This week in Editors' Choice: Expert Michiel Meyboom curates views from above

Expert Michiel Meyboom, a photo editor for an online travel company, guest curates this week’s Editors’ Choice, showing us unique perspectives from overhead.

I’m a travel photographer, currently working as a photo editor for an online travel company. Working within the travel industry gives me the chance to travel and experience as much of the world as I can, so for me, it’s both a job and a hobby.

I have loved flying since I was a kid, being able to see the world from a different viewpoint. From a professional standpoint, I love the new perspective that drones can give the world. However, this doesn’t mean you can send up a drone and expect amazing photos every time. You still need to think carefully about light and composition.

For example, when shooting with a drone, avoid the obvious layouts that have already been done too much, like roads through a forest or waves crashing against a beach. If you want to make that kind of shot interesting, try going out early in the day or before sunset, when shadows can cast interesting shapes. Shadows can turn a very normal shot into something that commands your attention, like the images below.

I particularly like this one, in which a regular shot of a shipping container is transformed as the shadows mimic a city skyline.

You can also look out for shapes when shooting with a drone. Things often look completely different from above, so you’re able to make the image more dynamic by having something enter into the shot. Here, for example, the geometric shapes almost look like they’re moving once you look at the image, and the person walking adds that extra dimension to the image.

These are just a few of the photos I selected for Editors’ Choice this week—to see all of the photos I curated this week, check out the Editors’ Choice gallery on 500px.