COVERING themselves in ash and face paint, these are the holy men who live their lives away from everyday society. Known as sadhus, they shun all home comforts for a life spent inside caves, forests and temples and can be found across India and Nepal. German banker and photographer Mario Gerth decided to find and photograph the sadhu people. The 38-year-old of Erfurt, Germany, says: “I have been obsessed with the sadhus for many years and set off in 2013 to look for them.
CARRYING a fully grown goat on his back, this five-year-old boy is a child shepherd in the mountains of northern Ethiopia .
A brave leopard kicks back and relaxes in the sunshine - just inches from an enormous crocodile .
LYING back in the snow, these two polar bears share a cuddle as they call time out on playtime .
AN EXERCISING turtle and an ice-skating chick are hardly everyday exploits in the animal community .
With a dust covered coat hung from a wardrobe door and a pair of glasses left on a shelf, a remote farmhouse lies abandoned in the Welsh countryside .
HUDDLING under a leaf, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls take shelter from the rain .
In the calm waters of Greenland, gigantic icebergs dwarf everything around them .
FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters .
STARING intently into the camera, a polar bear appears to be lost in thought while relaxing in the snow .
A carefree bear cub reclines in the water with his feet raised in the air .
A baby sperm whale assumed the role of a friendly giant when faced with two awestruck divers .
Beautiful turquoise waves rise and fall in a series of stunning images taken along the coastline of south-eastern Australia .