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Colombia’s Stunning River Of Five Colors

Known by many as “the river that ran away from paradise” and the most beautiful river in the world, Colombia’s Caño Cristales or The River of Five Colors is a veritable biological wonder. For most of the year, the river remains nondescript: clear currents, greyish rocks, cool waters. However for a brief period of time the Macarenia clavigera, a plant that lines the river floor, turns a brilliant shade of red that is only complemented by radiant shades of yellow and green sand, blue water, and many other hues in the color spectrum.

The Forgotten Trams of Sydney, Australia

Tucked away on a patch of wasteland in Glebe, New South Wales, the remains of six historic Sydney trams sit side by side in the abandoned Rozelle Tram Depot. Scrawled with graffiti and gutted from the inside, the trams date back to the 1930s when they were part of a network of streetcars operating across Sydney. Former plans had hoped to see them restored to their original glory and used as part of a heritage tramway which would run through The Rocks. However, the scheme was scrapped and new owners, Mirvac, plan to use the site for medium density housin

Rare Spider Crab re-discovered after 99 Years

A rare miniature spider crab, which was last recorded in Cornish waters back in 1912, is set to on show after being re-discovered. The 'Gibb's spider crab' was netted by Newquay fisherman Dan Gilbert earlier in the summer and has now been donated to the local Blue Reef Aquarium. Bosses there say the creature is so rare, a marine life expert was called on to help identify it after they exhausted all of their reference books. But they should be forgiven for not recognising it - there have only been 13 recorded sightings and all were during Edwardian and Victorian times.

Witnessing Summer Starvation Among Polar Bears

Summer on land is a difficult time for polar bears. Relying on the fat gained during winter hunting to see them through the more difficult hunting of summer when pack ice melts. Unfortunately, summer is becoming even deadlier, with pack ice melting earlier, melting farther, and arriving later in the winter. Rebecca Jackrel made a trek to Svalbard, a mecca for polar bear viewing, during July. She witnessed many of the problems polar bears are struggling against during summer months. Check out the outstanding photos from her journey. Jackrel states, "When summer comes to Svalbard the ice pack melts and polar bear are stuck on land. Their metabolism slows down and they enter a kind of walking hibernation. They rely on the reserves of fat generated from a winter of hunting seals to sustain them through the summer months. Polar bear are at their most dangerous to humans at this time of year... wouldn't you be if you were starving?"

Dramatic New Pictures From The Night The Cruise Liner Sank

Some of the first dramatic images depicting the last moments of the Costa Concordia have been caught on film, showing the stricken liner and lifeboats scattered in the black water. Since the ship struck rocks off the island of Giglio, pictures of the sinking ship the Costa Concordia have been seen on news sites around the world, showing the liner semi-submerged in the surrounding sea. However these are among the first pictures to show the cruise liner in the early hours of the tragedy. In the images the Costa Concordia is still brightly lit, showing the ship as she looked before the disaster. The illumination and its slight list show the extent of the disastrous crash, and how far it has tilted since rocks pierced the hull of the ship and began to let in water.

The Most Incredible Space Imagery

These glorious stars and galaxies are all the more spectacular if you consider how far their light had to travel to reach us: millions, sometimes billions of years... Carl Sagan once said: "We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." True enough, and yet, as we consider our significance in the cosmic order of events, we can only "keep up the good work, if only for a while, if only for the twinkling of a tiny galaxy."

Isola San Giulio – Italy’s Fairy Tale Island

Isola San Giulio is like something out of a fairy tale. The island situated on Lake Orta in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy is tiny – a mere 275 meters in length by 140 meters wide. A beautiful collection of lay and religious houses cram its tiny confines. It is so picturesque that it makes the jaw drop, almost in disbelief. It has an interesting story too. Legend has it that St Guilio (or Julius of Novara in English) founded his one hundredth church here in the fourth century AD. It is just west of the charming village of Orta San Giulio (also named after Julius of Novara). The island was the lair of a giant serpent, which used the island as a launch pad to attack local villages. Yet St Guilio arrived and with his ability to command the waves he journeyed over the water on his cloak and banished the creature from the island.

Inside a Wave: Awesome Photography by Clark Little

“The Shorebreak Art of Clark Little” is nothing short of epic. Getting inside, over and under 30-40 foot waves is no small feat, especially with bulky camera equipment, and a goal of finding that perfect angle and lighting condition that makes a perfect shot. Clark Little is pretty well known today as the foremost shorebreak art photographer (his art has been seen on “Good Morning America”, and featured in a number of glossy magazines all over the world). But as much as we like the fantastic shots of various wave’ innards, we are even more impressed to see him pitched against dangerous, massive amounts of water – violent waves, where you only have a moment to make that shot and to get out of the harm’s way.

