In 1994, after the fall of the Soviet Union, all Ukrainians had to get a new passport – and photographer Alexander Chekmenev was on hand to take their photos. The snatched extra shots he took are remarkable in their honesty and tenderness. (Photo by Alexander Chekmenev/The Guardian)

The series of shots show the bare steel infrastructure of the Bushfield army training camp near Winchester which was in operation during World War Two and was used to train Royal Green Jackets recruits in the sixties. The spectacular images were taken by an urban explorer who wished to remain anonymous. Here: A railway siding in Wiltshire, UK where ammunition was transferred by tunnel to an underground storage facility. (Photo by MediaDrumWorld.com)

The annual calendar features stunning shots of lighting, cloud formations and the aurora australis. Hundreds of photographers from every Australian state and territory submitted images to the Bureau of Meteorology for selection in the year’s calendar, with only the best chosen to represent the full spectrum of Australian weather. Here: April. A path through the clouds between Townsville and Richmond, Queensland. (Photo by Captain Victoria Harrison/Australian Bureau of Meteorology)

Californian photographer and conservationist Octavio Aburto had spent years photographing the school in Cabo Pulmo National Park, Mexico – and had been trying to capture this exact shot for three years. “Together with my friend David Castro, we were diving with a large group of Bigeye travellies at Cabo Pulmo National Park, Mexico. Thousands of fish forming a ball during the reproduction courtship. In the afternoon, these fish congregate to form a large spawning aggregation around the reefs of the National Park”. (Photo and caption by Octavio Aburto)

Joe Deedon, president of TAC ONE Consulting, demonstrates searching for a shooter in a middle school during an Active Shooter Response course offered by TAC ONE in Denver April 2, 2016. According to TAC ONE, the course, which is offered for the first time to concealed weapons permit carrying civilians, is designed at preparing people to effectively save lives prior to the arrival of law enforcement at an active shooter incident. (Photo by Rick Wilking/Reuters)

Cat lounges and makes itself at home at the new Cat Café by Purina ONE on Wednesday, April 23, 2014 in New York. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Invision for Purina ONE/AP Images)

The beautiful shots were taken by photographer Amos Chapple using a camera mounted to a quadcopter drone. This enabled him to capture these unusual aerials showing some of Europe’s sights like they’ve never been seen before. Travelling across the continent he took photos everywhere from France and Germany to Spain and Russia. Photo: Clouds swirl through the pillars of Sagrat Cor Church, high on a hill above Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Amos Chapple/Rex Features)

The characters fighting for Westeros in Game of Thrones are fighting mostly for CGI backdrops. Like many others TV series and movies, visual effects is a huge part of the production process as it handles details both great and small. A great credit to Game of Thrones is that the story is so good that we forget about the effects, and another great credit goes to the VFX team because their work is seamless. If you want to see the seams, you have to get a visual breakdown of how the shots are put together.