EDITORS’ PICK
The Pale Blue Dot
PLANET EARTH
PLANET EARTH EDITORS’ PICK
Following Myrtille Delamarche’s selection of winning images for our recent Planet Earth competition, this compilation of 20 images represents some of the other talented photographers whose work struck us and left a mark. Each a stunning image worthy of exposure and attention…
When selecting for editor’s picks we’re always searching for those striking photographs that make for an unforgettable single image, whether from a broader series or not. We enjoy the accompanying text some photographers submit with their images, and while not always necessary it can be relevant when understanding the work in full context.
These are intended to be a conversation starter… so feel free to join the discussion on our social networks.
BANNER IMAGE: VLAD VASYLKEVYCH
Rugged, dramatic, and mesmerizing, this landscape photograph conveys a strong wanderlust feeling. It makes the world look vast and undiscovered, urging us to pack a bag and go. The shooting angle adds a sense of depth, while the astonishing focal point is impossible to miss or forget. The ashy color palette seems unreal for a nature photo, but Planet Earth is the ultimate artist when it comes to inventing colors. – LIFE FRAMER
MICHAEL POTTER
If you didn’t know that there are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on Earth, take a look at this image and be grateful you can call this planet home. The tree is standing its ground, proud and resilient, looking after everything in sight. By using a multilayered composition and including time as a visual component, the photographer creates a narrative that raises awareness of our impact on the environment. Stripping the frame of color is a wise choice because it highlights how tree, sky, and people are parts of the same entity. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – The Guardian. This 150 year old oak tree sits looking over a vineyard on the island of Mallorca. I photographed it at night under a star studded sky on a long exposure and the horizon’s glow is a reminder of the ever encroaching impact of mass tourism.
ALEXANDRA ANTHÉA GODEFROY
An image that takes your breath away, this photograph captures one of the most magical shows of our planet: a rainbow. The use of highlights and shadows is exquisite, the framing is harmonious, and the focal point is mesmerizing. But the image offers more than visual sensations. It makes you smell the refreshing air of the waterfall, hear its rumble, and feel the stone’s texture on your fingertips. – LIFE FRAMER
PATRICK SUHM
This meadow is a poem in which each flower and each blade of grass is a verse. Artistic, sweet, and intriguing, with a very reduced color palette and the softest contrast, the image creates an atmosphere, a feeling, a mood. Here and there, small details break the monotony, providing focal points that keep the viewer hooked. Man and nature go hand in hand. Well done! – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Meadow II (2026).
THOMAS MOREL-FORT
Since the beginning of time, Planet Earth has been providing for its inhabitants. Humans’ ability to benefit from its generosity has put us at the top of the food chain and has allowed us to develop our society. The photograph highlights one of the key elements of human survival, salt, and a method of extraction that doesn’t rely on machinery. It is simple and honest hardship, a dialogue between man and nature. Everything blends smoothly as it should be. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – The people of Palmarin live mainly from the artisanal production of sea salt. Palmarin’s salt is harvested at the bottom of water wells by rising from the salty surface water table fed by the sea. There is no mechanisation of the harvest, which takes place from February to June.Salt wells located on the territory of the Palmarin community nature reserve. Veronique Diop, with her back bent, cleans her salt with an ochre-coloured water base. This 63-year-old woman, with a weathered face, suffers from lumbago. “I have been producing salt since I was 14 years old. I have always worked, even with my children, still babies, hanging on my back”, says this mother of six children, widowed at 30. “My eyes are damaged. The sun’s reflection on the immaculate white of the salt burns the retina. “In the evening, when I go to bed, my whole body hurts.
FRED PAYET
A gentle reminder to stop, look around, and take in the beauty of nature. The image feels natural and conveys a soft movement that’s soothing and inviting. Following the rules of composition and heavily relying on color contrast, the photograph is artful, well-balanced, and appealing. The more one looks at it, the more one wants to look at it, and that’s the ultimate achievement for photography. – LIFE FRAMER
SUE MORGENEGG
Nature put on a beautiful show, and the photographer rose to the occasion by choosing to focus on simplicity, color accuracy, and sharpness. The image is picturesque, inviting, and appealing. It’s a memory one enjoys even if it’s not their own, like a painting you enjoy passing by every day. The color palette is stunning, the frame well-balanced, and the rainbow so clear! – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Morning mood at the Dunes of Sossusvlei, Namibia after a thunderstorm.
RICHARD PROVENCHER
Planet Earth is not just the ground we step on and the ocean we bathe in. It is also the sky above, a scene where astonishing phenomena happen. The photographer dares to fill the frame with clouds, giving them the main role for once. The image is colorful, fluid, and ethereal. It feels so alive that one can expect to hear the sound of the moving clouds. Certainly, they are whispering something, don’t they? – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Cloud citadel.
IAN STEWART
This artful black and white shot reminds us of a world in which man and nature were living together, peacefully, side by side. The photographer masterfully used highlights and shadows to add depth and create a strong focal point, proving a strong understanding of the black and white aestehtic. The framing also comes together beautifully; the geometry of the elements matches the square aspect ratio, and each section of the frame adds something to the story. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – I took this photo in the remote Animist village of Wae Rebo in the mountains of West Flores in Indonesia. The village was given Cultural Heritage Conservation status by UNESCO Asia Pacific. It is only accessible by a 2 hour uphill climb through rainforest.
AXELLE DUDOUET
We are again reminded just how small and vulnerable we are in the face of nature. The composition is splendid, mysterious, and revealing at the same time, providing immediate visual cues and food for thought. If you look carefully, you’ll notice that the human silhouettes, the obvious focal point, are just secondary characters. The majestic mountain in the background is the de facto hero. Excellent storytelling ability. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Dans la brume des montagnes (In the mist of the mountains).
