Amazing Creativity by Blind photographer

Craig Royal, a fine art photographer, was born with vision loss due to a congenital form of optic atrophy. He has been practicing photography for the last four years and his subject matter is wide and far; nature, architecture, objects and their potential for abstraction and a philosophical perspective that explores the human condition.

Royal believes, "Photography is more than a form of artistic expression but also a visual aide that allows me to revel in the exquisite detail that surrounds us."

Courtesy of the artist Craig Royal, from the series "Refections and Abstractions"

NASA launched Largest-ever robotic explorer : Atlas 5 Mars Rover

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover lifts off from Launch Complex 41at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket will deliver a science laboratory to Mars to study potential habitable environments on the planet.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket carrying NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover

The biggest, most sophisticated robotic explorer ever built.The rover examines a rock on Mars with a set of tools

This artist concept shows NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Curiosity is being tested in preparation for launch in late 2011. In this picture, the rover examines a rock on Mars with a set of tools at the end of the rover's arm, which extends about 2 meters (7 feet).

Two instruments on the arm can study rocks up close. Also, a drill can collect sample material from inside of rocks and a scoop can pick up samples of soil. The arm can sieve the samples and deliver fine powder to instruments inside the rover for thorough analysis.

A "sky crane" lowers the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover onto the surface of Mars

Scenes from a miniature world- Toy Story

Diorama effect or "diorama illusion" is a process in which a photograph of a life-size location or object is made to look like a photograph of a miniature scale model.

Blurring parts of the photo simulates the shallow depth of field normally encountered in close-up photography, making the scene seem much smaller than it actually is the blurring can be done either optically when the photograph is taken, or by digital postprocessing. Many diorama effect photographs are taken from a high angle to simulate the effect of looking down on a miniature.

Message in a bottle? This one makes the sail

This miniature VW van goes off the beaten track

These GIs take cover as the mortar explodes. Don’t miss the sandbags in the foreground

A car zips on a rain-washed street

Japan after 8 month of tsunami destruction

These aerial views of tsunami-battered seaside communities in north eastern Japan may show striking progress - with much of the rubble, crumpled cars and debris gone.

But a brown, barren emptiness where bustling towns once stood is a sobering reminder of how much work still lies ahead in clearing up the area devastated eight months ago, on March 11, by the disaster triggered by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake.

People living in the tidy rows of temporary houses that dot the surrounding areas say they are frustrated that authorities are not moving ahead more quickly with reconstruction plans.

The fishing town of Minamisanriku, which lost 70% of its buildings in tsunami

The carnage caused by the tsunami can be seen on the outline of an aircraft which used to stand next to Sendai's airport

Entire neighbourhoods in the town of Natori were completely wiped out by the March 11 tsunami

Cars damaged by the tsunami are left parked in a field near Ishinomaki

A three-storey building looks as it was easily pushed over onto its side in Onagawa

Though much of the debris left by the tsunami has been removed, eight months later there is little sign of rebuilding in communities, such as Ishinomaki pictured here

This is one of hundreds of rows of make-shift houses that have constructed for tsunami survivors in Onagawa

The city of Sendai is seen behind buildings damaged by the March 11 tsunami

A digger sets about clearing debris near a boat stranded by the tsunami at Ishinomaki

Foundations of houses destroyed by the tsunami are seen beside undamaged ones in Sendai

The world's last paradise

Raja Ampat archipelago The world's last paradise on earth.Raja Ampat archipelago was nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site with its largely pristine environment considered one of the most important sites of marine biodiversity in the world.

Rock formations are seen in Kabui Bay in Raja Ampat located in eastern Indonesia's Papua region.

Cottages are built over the water at Kri Island private resort in Raja Ampat.

School of fish swims under the wharf of Raja Ampat's Mansuar Island located in eastern Indonesia's Papua region.

Honda unveils new concept cars

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. announced its lineup of production and concept-model automobiles, motorcycles, power products, and other highlights for its display at the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show 2011.

A micro-sized, futuristic, electric city commuter which will become a highly accessible form of mobility for more people. This vehicle will offer the joy of a new type of communications between people and mobility and an exterior that the owner can enjoy customizing more casually

Honda Concept car at the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show 2011

The collaboration of Honda's motorcycle and automobile R&D centers made it possible to load the MOTOR COMPO two-wheel EV commuter in this vehicle

A next-generation plug-in hybrid vehicle which offers a more comfortable and enjoyable time in the vehicle during all driving situations, from urban to long-distance driving

With the choices of an "engine drive mode" for more aggressive driving or an "automatic drive mode" for more relaxed driving, the vehicle broadens the joy of mobility

World's highest selling art

Cindy Sherman’s “Untitled #96″ from 1981 was the world’s most valuable photograph after selling for a staggering $3.89 million at a Christie’s auction. That record has now been beat by German photographer Andreas Gursky.

