The Finances Behind the World’s Most Dangerous Selfies

Location: Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
Photographer: Cinzia Bismarck

Most of us do everything we can to avoid jellyfish. While they are peaceful-looking creatures as well as strangely beautiful, the idea of being stung by one does not sound like a good time. Back in 2017, photographer Cinzia Bismarck captured a magical image of herself surrounded by jellyfish at Ras Mohammed National Park in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. 

Jellyfish Selfie @Quora / Pinterest.com

Far from how most of us would look if in the same situation, Bismarck looks calm and relaxed. The color of her eyes is accentuated by the blue and purple of the fluorescence of the jellyfish in a serene moment that feels like it could be followed by sheer and utter panic. 

Location: Hawaii
Photographer: Jokke Sommer

Jokke Sommer is no stranger to adventure. In 2016 he quite literally flew under the Aiguille du Midi bridge, which is a high-altitude footbridge. His team also jumped off buildings in Bangkok as well as several locations across the Alps. 

Hangin' out of a Heli Selfie @emilianolurgo / Pinterest.com

Sommer has said that he still gets nervous each time he jumps, so he makes sure to take all the time necessary to be as safe as possible. For this particular shot, he was wearing a BASE jumping rig while he hung out of the helicopter for a selfie. Talk about living on the edge! 

Location: Rio, Brazil
Photographer: Lee Thomson

The statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio, Brazil is an iconic landmark that is recognized across the globe. Pictures from all angles have been taken by tourists and photographers alike. Though perhaps less often from this angle, quite literally on top of the giant 98-foot statue. 

Selfie With Jesus @flashpack / Twitter.com

The ascent takes place within the statue itself. After crawling up 12 flights of stairs, you emerge at the top of the statue as you reach the shoulder. Lee Thomson, who captured this selfie, said as he emerged he was in total awe as the panorama took his breath away. While Thomson says he finds the selfie rather vain, this image was taken with the intention to share the glorious moment with all of us, and for that we are grateful. 

Location: Tianjin, China
Photographer: Angela Nikolau

Angela Nikolau looks remarkably relaxed and calm as she towers above the rest of the world on the very top of  Tianjin, China. She has joined in on what has become quite a dangerous trend in Russia where people do extremely dangerous things for the sake of a selfie. 

Circle Marks the Spot Selfie @angela_nikolau / Instagram.com

Nikolau has taken selfies on the very edge of skyscrapers and the top of the highest construction sights. She will usually use her selfie stick, unless she can convince a friend to join her on her expedition to the top and take the picture for her. Little is known about the daredevil selfie taker, but she is most certainly working hard on getting to the literal top of the selfie game.

Location: Marum Crater, Vanuatu
Photographer: George Kourounis

We’ve seen volcano selfies before. Earlier in 2021, a volcano in Iceland erupted and we saw a slew of adventurers hike up to capture their shots of the magnificent eruption. Some volcano pictures stand out though, and this one captured by George Kourounis at Marum Crater, Vanuatu is most certainly one of them. 

Too Hot To Handle Selfie @georgekourounis / Twitter.com

The Canadian adventurer basically dropped into the volcano and took a snapshot from 1,200 feet above the molten lava which moves and swells in terrifying fashion while wearing a protective suit. Kourounis reported that his suit was later destroyed by the acid rain on the volcano. Now that is extreme photography! 

Location: Holland
Photographer: Unknown

The Dutch F-16 demo team took it upon themselves to post a series of selfies taken by their pilots in the cockpits of their planes, all at various angles and in different poses. They were able to achieve these photos using a GoPro attached to their dashboards and gave the rest of us ground-dwelling folk the chance to see what an upside-down F-16 Fighter Falcon looks like from the inside.

Great White Selfie @repubblicait / Pinterest.com

The team responsible for the series is led by pilot Captain Jeroen “Slick” Dickens and all of the photos were published on the team’s Facebook page. This publicity moment has been mimicked by other squadrons worldwide, include the F-16 Viper Demo Team

Location: New York, New York
Photographer: Victor Thomas

Victor Thomas has gained a reputation as an urban explorer who is not afraid of risking death for that perfect shot. He is a self-taught photographer who developed a passion for art at a very young age. A quintessential New Yorker, he captures the urban environment from all angles, atop skyscrapers and under the ground where he captures gritty scenes in the NY Subway. 

Freeway Selfie @hypebeast / Pinterest.com

Known as Vic Invades on Instagram, he loves discovering old or abandoned buildings. Areas in the city that are closed off to the public are of particular interest, especially at night, Thomas leans in where most of us would turn away. He recently told an interviewer that it’s in his nature to explore, and we get to experience life through his lens through his photography. 