During a trip to Austria—specifically the few days I spent in Sölden, where the weather was rather fickle—I took advantage of the beautiful clouds and mist to capture several landscape photos. I was particularly drawn to this shot, featuring a pair of hikers walking away and about to disappear into the mist, for its understated quality and the sense of calm it conveys. The vastness of the mountain in the background also highlights the smallness of the human figures.
MARTINA HOLMBERG
Fine-art nature photography is not something one sees often, which is even more admirable. The shot is surreally beautiful, almost monochrome in its shades of freezing blue. The forest seems to float on a sea of snow, inviting reverie and calm. At the same time, there is an undeniable sense of time passing by and changing everything. Each time one looks at this image, it looks slightly different, as if the perpetual change in nature would somehow materialise in a changed photograph. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Snow-covered trees on a cold winter day in Hallstavik, Sweden.
FRANCISCO CORTES ARIAS
A beautiful capture of an impressive subject matter, the photograph underlines the photographer’s engagement with the subject and excellent technical skills. The frame has only three visual elements, but they compete for the viewer’s attention in such a way that it’s really difficult to look away or to decide on a favorite. In the end, the beauty of our planet lies not in an individual element but in the interconnectedness, in the amazing equilibrium of the ecosystem. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Chi’Gag El Volcan De Fuego, Guatemala. An impressive eruption of the Volcano of Fire “Chi’Gag” in Guatemala. A starry sky, a full moon that was hiding and the unforeseen and impressive eruption of Chi`gag that seemed from the earth to offer its strength and energy to the sky and the whole universe. It was a unique moment of communion with nature in all its splendor!
ASHLEY HUGHES
Human-made constructions emerge from the natural landscape almost everywhere around the world. They disrupt the patterns, alter the textures, and interfere with the colors. Looking at this impactful image, one realizes how much nature has to fight to survive. A few trees in the foreground, a mountain in the background, a toxic sky above. The image is a strong warning, a call to immediate action. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Los Angeles.
GIOVANNA CONSERVANI
So abstract, high-key, and surreal, yet a creation of our planet and its inhabitants. The frame is beyond minimalism, yet efficient and intriguing. Displaying creativity and attention to detail, the photographer highlights a complicated philosophical idea, best stated by Alan Watts: “We do not ‘come into’ this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree. As the ocean ‘waves,’ the universe ‘peoples.'” – LIFE FRAMER
OWEN PRUCEY
Following the theme of the human-nature relationship, the photograph literally blurs the borders in order to highlight that there is no ‘us’ and ‘it,’ just a rich universe in which we all have our role. The soft color palette and the warm, almost nostalgic, light are good choices to create an atmosphere and invite the viewer to a more mindful perspective. There is still hope may be the message of this artwork. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Tall reeds blur the foreground beneath towering transmission towers and a concrete barrier stretching across the landscape.
YAELLE RABINOVITCH
An explosion of colors on a sky full of stars, a rare show only a few are lucky enough to witness. This photograph transports us into a magical world where everything seems possible. The framing is straightforward, placing the magical subject matter right in the center, conveying enthusiasm, joy, and enchantment. When one sees something so wonderful, one simply has to take it all in. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Angel Light. A northern light explodes in the winter Icelandic skies with colors appearing unreal.
STEVE JENNINGS
It’s hard to believe that this scenery belongs to Earth and not to the Moon. Abstract, devoid of color, with such artistic lines and soft lighting, the landscape makes for the perfect model. The photographer and the viewer are equally in awe. It’s invigorating to see this fresh, untouched perspective, this sensitive take on nature photography in which the photographer fully trusts the subject matter and renounces any embellishments or effects. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Dune Dawn. The soft sheen of sunrise lights up the dune field deep in the backcountry of Death Valley National Park, California.
ILSE KOKS
It’s impressive to see the photographer’s determination and commitment to waiting for the decisive moment when imagination becomes reality. The frame is carefully curated in collaboration with nature, not against it, resulting in more of a lovely family portrait than a wildlife shot. All it took to create a great shot was two colors, a bit of texture, a heart as big as the sky, and an innate talent for storytelling. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Starling Skyfield. For five months, from August to December 2025, I photographed the daily arrival and departure of starlings at De Hooge Boezem near Haastrecht, the Netherlands. Each evening before sunset, thousands assembled above the reedbeds before descending to roost. I searched for a position at the edge of the reeds where naturally spaced stems framed the sky, leaving an opening in the centre. After weeks of watching and waiting, the flock finally passed overhead, briefly filling this window before settling into the reeds for the night.
ENRICO FULCO
The photographer beautifully highlights the fact that we share this planet with many other species. The composition is thoughtful; the connection is undeniable. There is contrast and a well-balanced space; there is definitely a story we want to know more about. But the most impressive thing about this photograph is the bird’s acknowledgment of our existence, its fearless expression, its curiosity. Well done! – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Seabound. I took this picture from a fishing boat off Skuvoy, in the Faroe Islands. I wanted to show the intense bond between the guillemot and its natural habitat: seabirds spend indeed most of the year at sea, coming ashore only briefly during summer just to nest for the breeding season. The open sea is their real home during the rest of the year.
This photo was taken while holding the camera fitted with a 500mm lens off board, just above the waterline: I composed using the articulated display, waiting for a wave to partially hide the subject.
ANDRII IGNATOV
When man works with nature and not against it, beautiful things appear. The photographer focused on creating an environmental portrait rather than just a portrait, thus enhancing the image with multiple layers of significance. The composition follows the golden rule, guiding the viewer from one element to another and offering a lesson in history, architecture, and geography at the same time. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Eltz Castle (Burg Eltz), Germany. Taken on iPhone.
