Celestial inspiration will be no problem in 2013, thanks to NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day.

With the goal of helping us all “discover the cosmos”, NASA is releasing an incredible and little seen photograph of our universe each day, each stunning image is also accompanied by a brief but insightful explanation by a professional astronomer. 

From an astronaut fascinating self-portrait to a close-up look at Saturn, this website is a treasure trove for both outer-space enthusiasts and photographers alike. 

Click through the archives for some serious astronomy eye candies and learn something about our universe at the same time. 

via Design Taxi

Captivating photo series by French artist Clément Briend — I imagine in person it must stop you in your tracks. 

“Cambodian Trees is a creative light projection project by that overlays trees with sculptural images of spirits and deities that are highly regarded in Cambodian culture. It’s a beautiful surprise when the projected spirits awaken and reveal themselves at night as though they are made of the towering trees themselves. The photographic light installations echo the spirituality of the few sprouts of nature in the predominantly urban landscapes.”

via My Modern Met

Absolutely captivated by this entire series from photographer Tim Flach, who has taken seven years and an innovative approach to photography to not just shoot, but also truly understand his subject. 

As described in the description for his animal portrait book, More than Human: 

“By taking striking close-up shots of various animals, Tim attempts to demonstrate how close can animal gestures and poses get to those of the humans.

What looks like images of unselfconscious and spontaneous reactions of the animals, is actually a result of long research and observation done by the artist. Every animal responds differently to temperature changes, light, human presence and even sounds – some of them would feel better with the music on, while the other would get intimidated by it.”

via 

Ontario, Canada-based photographer Matt Molloy recently created a gorgeous series of sky images by stacking multiple photos onto one. The individual photos are most often taken from the timelapses he shoots. The final photo has a stunning painterly effect, almost as if someone had taken a paintbrush to the sky and smeared its beautiful colors.

When asked at 500px how many photos it took to create the one seen above, he replied, “I’m not exactly sure, but I used hundreds of photos to create this one image.”

via My Modern Met

See more of Molloy’s photography in various styles here at 500px

So much history, so many sides and so many ways to say it. Just make sure you do it.

Captivated by photographer Thomas Jackson’s “hovering sculptures” featured in this series, “Emergent Behavior.” Inspired by self-organizing, “emergent” systems in nature such as termite mounds, swarming locusts, schooling fish and flocking birds.. These images create an uneasy interplay between the natural and the manufactured, the real and the imaginary.” 

View full collection here.