Location: Sri Lanka
Photographer: Camille Demyttenaere and Jean Hocke

Camille Demyttenaere and Jean Hocke and a couple from Belgium have spent the last few years traveling the world and photographing their adventures along the way. After seeing another couple take a romantic photo on a floating train through Sri Lanka, they were determined to replicate it.

Lovers on a Train Selfie @weheartitapp / Pinterest.com

According to the couple, who quit their corporate jobs to travel, they’d seen dozens of similar photos and weren’t anticipating the backlash they got from theirs. Their wide audience made the couple’s photo a point of criticism, although they insist that they’d never do anything life-threatening for the sake of a photo. They continue to post romantic, sometimes risky, selfies on their Instagram page, as well as the beautiful sights they see during their travels.

Location: Unknown
Photographer: Unknown

Surfing is one of the most popular sports in the world for those who live near the coast. It’s a test of balance and premeditation to work with the ocean, rather than against it. For as long as the internet has been around, people have loved watching clips of surfers either dominating a huge wave or being taken down by one.

Shark Tank Selfie @communicationplayground / Pinterest.com

It’s only recently that we’ve been able to get close up into the mind of a surfer, like with this picture here. From afar the photographer probably looks like he’s having the time of his life, but we can see here that he knows that tunnel wave is about to land on him. With smartphones even coming out with waterproof capabilities, it’s safe to say we can expect more face crack moments like these for years to come.

Location: Sangalaki Island, Indonesia
Photographer: Aaron Gekoski

The ocean is full of wonder and mystery. It is as if it’s another world that is so close to us and yet so far and unavailable. For this reason, when people capture images like this magnificent selfie with a whale swimming peacefully in the background, it is so magical. 

Whaleshelfie @aaron_gekoski / Instagram.com

Aaron Gekoski captured this beautiful image in Sangalaki Island, Indonesia while diving. The scuba diver has taken selfies with oceanic blacktip sharks as well as a whale shark which we see in this image. Whale sharks are the largest living mammal, making this image all the more special. 

Location: National Zoo & Aquarium, Canberra
Photographer: Cameron Ernst

The National Zoo & Aquarium in Molonglo Valley is a privately owned zoo home to over 70 species of wild animals. Cameron Ernst is one of many lucky tourists who got the opportunity to get up close and personal with one of the zoo’s most popular residents: the cheetahs.

Australian Tourist Selfie @ireznicenko / Pinterest.com

Starting at $175, you too could be as lucky as Cameron and get to hang out with the friendly Zingala in her enclosure. Fun fact: cheetahs are surprisingly close to domestic cats in temperament and are quite closely related. Cameron got over 50K likes on his photo when he posted it to Instagram and gained a further 100K likes when posted to the Facebook page of Australia.com.

Location: Netherlands
Photographer: Unknown

In 2014, as the Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16 demo team chaperoned the Netherlands’ first Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner jet, one pilot snapped this spectacular selfie that shows the sheer scale of the Dreamliner in comparison to their F-16 jets. 

Royal Netherlands Air Force Selfie @ironm3654 / Pinterest.com

The Dreamliner was accompanied by multiple jets as it entered Netherlands territory in what was a first for the country. During this momentous occasion, numerous photos and videos were snapped from all sides and made for some great social media posts. The jet was introduced to the Netherlands to serve as a commercial jet, as it has been used in the past by other airline operators.

Location: São Paulo, Brazil 
Photographer: Marcelo Herba

Marcelo Herba worked his way onto the list of the most dangerous selfies in the world and found himself in the tenth position with this image. Captured on a bridge on the Travessia Funicular which is a trail in Serra do Mar which is a prohibited hiking trail. 

Hanging on for Dear Life Selfie @herba_marcelo / Instagram.com

No stranger to daring photography, Herba has said that he likes to discover new places and while he is fascinated with altitude, he is ironically afraid of bungee jumping. Despite this fear, he has taken selfies at some extreme spots, including Tianjin, China, the Tiger Leaping Gorge trail as well as a few volcanoes around the world.

Location: Canyonlands National Park, Utah
Photographer: Colton Brock

Canyonlands National Park is known for its brightly colored landscapes, massive rock pinnacles called the Needles, isolated canyons, and Native American rock paintings. The area is vast and high, standing at 7,120 feet at the highest point, and attracts almost a million visitors each year.

Canyon Selfie @coltonbrock/Instagram

When Colton Brock ascended the canyon and stood at the very edge he took a selfie and wrote “I don’t always take selfies, but when I do, they’re dangerous”. The image he took not only captures the height of the canyon, but somehow it also manages to depict the heat of the desert. Perhaps it’s the height itself that makes one feel a little hot under the collar.