It took photographer Ittay Bodell months to complete his new book "Israel: Panoramic Views." It includes more than 120 panoramic photos from Mount Hermon, Metula and Rosh Hanikra in the north to the Negev and Eilat Mountains in the south, from the Arava region and Dead Sea in the east to the Coastal Plain in the west.
"In order to reflect the diversity and contrast between the country's different areas, the photos are presented in the book in an almost random order, not according to regions or any other particular order," Bodell explained in an interview to Channel 20.
The book is accompanied by an elaborate website which features 360° virtual tours that provide the pictures with an additional dimension of visiting the photographed place.
The virtual tours include explanations with additional information, as well as an interactive map of the photographed area.
An aerial view of Jerusalem (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
"There are many challenges in panoramic photography," Bodell notes. "One of the techniques is capturing segments. It's a complicated technique in which multiple photographs are taken and stitched together very accurately.
"Like with any landscape photography, you have to take the picture at the right moment and it requires a lot of patience."
Sometimes, he says, the photographer must visit a place several times in order to capture the desired image. "It's happens quite often that you can to a certain place and the lighting isn't good enough, so you come back another time.
"In this project, it was important for me to provide a special look at less familiar places alongside the more familiar places."
A camel on the way to the Arugot observation point, near the Dead Sea (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
The Banias natural spring at the foot of Mount Hermon (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
The Saar Falls at the foot of Mount Hermon (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
Remains of the Hyrcania fortress in the Judean Desert (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
Ittay Bodell in action
Salt evaporation ponds near Neve Zohar, the Dead Sea (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
The ancient Jaffa Port (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
On the cliff of Hever Stream, the Judean Desert (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
Evening falls on central Tel Aviv (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
Field of potato shaped rocks at the foot of Mount Zin (Photo: Ittay Bodell)
On the edge