Now THAT’S a bird’s eye view! Instagramming photographer’s aerial photos take you on a flight around the world, capturing amazing castles, wild mountains and otherworldly canyons

• Hugo Healy, 26, from Brighton in the UK, has set Instagram alight with his breathtaking drone photography
• He says: ‘For each trip I create a map of all the locations so I can plan a route and see where each site is’ 
• The job can be tough and while in Iceland, he battled ‘torrential rains’, ‘gale force winds’ and ‘blinding fog’

This high-flying photographer is creating a stir on Instagram. And no wonder.

Hugo Healy, 26, from Brighton but currently based in Dubai, has garnered more than 22,000 followers on the photo-sharing platform thanks to his breathtaking drone photography.

His images give you a bird’s eye view of some of the world’s most beautiful places, his shots capturing everything from an ancient castle in Scotland to the bright lights of Brighton Pier and from the domed cathedral in Florence at sunrise to some of Saudi Arabia’s most otherworldly landscapes.

While he makes the art of drone photography look easy, Healy tells MailOnline Travel that it takes lots of research and planning to get the right shots. He says: ‘For each trip I create a map of all the locations so I can plan a route and see where each site is in relation to everything else in the country. I find reference photos to add onto the pins so that I can remember what they look like.’

While on the job, Healy – who works in the film industry as a professional drone pilot – has had a couple of scary encounters. He recalls that while in Iceland a wheel fell off his four-by-four leaving him stranded, and on the same trip he had to battle ‘torrential rains’, ‘gale force winds’, ‘blinding fog’ and uneven terrain to get the perfect shot of an oozing volcano.

Swoop down to take a flight around the planet, thanks to Healy’s magical photography skills…  

Describing this shot, which was taken over Lima, the Pacific Ocean-facing capital of Peru, Healy says: ‘Living life on the edge… the residents living on the cliffs of Lima seem to be. I think it’s important to live a life of taking risks, pushing yourself outside your comfort zone. That’s where we grow and learn so much more. Do the things you don’t want to do, things that make you scared. Activities that make you feel or your heart race. Become alive. I wonder how these guys feel living on the side of a crumbling cliff’

LEFT: This mesmerising shot was taken over the Newlands Valley in the Lake District, Cumbria. Healy describes the Lakes as ‘the most beautiful place in England’ and muses: ‘I mean look at the house down there… could you imagine living there and having this as your back garden?’ RIGHT: This photograph shows the amazing Castle Stalker, located on a tidal island on the west coast of Scotland, 25 miles north of Oban. The 14th-century fortress, described by Healy as ‘one of Scotland’s many gems’, was used as the filming location for the final scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail

To see more of Healy’s work, visit his Instagram page. 

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