The warm rays of sunrise begin to burn off the morning fog over the lost city of Machu Picchu. I was lucky enough to be on the first train back to the ruins after the disastrous floods of winter, 2009. This was the first day in nearly 4 months that the park had received any visitors. And it was empty at sunrise!
This photo was taken on June 13, 2010.
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Comments and faves
The Man in Red, Justin Reznick, GlobeTrotter 2000, Heilah Alnasser, and 569 other people added this photo to their favorites.
The Man in Red (36 months ago | reply)
my mind just exploded...this is amazing
Pacanica [deleted] (36 months ago | reply)
I cannot believe my own eyes! the beauty has no limits ! extrordinary! thank you!
Justin Reznick (36 months ago | reply)
WOW Michael. Epic! Love it!
GlobeTrotter 2000 (36 months ago | reply)
Awesome foggy atmosphere of this amazing location !
João P Ferreira (36 months ago | reply)
Wow! This is something special.
Jim Patterson Photography (36 months ago | reply)
I can't imagine what it must have felt to be here at this moment. Amazing light and the mist just puts it in another league.
Sandor... (36 months ago | reply)
Perfect timing... love the morning fog!
Ryan Dyar? Nope, Chuck Testa. (36 months ago | reply)
One of the best images I've seen of Machu Picchu, and in that unique mysterious and dramatic style of a lot of my favorites of yours. Really well done.
I'm loving all this new work your showing...
supercoco__ (36 months ago | reply)
ouww, great atmosphere in clasicc Machu Pichu
Joshua Cripps (36 months ago | reply)
The atmosphere you've created here is astonishing. A truly mystical image. Well done.
~Josh
Michael Bollino (36 months ago | reply)
A magical moment indeed! The fog takes this image to another level, adding drama and a bit of mystery as well.
Douglas Remington - Ethereal Light® Photography (36 months ago | reply)
Love the clouds and mist. Very nice!
T.-C (36 months ago | reply)
This has to be the best Machu Picchu image I've ever seen!
shuizhuniu (36 months ago | reply)
What a breathtaking shot! The fog and spot lighting really accentuate the mythical elements Machu Picchu possesses. It is another "wish-I-were-there" shot that will keep landscape photographers on flickr drooling for years.
Amy Heiden (36 months ago | reply)
Stunning image. Beautiful fog layer.
M.Varga (36 months ago | reply)
This photo is a good sample in the flickr. It is awarded the flickr Award!
flickrAward (post1 – award 5)
Please Tag your photo with “flickrAward” and visit the flickr Award Gallery
Please post the photo to flickr Award 5+ thread if you received 5 or more of this award
FlipMode79 (36 months ago | reply)
This photo is a good sample in the flickr. It is awarded the flickr Award!
flickrAward (post1 – award 5)
Please Tag your photo with “flickrAward” and visit the flickr Award Gallery
Please post the photo to flickr Award 5+ thread if you received 5 or more of this award
Gert van Duinen (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called XPO, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
This photo was invited and added to the XPO group.
debo_rah15 (36 months ago | reply)
You deserve the SHOW THE BEST Award !!!
Thank you for sharing your beautiful photo !
'SHOW THE BEST'
Post 1 / Award 2
D Breezy - davidthompsonphotography.com (36 months ago | reply)
this is by far the BEST image i have ever scene at this location. epic, masterpiece, all of the above. im just speechless.
KBS123 (36 months ago | reply)
A lovely photo, it looks mystical
PLEASE JOIN US, IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO!!!
françois26 (36 months ago | reply)
This photo is a good sample in the flickr. It is awarded the flickr Award!
flickrAward (post1 – award 5)
Please Tag your photo with “flickrAward” and visit the flickr Award Gallery
Please post the photo to flickr Award 5+ thread if you received 5 or more of this award
SLEEC Photos/Suzanne (36 months ago | reply)
Magical!
Garrett Costanzo Photo (36 months ago | reply)
Mystical...first word that comes to mind when I see this. Wonderful shot.
Bill Ratcliffe (36 months ago | reply)
awesome!
Danica (Mariella Tammas) (36 months ago | reply)
This is a beautiful image!!
Your photo was viewed in:
'Your Preferred Picture'
Danica (Mariella Tammas) (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Through Our Eyes (P1/A3), and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Danica (Mariella Tammas) (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Solidarity to Chile ¡¡¡¡, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Danica (Mariella Tammas) (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called "THE BEST TEAM" (El mejor equipo) - Post 1 comment 3, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Danica (Mariella Tammas) (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called AMANTES DEL ARTE - P6, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
This photo was invited and added to the "THE BEST TEAM" (El mejor equipo) - Post 1 comment 3 group.
