They are pictures as reminiscent of Greek summer as glasses of ouzo and slices of watermelon. White sandy beaches, beach umbrellas which look like colorful buttons scattered across the frame and tranquil turquoise waters in which the figures of tiny people float.

These are the beautiful drone photographs captured by Marina Vernicos in tribute to the Greek summer, which form part of a series titled “Shades”.

The Athens-born photographer studied Communications and Photography at Emerson College, Boston, and Business Administration at Harvard Extension School. Since 2001, her work has been showcased around the world, including at the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Louvre and the Hangaram Art Museum in Korea, London, Monaco and New York.

She has also won the Sandro Botticelli award and the France La Grand Exposition Universalle.

Her foray into aerial photography began two and a half years ago, when a friend of a friend showed her husband a drone he had bought. “My husband got really excited and got one too. This is how it all started.” says Marina.

Since buying the drone, she’s been working on her technique, and says that drone photography is the next big thing in her field. “I think it’s the best that photography has to show right now. It’s a whole different concept, a whole different view. And it’s very tricky in order not to make the pictures seem as if you’re looking at Google maps. There’s a fine line between art and Google Earth. ” says Marina.

Why is it that we find aerial photography so fascinating, I ask her. “It’s a completely different point of view,” she says. “We’ve seen aerial pictures from helicopters, but never like this, looking from above straight down. We’re not used to seeing this kind of view so it’s something new and interesting for us.”

Her pictures showcase locations around Europe such as Ibiza, the Dominican Republic and Formentera, Spain, but are heavily focused on Greece. “The locations are places that I go and that I love. This is my suggestion to anyone who is involved in photography, to start from where you come from.” says Marina. “You have to photograph the places you know best, and the places you love and this is how you get inspired.”

Her upcoming project focuses on the Greek islands. She currently traveling around them and, as she puts it, trying to capture the very best that they have to offer.

And when it comes to Greece, her enthusiasm for the country that so often occupies her lense is endless. “I think Greece is the most beautiful place on Earth. I really do believe that. I’ve traveled all around the world, I’ve been to 107 countries. Nothing compares to our waters, to our energy, to our light. The beauty of Greece, you can’t find it anywhere in the world!”