Spectacular Panorama Captured of the Himalayas From Hot Air Balloon

By Daily Telegraph

A dramatic panoramic photo of Mount Everest and surrounding Himalayan peaks, taken in 1991 during Leo Dickinson's record-breaking Himalayan balloon flight and digitally remastered this month, is believed to be the highest panoramic photo taken by hand from a balloon. The famed mountain climber Reinhold Messner has described the photo -- taken during British filmmaker Dickinson's flight from Kathmandu to Tibet for the documentary "Ballooning Over Everest" -- as the "best snap on earth." Dickinson's 1991 journey came after 10 years of planning and required the services of 150 porters and 50 yaks. "This photograph is one of the finest I've taken, and I'm immensely proud of it," says the 62-year-old Dickinson. "It took several minutes to set up - I was in the stratosphere and carrying bulky breathing apparatus - and I wasn't sure it would even come out. So when it was developed, and it came out like this, you can imagine my delight. It's a scene that I'll remember for the rest of my life."

August 20, 2009