This photo was invited and added to the AMANTES DEL ARTE - Sube 1 comenta 2 group.
This photo was invited and added to the Through Our Eyes (P1/A3) group.
This photo was invited and added to the Solidarity With ¡¡¡¡ CHILE !!!! group.
onelinecross (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called infinite holiday click, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
PLEASE JOIN US, IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO!!!
absolutely amazing. I hope you will join our group
This photo was invited and added to the Infinite Holiday Click : Post 2 / Award 2 group.
Jeff J....... (36 months ago | reply)
This is just stunning! Great work here :)
photonbit (36 months ago | reply)
--
I've seen and admire your beautiful photo in : "Solidarity to Chile ¡¡¡¡ "
Pvince (36 months ago | reply)
Stunning image!
Mohit.Mehrotra (36 months ago | reply)
This is by far one of the best pics of machu picchu that i have seen Mike. Superb.
Matt Hofman (36 months ago | reply)
Wow. What to say? This shot is awesome.
DM Weber (36 months ago | reply)
Wow x10! One could not hope for better conditions. This is the classic view but so much more expressive.
Marc Briggs (36 months ago | reply)
Fantastic light on this amazing place, made so mystical with the swirling fog. Stunning shot.
Zack Schnepf (36 months ago | reply)
Somewhere I've always wanted to photograph. I can't imagine it gets much better than this. the atmosphere is amazing.
Panorama Paul (36 months ago | reply)
Holy mackerel... this is amazing... easily the best photo that I've seen on Flickr this MONTH!!
**WILD APPLAUSE**
Tamara Lowenhart (36 months ago | reply)
Your work was seen in
Through Our Eyes group
Through Our Eyes (P1/A3)
stammberger13 (36 months ago | reply)
magical shot of this magical place-awesome work!
danishpm (36 months ago | reply)
That is pretty darn awesome!!!
How lucky are you, to have the place for yourself on such a beautiful morning!
Tannachy (36 months ago | reply)
Love the mist hanging over the site. Wonderful light, but it just isn't going to beat this photo of the place.
beatrice bartoccioni (36 months ago | reply)
This Golden Hour SEEN in:
Golden Hour! POST 1,AWARD 2
Please Invite Other, Golden Hours Too!
[ o g u h ] (36 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called [ Wonders of Nature ], and we'd love to have this added to the group!
This photo was invited and added to the [ Wonders of Nature ] group.
coyrooster (36 months ago | reply)
The purpose of Machu Picchu has been theorized since its rediscovery 100 years ago. Many believe it was an impregnable fortress for Incan emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472) or possibly a sacred birthplace for virgins of the sun. Some say it might have been a high-security prison or an agricultural testing station. But so far nobody has supposed that this remote archeological wonder with mind-boggling masonry was built as a citadel to mesmerize photographers prophesied by Incan shamans to arrive centuries after its mysterious abandonment in 1572.
Strangely its mystique continues to elude the cavalcade of camera clickers from all over the world, including some of the most tenacious. Even a sweeping panorama that takes 5 minutes to open, furnished last summer to Wikipedia, amounts to little more than a humongous tourist picture.
But here we see a misty corona hovering over Peru's 'lost city' from the breath of Urubamba River 1,480 feet below. Not a living soul in sight. Not a single sound. Not even the click of a shutter (except yours). What we see is the ghost of a mighty empire consigned to oblivion, a precursor of our present predicament, a harbinger of carbon footprints. We gaze upon this monument of a preeminent civilization, its majesty entombed and conveyed so powerfully here, and we behold perhaps the fate of our own. This picture is a poem to the past and a prayer to the present.
I am an Admin for *ABW* Gallery - one of the best kept secrets on Flickr, and we would be honored to display "The Lost City" with our collection of phenomenal photography. Please visit ABW's home page to see that your image will find excellent company.
Your photograph has been selected for
"Amazingly Beautiful World " (by Invitation Only)
Please submit this image to ~~ *ABW* Gallery
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*
The Flying Pig (36 months ago | reply)
Simply the best photo of Machu Picchu I've ever seen, absolutely awsome. 4 months without visitors will have given it a bit of a chance to recover I suppose.
feniche (36 months ago | reply)
This Golden Hour SEEN in:
Golden Hour! POST 1,AWARD 2
Please Invite Other, Golden Hours Too!
mau_tweety (36 months ago | reply)
Truly impressive, dawn of great atmosphere that recreates a lost world ...