In imperial China, no buildings were allowed to rise above the emperor’s throne, and it seems that even in the 21st century, going too high for a view of the city can land you in trouble with the authorities.
This is the lesson that a New Zealand-based photographer learned when he sent his drone helicopter up over downtown Beijing for some aerial views of the city. Fortunately for him, the high-tech photographer was only briefly detained by the police for flying his camera-laden gadget too close to China’s government headquarters at Zhongnanhai, and his helicopter was returned to him when he left the country, according to a post on his personal blog.
It’s also lucky that many of his still images and video were preserved, so that we can enjoy shots of Beijing landmarks such as the Ming Tombs, the Forbidden City, and the Drum Tower, like you have never seen before. The specialist HDR photographer also captured stills and video of areas around the central business district of China’s capital, including the iconic CCTV tower.
All photos courtesy of Trey Ratcliff, stuckincustoms.com.
(Sorry for VPN-less China viewers, but the video appears to be Youtube-only at this point).
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