Sunken Pedestrian Bridge in the Netherlands Parts Moat Waters Like Moses

No, your eyes are not deceiving you - the waters have indeed parted! This incredible “sunken” bridge located in the Netherlands is giving visitors a unique way to access a beautiful 17th Century Dutch fort. Designed by RO & AD Architects, the Moses Bridge literally parts the waters that surround the fort, allowing pedestrians to pass through. The bridge is made from sustainable Accsys Technologies Accoya wood, which is both FSC and PEFC certified.

Buzludzha Monument – Abandoned Relic of Bulgaria’s Communist Past

Buzludzha National Park in the beautiful Central Stara Planina, is situated right in the middle of Bulgaria at the heart of its rose growing area (one of the country’s main exports). Yet when one arrives at the Shipka Pass there awaits something quite unexpected. It is as if a huge flying saucer has chosen this spot in the Balkan Mountains for a leisurely pit stop and was then signposted, but abandoned by its owners. Yet this colossal concrete edifice (spelled variously Buzludja and Buzludža) has a history much more down to earth than that. It is what remains of an extravagantly expensive project by the leaders of the country’s old communist regime to tie up their own system of government with the mythos of the country’s 1300 year old foundation as an independent state. Forget your past? Hardly something the firecely proud people of this country might do - or so you might think.

The Amazing Flight Which Saved A Herd Of Rhinos From Certain Death

Dangling from cords tied to their ankles, 19 hulking animals were transported out of the South African hills inaccessible by road in the country's Eastern Cape. And these incredible images show exactly how conservationists used a military helicopter to carry the herd of 1,400-kilo rhinos to their new home, away from poachers. Conservationists put the endangered beasts to sleep and hoisted one at a time for the 15-mile flight. The big move was orchestrated by World Wildlife Fund experts, who yesterday drove the rhinos 1,000 miles to fresh breeding ground in the northern Limpopo province. Today photographer Michael Raimondo, who captured the spectacular scenes, said each animal spent around 20 minutes in the air. He said: 'It was quite incredible. These things are so heavy - some of them weigh a couple of tons\

Geodesic Magic – There’s No Place Like Dome

Geodesic domes have been with us for over fifty years but are still hardly common. Partly or fully spherical, they consist of a shell of great circles which rest upon the top of a sphere. Here are some of the more famous on the planet. The World Fair of 1967 was a fair old time ago but one extreme example of recycling old buildings is the Montreal Biosphere which is now the home of an environmental museum. The original acrylic shells that enclosed the dome are now gone – the steel remains however. At the time of the World Fair the building housed the longest ever escalator (thirty seven meters in length).

The Killer Redback Spiders And Other Creepy Crawlies Invading Our Homes From Abroad

For almost 1,000 years, Britain has been able to defend itself against any wannabe-conqueror who fancied seizing the kingdom. But after successfully seeing off the likes of Napoleon and Hitler, our shores have finally been breached by an army of lethal foreign invaders. For a new survey shows that homes across Britain have become infested by killer spiders, biting ants and skin-crawling cockroaches shipped in from distant lands. The survey of local authority pest control teams illustrates the wide variety of exotic pests now established in UK homes - and experts believe their numbers are increasing. Among the most terrifying revelations are the numerous sightings of the redback spider - believed to be responsible for 14 fatalities in its native Australia. The pea-sized killer has been found in Scotland, Wales and the Midlands.

Crippled B-29 Crashes On Iwo Jima

Returning from a strike over Tokyo, this B-29 of the 21st Bomber Command came into Iwo Jima for an emergency landing. Brakes on the Superfort locked and the huge plane careened into the flight line, plowed through four Mustang fighters, and burst into flames. Two members of the crew were hospitalized for burns, two others suffered minor burns end the remainder escaped unhurt. Men in the foreground crouch behind a jeep to avoid exploding ammunition.

