SydsPics

Frozen Morning - Windermere, Lake District, Cumbria

Windermere is the largest natural lake in England. It is a ribbon lake formed in a glacial trough after the retreat of ice at the start of the current interglacial period.

Mouthful - Atlantic Puffin, Staple Island

Puffins are distinct in their ability to hold several (sometimes over a dozen) small fish at a time, rather than regurgitating swallowed fish. This allows them to take longer foraging trips, since they can come back with more food energy for their chick than a bird that can only carry one fish at a time. This is made possible by the unique hinging mechanism of their beak, which allows the upper and lower biting edges to meet at any of a number of angles.

Mystical Morning - Mont Saint-Michel, France

Shot just before full sunrise which gives this photo some nice soft colours without a lot of saturation. I was lucky to get calm winds which alowed me to get a decent reflection. Love how the colour from the sky is reflected in the water and gives this image a balanced look. Le Mont Saint-Michel is an island commune in Normandy, France. It is located about one kilometre (0.6 miles) off the country's northwestern coast. The tides can vary greatly (14 Metres), which is reason it was nicknamed "St. Michael in peril of the sea" by medieval pilgrims making their way across the flats to reach the abbey located at the top of the mountain.

Into the water - Derwent Water, Lake District

Long expo at Derwent Water, near Keswick in Lake District, Cumbria, England. The lake occupies part of Borrowdale and lies immediately south of the town of Keswick. It is both fed and drained by the River Derwent. Derwentwater is a place of great scenery. It is surrounded by hills (called fells), and many of the slopes facing Derwentwater are heavily wooded. Derwent means River with oak trees. The lake is believed to be the last remaining native habitat of the vendace fish. It was also the shooting location for Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens for the scene "Approach to Maz Kantana's Castle, Takodana".

Dusk in the City of Lights - Paris, France

As dusk sets in on Paris, the city lights turn on. On a summers evening, the city lights overlap with the dusk golden light in the sky creating this amazing scene. This is a shot from the top of Tour Montparnasse Paris is often referred to as "The City of Light" (La Ville Lumière), both because of its leading role during the Age of Enlightenment, and more literally because Paris was one of the first European cities to adopt gas street lighting. In the 1860s, the boulevards and streets of Paris were illuminated by 56,000 gas lamps.

Nest Building Class - Shag & Chicks, Farne Island

European shag or common shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) is a species of cormorant. It breeds on coasts, nesting on rocky ledges or in crevices or small caves. The nests are untidy heaps of rotting seaweed or twigs cemented together by the bird's own guano. The nesting season is long, beginning in late February but some nests not started until May or even later. Three eggs are laid. Their chicks hatch without down and so they rely totally on their parents for warmth, often for a period of two months before they can fly. Fledging may occur at any time from early June to late August, exceptionally to mid-October.

Skógafoss, Iceland

Skógafoss is located on the Skógá River in the south of Iceland at the cliffs of the former coastline. After the coastline receded the former sea cliffs remained, parallel to the coast over hundreds of kilometres, creating a clear border between the coastal lowlands and the Highlands of Iceland.

A Storm Brewing - Paris, France

A 9 shot hand help pano from the top of Arc de Triomphe which is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the center of Place Charles de Gaulle. Tripods aren't allowed on the top of the Arch so I had to open the aperture and go with a hand held pano. I took a lot of shots to make sure I had at least one which was sharp in each position, not sure of how the final image would turn out. I finally selected 9 images which panned the entire scene and were sharp enough to produce the final image and I think it turned out pretty well.