About twice a year I find myself migrating back to Paros, the place where I grew up. After all this time you’d think I would have run out of things to photograph there, but I don’t think that’s possible. That’s even more the case after my (very trusting) father-in-law lent me his drone, allowing me to explore completely new perspectives. A short photo essay is below.

You don’t see many drone pictures shot early in the morning and it quickly became clear to me why. Pointing toward the rising sun, the natural focal point at 6am, is close to impossible since all the details get blown out. Look away from it though and you’ll be rewarded with beautiful, pink light.

As the sun rose further, more and more details from the bottom of the sea became visible. Despite it not being the calmest of weather, the water was crystal clear from the air.

Some of the most interesting patterns came where water and land mixed, creating an other-worldly sensation.

Then of course you have the indescribable turquoise of the Aegean. In these images you can see the “modern” dock and the old grooves from which generations of Greeks launched their boats.

Going inland, I was greeted by a red and green color palette, broken up by stone.

I wish I had taken more photos of land, but the sea was too wonderful a subject to ignore.

Exploring from the air was a wonderful experience on the island. More importantly though Manolis (pictured) and I became 8 year old boys again playing with a new toy over Christmas. Looking forward to further exploring this small corner of our planet.

- Stefanos Metaxas