Kittens Discarded In Cat Food Bag Rescued By Dog

Two kittens who were thrown mercilessly into a a bag and then dumped in the middle of the road are now available for adoption from and Iowa rescue group. But if it weren't for the heroic actions of dog named Reagan, they probably would not have survived. WHOTV reports that the two kittens, named Tipper and Skipper, were sealed in a Meow Mix bag with the rest of the litter and then left in the street. The bag had been run over by a vehicle, killing some of the kittens and making it difficult to tell exactly how many cats were inside. Somehow, Tipper and Skipper survived. "It was not a pretty sight," Linda Blakely from Iowa's Raccoon Valley Animal Sanctuary said. That's when Reagan stepped in. He grabbed the bag, and carried it home. He didn't stop whining until his owner opened the bag. Covered in the blood and remains of the kittens who were killed, she found two seriously injured survivors.

Eyebombing

Eyebombing is the act of setting googly eyes on inanimate things in the public space. Ultimately the goal is to humanize the streets, and bring sunshine to people passing by. THE RULES: 1. Only images of inanimate objects with wiggle eyes - NOT stickers. 2. Only images taken in the public space.

Clouds Photographed Through an Open Plane Door 4 Miles Up

For his project “Cloud Collection“, photographer Rüdiger Nehmzow went about four miles off the ground and photographed clouds through the open door of the plane. With no glass between Nehmzow and the sky to muddy up the shots, the resulting photographs are absolutely stunning.

The 10 Best Psychotic Facial Expressions From Police Officers At Occupy Protests

Having cleared Zuccotti Park of protesters for the first time since Occupy Wall Street began, the NYPD are chalking up a victory for themselves this morning. The Occupy protests could end one day, and when it does it's the faces we'll remember. Especially the faces of those cops who look like they're either about to completely lose their minds, or the contents of their bowels.

How to Run With Wolves

Wild wolves are extremely hard to get close to, and it’s not sensible to try! They are top predators, the largest of the wild dog family living in complex social groups, in remote inhospitable places. They are incredibly hard to see and track in the wild, travelling over huge distances and running at speeds of over 30mph in pursuit of prey. They are ferocious hunters tackling prey many times their own size like elk, bison and musk ox. Wild wolves are not to be messed with. But on Deadly 60 Steve wanted a close encounter with this apex predator. So we found a place where a “socialised” group of grey wolves were kept. This doesn’t mean the wolves are tame, but they are accustomed to humans. The team travelled to the most northern animal park in the world, a place called Polar Zoo. Located in the Salangsdalen valley, Norway, the park is home to the Salangen wolf pack which is the first wolf pack in Norway that is socialized to people. In order to stay safe the team enlisted the help of expert Tess Erngren, a dog psychologist who has interacted with this pack since they were young.

Eciton Hamatum, Orange Scourge Of The Social Insects

Meet Eciton hamatum. This is a delightfully orange-colored army ant from Neotropical rain forests, big and charismatic, like the iconic E. burchellii. But- and here’s a secret trick of the wiley nature photographer- it is a much friendlier insect. If you’ve got an assignment to shoot army ants and your editor neglects to specify the species, I’d hold out for these guys. You won’t get swarmed over, gored, bitten, stung up, or otherwise assaulted anywhere near the amount you suffer by approaching the vicious E. burchellii.

U.S. Adventurer Becomes First Man To Cross The Alps With Helium Balloons

The intrepid adventurer who crossed the English Channel by helium balloon has taken to the air once again - this time with a floating journey over the Alps. Jonathan Trappe, a trained pilot from Raleigh, North Carolina, is the first person to cross the European mountain range using helium balloons as his method of transport. Strapped to 54 of the brightly-coloured, gas filled balloons, the 38-year-old took almost 12 hours to make his historic crossing, around half of which was completed in the dark. Mr Trappe, who last year crossed the English Channel hanging from helium balloons, floated westward over the French Alps after taking off from Gap, south-east France. At one point he feared he would smack straight into the massive Monte Viso near the French-Italian border.

The Rare White Black Bear

For National Geographic's August issue, photographer Paul Nicklen captured the spirit bear in all its glory. With a population of only about 400 to 1,000, the white bear is a rare sight to behold. Just how do they get that color? "Scientists know how black bears are born white. They're just not sure why," says Bruce Barcott of National Geographic. "The phenomenon, known as Kermodism, is triggered by a recessive mutation at the MC1R gene, the same gene associated with red hair and fair skin in humans. To be born white, a bear must inherit the mutation from both parents. The parents themselves don't have to be white. They just need to carry the recessive mutation. So it's not uncommon for white bears to be born to black parents."

