FROM ICE bubbles to boiling lava, these photographs highlight the stunning shapes and patterns found in nature. The series of extraordinary images were taken by German software engineer Thorsten Scheuermann after he decided to examine his surroundings. A trip to the city of Kalapana in Hawaii, home to the Kilauea Volcano, provided Thorsten with the setting for his lava picture, while a visit to the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon offered him the opportunity to photograph ice bubbles up-close. The 37-year-old, now of Washington, USA, said: 'These are sights that can gain greater significance and have their beauty exposed when excluding everything else around them.'
Sitting all alone on drift ice in the Arctic Ocean, this lonely little fella looks lost .
It's incredible to think anyone could live in such horrendous squalor - yet two men have been prosecuted for keeping their homes in such revolting conditions that it was no longer fit for their animals .
A diver attempts to control rising numbers of lionfish by feeding the venomous species to Caribbean reef sharks .
A pair of BEAUTIFUL rescue sea turtles spot their catch in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef .
UNDERWATER and above-water seaside shots show the best of British beach-life .
Kevin Silva, 52 from Indiana in the USA, has spent an estimated £65K ($100K) on Batman trinkets over the years, and even keeps his 2,500-item haul in his very own basement 'Bat Cave' .
WIDE EYED and staring straight down the lens of the camera, this intrigued seal is ready for his close up .
FORGET Thorpe Park this summer as this is a 50 mile-per-hour ride over the Colorado River CANYON .
This cheeky chappie is getting into all kinds of monkey business as he enjoys cooling off on a scorching hot day .
A group of otters put on a show of aqua aerobics, as they raise their flippers perfectly in sync .