travelling-blogger

comments

British photographer Gerald Donovan chose a spectacular setting in which to make his selfie debut - Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.

Donovan, 47, captured a remarkable shot of himself while completing the Dubai 360 project, which allows anyone anywhere in the world to take an interactive tour of the city.

'I'm not usually one for selfies, in fact, I think this could well be the very first one I've ever shared,' he said. 'However, it was too good an opportunity to pass up.' 

British photographer Gerald Donovan's selfie at the top of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, taken with a special panoramic camera

The nauseating view of Dubai from the top of the Burj Khalifa, taken as part of the Dubai 360 project 

Cheltenham-born Donovan, who has been based in the United Arab Emirates for seven years, used a special panoramic camera controlled by an iPhone app to take his selfie at 2,722 feet. 

'The camera I used was a Ricoh Theta,' he explains. 'It's a very small single-shot 360 degree panoramic camera that captures the entire spherical view around it.

'The camera and pole mostly disappear due to the way the Theta stitches its two images together.'

Dubai360.com, which will launch in January 2015, will give users the ability to travel anywhere in Dubai at the touch of a button and includes a 36-hour panoramic timelapse from the top of the Burj Khalifa. 

Donovan said: 'Viewers will be able to fully interact with the video, deciding for themselves the direction to look in and zoom in and out to see more detail. 

The photographer includes his feet in a shot while phtographing Dubai for the unique project that includes 360-degree panoramic timelapse

Looking up at the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest man-made structure at 2,722 feet and looking into the distance from the top

This pigeon has no issue with heights, perching atop the Burj Khalifa as the camera crew capture the view from the top

'The idea is to be able to present Dubai to a worldwide audience and allow people to virtually explore and experience the city at their own leisure - wherever on the planet they may be.

'The timelapse is just a single component of a city-wide interactive tour of still photography, video, and timelapses - all presented in fully interactive 360 degree views.

'When viewing content through their web browsers, people will be able to virtually hop around the city of Dubai by selecting hotspots that will then take them to other vantage points.'