Horrifying Moment A Small Business-Owner Sets Fire To Himself Outside Bank

A man has set himself on fire outside a branch of Piraeus bank in the northern Greek city of Tessaloniki. The man was heard to shout out that he was in debt as he carried covered himself in petrol. This was not the first time this particular man has taken such drastic action, according to local police. Apparently this was the third attempt by the unnamed 56-year-old-man to harm himself in this way. Police said he had also set himself on fire and suffered burns 15 months ago, after complaining he could not pay back the debts from his failed business. Police used fire extinguishers to put out the blaze and the man was been hospitalised after the attempt, with non life-threatening chest burns. Cost-cutting measures in Greece have caused a host of business failures and record employment and the country is now in its third year of recession. It's finance minister said today he fully expects the country to stay in recession during 2012.

Spectacular Shots Above and Below the Sea

Get ready to pack your bags! Let's take a trip and seek out some clear waters where we can capture shots like this. Called over-unders, split-shots, or just splits, this photographic technique helps you see both what's inside the water and outside of it at the same time. The lens (usually fisheye) is positioned half above the water and half below the water. If you're inspired to try this out yourself, you can find out what gear you'll need along with some useful tips at the Underwater Photography Guide and Dive Photo Guide. Here, then, are 20+ photos that we hope you'll think about the next time you're planning a vacation. How amazing would it be to bring home pictures like this?

Beautiful iPhone Photography

Most designers and developers jumped on to the mobile bandwagon as soon as the market broke. So many new avenues were made available, and the field gained a new route of accessibility. Another area that the new smartphone pandemic has impacted is photography. This is not suggesting that folks running around armed only with iPhones and enthusiasm are going to be dominating the professional photography market, far from it. But a new avenue of accessibility has certainly opened up for so many, and the inspirational wellsprings are overflowing as a result. With so many fantastic apps on the market, with their one touch photo effects and filters, iPhones and their built in digital cameras have taken the photography world by storm. Producing some truly inspiring results, which we have gathered a collection of for you today. Take a look at the fun and creative life captured on an iPhone followed up by some links to a few apps to take your own pics with.

Refreshing Collection of Twilight Pictures and Photography Tips

What a time twilight is, to some it’s the time of romance, to some it’s the time of prayers but to most of us it’s the time to go back home. It is the time when drop off all burdens and be joyful. Pictures of twilight hours bring us the same feeling and that’s why they are so popular and sell in high prices. Today I collected some of the best twilight photos and Tayyab added photography tips. These pictures are absolutely picturesque will be a huge inspiration and the tips will enable you to capture such shots yourself.

Amazing Example Of Documentary Photography

Documentary photography usually refers to a well-liked form of photography used to chronicle significant and historical events. It is typically covered in professional photojournalism, but it may also be an amateur, artistic, or academic pursuit. The photographer attempts to produce truthful, objective, and usually candid photography of a particular subject, most often pictures of people. In today’s article we have collected Amazing Example Of Documentary Photography to inspire you and hope you will like.

Sunset Silhouettes on the Beach

Brazilian photographer Isac Goulart specializes in taking photos of stunning silhouettes on the beach. The main focus, however, is not on his subjects, rather, they're of the wonderfully vibrant colors that burst through our screens. "I am a Brazilian who has traveled bits of the world, seen some incredible beauty, and decided to capture a small fraction of these frozen moments in pixels to share with others online," says Goulart.

Dogs in Motion – Shake by Carli Davidson

“Shake” is a small and cute series of dog shots shaking off water. It’s incredible the strange and funny pet expressions that you can capture with high speed photography. This was a work by Carli Davidson. “Carli Davidson is a nationally recognized fine art pet photographer currently working out of Portland Oregon. She has a background in both commercial and documentary photography, as well as over 7 years experience as an animal trainer and caretaker. Her love of both art and animals led her to work as an animal care technician and photographer for the Oregon Zoo, as well as a volunteer photographer for local animal rescues.”

Post-Soviet Aircraft Graveyard Discovered on Abandoned Far East Russian Air Base

During the Cold War CIA and U.S. Air Force pilots risked life and limb to spy on the Soviet Union. Today, we too can peer behind the former Iron Curtain, all from the comfort of our personal computers. Intriguingly, such virtual exploration has revealed abandoned military bases in the far reaches of Russia that – even today – house the rusting remnants of the feared Soviet bomber force. Littered with at least 18 gutted Tupolev Tu-22M Backfires of the 444th Heavy Bomber Regiment, Vozdvizhenka air base resembles a post-apocalyptic landscape. Entering this barren place, located near Ussuriysk in the Primorsky Krai region of Far East Russia, 60 miles north of Vladivostok and 40 miles from the Chinese border, is like taking a step back in time.