…Red in The Morning…. From HongKong
source::::earth sky news
natarajan
If you live in San Francisco, California, then you may be lucky enough to come across the art of Andres Amador. He doesn’t paint or sculpt. He prefers a medium that is temporary but absolutely beautiful: a sandy beach at low tide. He uses a rake to create works of art that can be bigger than 100,000 sq. ft.
He spends hours creating these intricate masterpieces, knowing that the tide will soon come in and wash away his work forever.
Andres’ creations are simply stunning and knowing that these delicate creations are temporary somehow makes them even more beautiful.
You should definitely Like Andres On Facebook and Visit His Web Site where you can buy prints of his designs if you want.
source::::viral nova site
natarajan
ARCTIC BLANKET OVER U.S. … JAN 28 …
source:::::earth sky news
natarajan
The work of one of the world’s greatest aerial photographers is to be exhibited in London for the first time. Photographing from 5000ft, Alex MacLean’s images reveal the complexities and absurdities of contemporary life across America and Europe.
Above, B-52, ‘Bone Yard’, Tuscon, Arizona, USA
Picture: Alex MacLean/Beetles+Huxley
A fully licensed pilot, MacLean uses his highly efficient Cessna 182 plane to explore the world recording landscapes, architecture and human behaviour from a bird’s eye view. Above, shipping containers, Portsmouth, Virginia, USA, 2011.Picture: Alex MacLean/Beetles+Huxley
Bathers in wave pool, Orlando, Florida, USA, 1999
Desert housing block, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, 2009
Over ramps, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, 2008
Floating daisy docks, Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1990
The Jolly Roger, Ocean City Amusement Park, Ocean City, Marylandd, USA, 2011
Marked territory, Viareggio, Italy, 2010Picture: Alex MacLean/Beetles+Huxley
Brightly painted houses, Burano, Italy,
source::::The Telegraph UK
natarajan
SUN MEETS TAJ MAHAL
source :::: earth sky news
natarajan
An elephant surprised tourists. Picture: Barcroft Media Source: Barcroft Media
YOU’VE been trunked!
This elephant may have watched one too many of Ashton Kutcher’s famous Punk’dshenanigans, deciding to catch a group of tourists off guard by sneaking up on them.
One thing’s for sure, they were in for a mammoth surprise!
The ginormous photobomb was caught on camera at the Imire Rhino and Wildlife Conservation in Zimbabwe.
The five women, Deb Sulzberger from Australia, Lisa Marie Winther from Norway and Brits Sarah Daly, Jane Burnett and Nicky Walker were oblivious to the seven-tonne bull elephant that loomed over them as they snapped away in the other direction.
Is this the photobomb to end all photobombs?
The moment was captured by fellow volunteer Marcus Soderlund, 24, from Sweden.
“While they were posing for the cameras one of the other handlers got an elephant called Makavhuzi to go up behind them.”
“Eventually they noticed his presence and turned around and reacted with laughs, surprised looks and smiles.”
“Now that’s what you call big brother watching you.”
source::::news.com.au
natarajan
The river shown in the photographs below is Caño Cristales, an amazingly colorful river in Colombia. The river takes on many different colors, including yellow, green, blue, black, but especially red, caused by the weeds at the bottom of the river (Macarenia clavigera).
The river is commonly called “The River of Five Colors”, “The Liquid Rainbow” “The River That Ran Away to Paradise”, and “The Most Beautiful River in the World” due to its striking colors.
This is what I imagine a river downstream from a Skittles factory looks like. Taste the rainbow!
Source: Atlas Obscura and viral nova site
natarajan
A new study says birds precisely time when they flap their wings, and position themselves to capture upwash (“good air”) and avoid downwash or (“bad air”).
Birds flying in a distinctive V formation strategically position themselves in aerodynamically optimum positions, and experience positive aerodynamic interactions that maximize upwash (“good air”) capture, according to a study the journal Nature by researchers at Royal Veterinary College, University of London.
The data, captured from free-flying migrating birds using specially developed GPS technology, reveals the mechanisms by which birds flying in V formation can both use areas of beneficial upwash while avoiding regions of detrimental downwash (“bad air”).
These aerodynamic accomplishments were previously not thought possible for birds because of the complex flight dynamics and sensory feedback that would be required to perform such a feat.
Dr. Steven Portugal is lead researcher at the Royal Veterinary College. He said:
The intricate mechanisms involved in V formation flight indicate remarkable awareness and ability of birds to respond to the wingpath of nearby flock-mates. Birds in V formation seem to have developed complex phasing strategies to cope with the dynamic wakes produced by flapping wings.
Dr. Portugal and his team studied a free-flying flock of northern bald ibises (Geronticus eremita), a critically endangered species. They equipped 14 juvenile birds with back-mounted synchronised GPS and inertial measurement devices. The team recorded the position and every wing flap of all individuals within the V during 43 min of migratory flight. The precision of these measurements allowed the relative positioning of individuals in a V to be tracked, and the potential aerodynamic interactions to be investigated at a level and complexity not previously feasible.
Read more from the Royal Veterinary College
source::: earth sky news
natarajan
Take off with Natarajan 