Drone Photo Awards 2021: Amazing photos show a birds-eye view of Earth
- Published
In summer 2020, the Svalbard archipelago in Norway recorded the highest temperature ever since records began. The air temperature reached 21.7 degrees Celsius. Photographer Florian Ledoux explains: "This aerial image shows the amount of fresh water falling from the melting ice cap, into the seawater. The average air temperature in Svalbard has increased by 3 to 5 °C over the past five decades."
The Eye of the Volcano: Bjorn Kristjansson took this picture at the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland which is where the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates part - and is home to a very volcanic area. Bjorn says his photo shows "the silver textures of the lava that has recently been ejected high up in the air in a series of pulses originated from around 100 to 200 metres depth underneath the crater."
This photo is called Back to Adventure and you can imagine why. This Green turtle is heading back to the sea after laying down her eggs in her nest at Oman coastline between Ras Al Jinz and Rashad turtle reserve.
More wildlife now and some nocturnal animals, like this pair of golden jackals, who have to take shelter in wheat fields because their home has been destroyed. Golden jackals are common in Bangladesh despite intensive farming and human populations. "It's quite difficult to find jackals in daytime so I had to use my drone to capture this image without making them feel intimidated," said photographer Sujon Adhikary.
Who really knows whether a zebra is black with white stripes, or if it is white with black stripes? Either way it always stands out! Photographer Thomas Vijayan was on a photoshoot in Kenya in Africa "to look for some other species and that is when I spotted this beauty running in haste."
This looks like a sea of hippos! Talib Almarri took this photo in Khwai in Botswana, Africa. Talib said all the hippos you can see are adults except one baby who is in the centre.
Shark companion: A kayaker is escorted by a group of sharks. Every year from December to April, a school of dusky sharks arrives near the Hadera powerplant in Israel. "The warm water from the plant attracts fish and predators. Kayakers, scuba divers, and swimmers go and look at this unique nature phenomena. The drone can capture the scene without interfering with the underwater wildlife," explained photographer Ido Meirovich.
Photographer Phu Khanh Bui took this atmospheric picture in Vietnam. They explained that "in the full moon of July, as part of the Vietnamese culture, women put on the traditional costumes called Ao Dai to join the coloured lantern and flower-garland releasing festival on the river to pray for happiness and good luck to their families."
From Vietnam to China and to this photo called Basket Crops on the Cliff. Photographer Minqiang Lu took it at Taihang Mountain, in China, saying "Every autumn the red hawthorns are harvested. The villagers put the sliced hawthorn to dry on the cliff, which becomes a unique scenery. The ripe hawthorn not only brings the joy of harvest to the villagers, but also brings the gorgeous colours of Taihang Mountain."
This photo was taken from the bank of the river Buriganga during the pandemic in Bangladesh . These boats and ships are used for people and goods to cross the river from one side to the other but lie empty. The picture was taken by Md Tanveer Hassan Rohan in the city of Dhaka.
It's so strange to see this tower which appears to stand in the middle of a forest. Photographer Kristian Stigel took it at Rønnede Camp Adventure in Denmark and explained: "As part of a job I took this photo of a local newly built tower in the forest... very early in the morning. The tower is 45 meters high and therefore a bit higher than the surrounding forest. The spiral itself is 600 meters long. "
David Dahlenburg went to the outback of South Australia to get this amazing image. It shows a view of a remote copper, gold and uranium mine. The dam contains by products from the mining process: "The colours and texture that are created look truly of another world," David said.
Can you tell what this is a picture of? Well this extraordinary photo shows the seaside at the Dead Sea in Israel, with white parasols at the beach. Gilad Topaz explains: "I was flying my drone at the beach when I noticed a field of parasols in a beautiful shape."