Features / Bristol
10 beautiful photos of Bristol taken from a hot air balloon
University of Bristol aerospace engineering student Paddy Metcalfe took these stunning shots during his time as a member of Bristol University Hot Air Ballooning Society over the last few years.
Here is Paddy in his own words to explain a few of his favourite photos:
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“In this photo I tried to capture as much of the University as possible – from Wills Building on the left to Biomedical Sciences on the right. You can also see Park Street sloping down in the foreground. Of particular interest to me as an Aerospace Engineering student is the Queen’s School of Engineering (centre), which is currently having a new wing built with more teaching & study space – you can see the white cover on the scaffolding. I’m very excited to see it finished later this year!”
“From a balloon you can look right over the edge of the basket (unlike in an airliner) to get a bird’s-eye view of the ground below. I love this perspective because it makes everything look like a model! This photo is of the Cumberland Basin and the lock system that controls the water level in the harbour.”
“Hoping that I haven’t hypnotised you with this abstract shot of Totterdown, south Bristol! This is perhaps my favourite and most well-known composition taken from the @uob_balloon.”
“The Bristol University precinct is located on the top of a hill, overlooking the city. One of my favourite places to study is the Queen’s School engineering library which offers fantastic panoramas across the city! Park Street will be well-known to most of you as one of the steepest hills in Bristol; you can see it on the left of this photo. Each time I look at this image I’m amazed at how flat it looks from this perspective!”
“The Clifton Suspension Bridge has got to be the most iconic Bristol landmark, and it looks just as stunning from a hot air balloon as it does from the ground! Designed by the all-round engineering genius Isambard Kingdom Brunel, it spans the Avon Gorge and was opened in 1864. The eagle-eyed amongst you may have spotted the second Severn Bridge reaching across to Wales in the background. This was completed 132 years after Brunel’s creation, but still works on the same principle he used in the 19th Century.”
Read more: 39 stunning photos of Bristol
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