Circling drones cast soft light on landscapes below (and create UFO-style patterns in the skies over) gorgeous natural settings in this series of surreal nature images by photographer Reuben Wu.

Dubbed LUX NOCTIS II, this series follows up on a previous set of ground-illuminated works created in a similar vein. But in this case, the use of drone technology adds a fresh dimension to the sequel imagery, both in terms of the quality and source of light as well as the figures created by the aerial micro-vehicles giving it off.

The photographer has traveled around the world to capture sandstone mountains, bubbling volcanoes, gorgeous lakes and rivers, often employing (natural or artificial) light to set the scene.

“Each image is a carefully planned scene consisting of multiple lighting positions,” he explains, “layered to produce a theatrically lit composition. Using the GPS-enabled aerial light/drone in specific positions in space, I am able to create moods of drama and tension through chiaroscuro, and the ability to illuminate isolated features of a scene and exclude unwanted elements.”

“It’s so easy to become numb to conventional depictions of beautiful nature. In casting a new, unfamiliar light, I want people to see that while other planets are fascinating and incredible to us through the eyes of spacecraft and rovers, it is our own planet which has so much grandeur and beauty which is both accessible to us and worthy of preservation and protection.”

Light other time-lapse light art, his works trace patterns that are only fully visible once a photograph is taken, which in turn highlights the exposure time in play within each piece (sometimes also visible through star patterns in the backgrounds).

More about his project and its creator: “Reuben Wu is an artist with a profound interest in the ways that advancing technology can foster new forms of creative expression. Using a Fiilex AL250 in tandem with the 3DR Solo drone and Phase One XF camera system, Reuben has developed a method for selectively ‘painting’ nocturnal landscapes with light via multiple exposures.”

Capturing the cacophony of urban life, this series of superimposed photographs renders local phenomena, regional monuments and international architecture in a strangely compelling style.

Alessio Trerotoli‘s work has taken him to Rome, Paris, Berlin, Buenos Aires, New York and other world cities, sometimes shooting in subways or side streets and other times photographing iconic settings.

Each image is comprised of multiple exposures in the same location, creating a layered effect that reflects a sense of movement despite the images themselves remaining technically static.

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The shots seem impossibly composed, consisting of light that arcs and twists like a tornado in the night skies, but the process of creating them is much simpler than you might first imagine.

Martin Kimbell twirls, tosses and hurls LED sticks then uses long-exposure techniques to capture the twisting, turning and arcing patterns that result from each throw.

Some of the loops look like natural phenomena, swirling dust, stormy cyclones or campfire smoke, for instance, except spun from bright and colorful lights instead of organic materials. Others trajectories are simpler and captured in black-and-white instead.

Inspired by Stu Jenks  and other light artists, Kimbell is a “freelance photographer based in Nottingham, England, specialising in light painting and action sports photography.” You can see more of his photography beyond this type on Flickr as well, and be sure to check out Diliz who crafts figures from sparklers in a much different style.

Most light photographers focus on making a shape in the foreground in a matter of seconds, then setting it against a dark static backdrop – this artist often animates every inch of the frame.

Finnish artist Janne Parviainen of Helsinki takes these all-encompassing, long-exposure shots over many minutes (even hours at times), each line representing mere seconds along the way.

As surreal as they look, there is no post-production involved. Aside from props and plans, even their creator cannot really see what he is making them until they are completed.

Parviainen was an oil painter previously, but pivoted when an accidental long-duration photo of streetlights, clicked on a nighttime walk, triggered a fascination with lighting. Now using light as paint, he employs a new series palettes and brushes. Glowsticks, light strings, strobes and flashlights help him animate everything from human figures to abandoned cars.

He begins tracing what is there and then adds his own haunting portraits and inventive twists to the scenes he sets. The results are so saturated with light that it is sometimes hard to tell what is really behind them and what he created from scratch along the way – what is foreground, background or sheer imagination.

Light painter Diliz has worked for three years to twist, turn and perfect his single-line sparkler sketches in urban settings around the world. Each successive shot is related to a new time and place but also reflects a fresh attempt at capturing a mood and creating a sense of site-specific interaction.

Diliz (aka Vincent Delesvaux) has experimented with all kinds of photographic light art. In this particular series, dubbed 60 Seconds to Find an Exit, he set up shop at night in out-of-the-way streets and alleys, abandoned buildings and deserted basements.

His travels took him everywhere from European locations (including Verbier, Switzerland and Grenoble, France) all the way to cities in China, such as Lijiang, Yangshuo Fenghuang and Shanghai.

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