The painting sold at auction by Sotheby’s in New York for over $61 million

In this undated photo provided by Sotheby’s Auction House, a painting by Abstract Expressionist Clyfford Still entitled “1949-A-No. 1,” is shown. The painting sold at auction by Sotheby’s in New York for over $61 million. It was one of a group of four paintings by the artist that brought over $114 million collectively.

Rhine river by German artist Andreas Gursky

This 1999 photograph provided by Chrisitie's shows the Rhine river by German artist Andreas Gursky. Titled "Rhein II," the chromogenic color print face-mounted to acrylic glass was sold for $4.3 million

"White Cloud"

MIA37 - NEW YORK (NY, USA) Photo courtesy 08/11/2011 where you can appreciate the work entitled "White Cloud", the Russian-born abstract expressionist Mark Rothko (1903-1970) who won by 18, $ 5 million on Tuesday November 8, 2011, in a bid of postwar and contemporary art at Christie's auction house.

Kieron Williamson test works sell out in ten minutes for £106,000

It took only ten minutes and 50 seconds for every one of Kieron Williamson’s distinctive landscapes to be snapped up – earning the excited nine-year-old an impressive £106,260.Kieron at work.The boy known as Mini Monet beamed as buyers from around the world queued to be first in line when his watercolours, pastels and oils went on sale.

Artwork of Kieron Williamson :-

His last major exhibition of 33 paintings sold for £150,000 in 30 minutes in July last year and he sold two paintings for £21,000 each the following month.Kieron lived with his family in a rented flat next to a petrol station before using his earnings to buy a £150,000 home in the Norfolk Broads village of Ludham.

Buyers paid anything from £1,250 for his Norfolk sunset view to £15,595 for his impression of the Suleymaniye mosque in Istanbul.Kieron said he would celebrate his success with a Chinese takeaway for his parents Keith, 45, and Michelle, 38, and sister Billie-Jo, seven.

‘I still paint every day – but I like football as well,’ he said. ‘I think these paintings are my best yet.’


His father said: ‘I am amazed at how well his pictures have sold today. We are so grateful to everyone who has supported Kieron, especially in the current economic climate.

‘He is still a normal boy who loves his football.He goes to school every day in his shorts and comes home covered in mud.’

Adrian Hill, managing director of the Picturecraft gallery in Holt which organised the sale, said the speed of the purchases was remarkable.

‘When our doors opened it was pandemonium in here,’ he said ‘You see this continual maturity and evolution in Kieron’s paintings. His work is constantly improving and the more he paints, the more he understands his medium.’

The worst flooding in Thailand's history stopped everything for weeks

Aircrafts sits on a flooded tarmack at the Don Muang domestic airport in Bangkok on November 10, 2011. Don Muang airport has been closed for weeks due to the worst flooding in Thailand's history where the airport becomes shipyard.

Place Where the Internet was born

UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) (R) is pictured in the birthplace of the Internet, at 3420 Boelter Hall, the original location of the first ARPANET node at UCLA in Los Angeles, California June 2, 2011. UCLA professor Leonard Kleinrock and his team used the IMP, the packet-switching node used to interconnect participant networks to the ARPANET to send the first message, the letters LO to Stanford Research Institute on October 29, 1969.

The UCLA Department of Computer Science and Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have collaborated in creating the Kleinrock Internet Heritage Site and Archive (KIHSA) with the center recreating the lab at its original site in 3420 Boelter Hall from which that first message was sent, which for years had been used as a classroom.The recreated lab will open October 29 with a reunion of the computer scientists responsible for the first message. Picture taken June 2, 2011.

UCLA professor Leonard Kleinrock and his team used the IMP, the packet-switching node used to interconnect participant networks to the ARPANET to send the first message, the letters LO to Stanford Research Institute on October 29, 1969.

A detailed view of UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) is seen in a storage closet, where it had been stored for over 20 years, at 3420 Boelter Hall in UCLA, May 3, 2011.

A detailed view of UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) is pictured in a storage closet, where it had been stored for over 20 years, at 3420 Boelter Hall in UCLA, May 3, 2011.

A detailed view of UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) is pictured in a storage closet.

A blackboard with the letters LOG and LO, is pictured in 3420 Boelter Hall at UCLA, May 3, 2011.

UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) is pictured in a storage closet, where it had been stored for over 20 years by UCLA professor Leonard Kleinrock and his team, at 3420 Boelter Hall in UCLA, May 3, 2011.

The original log book detailing UCLA professor Leonard Kleinrock and his team using the Interface Message Processor (IMP), is seen at 3420 Boelter Hall in UCLA, May 3, 2011.

A teletype similar to one used to communicate with the Sigma 7 computer which was connected to UCLA's Interface Message Processor (IMP) in the birthplace of the Internet.