Breathtaking Photos Of London From Above

High-flying photographer Jeffrey Milstein (previously), renowned for his aerial photos of US cities, snaps landmarks through the open door of a helicopter. This month he hired a chopper in London and amazingly he had just an hour to cover all the buildings he wanted to capture including Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, the glass roof of the British Museum and the Gherkin and Walkie Talkie towers in the City.

The Walkie Talkie, built two years ago, is one of dozens of new towers in the ancient City. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

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Nearby Waterloo Station glows in this stunning photo taken from a helicopter. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Sir Christopher Wren’s masterpiece St Paul’s Cathedral is surrounded by modern buildings. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The art deco Charing Cross Station looks spectacular as seen from above with its platforms projecting out over the river. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The London Eye on the Southbank is lit up in pink as dusk falls over the capital. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The green glass roof over the central courtyard of the British Museum is best viewed from above. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The busy junction next to the Bank of England makes for a striking image from above. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The Guildhall, begun in 1441, is the only non-ecclesiastical stone building that survives in the City of London. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The Square Mile is still a centre of global commerce in the 21st century. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Smithfield market is famous worldwide as the centre of London’s meat trade. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The Shard and other skyscrapers loom over the capital in this view over Whitehall, the Southbank and the rest of London beyond. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The Gherkin tower, completed in 2003, is already one of the best-loved landmarks on London’s skyline. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Tourists and shoppers throng round the statue of Eros at Piccadilly Circus in the West End. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Few Londoners have any idea what lies behind the fortress-like walls of the Bank of England. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Lights glow in the grand courtyard of Somerset House, which sits between the Thames and the Strand. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The famous fountains of Trafalgar Square as Nelson looks down on them from the top of his column. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Millions of tourists know Buckingham Palace but few have seen it from this perspective. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The medieval Westminster Abbey is still a major landmark after nearly 800 years. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Jeffrey Milstein captured these stunning images through the door of a helicopter hovering over central London. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The Royal Courts of Justice in the Strand is a familiar sight at street level but looks very different from the air. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The large circular court in the Treasury building is striking from above. Beyond it near the top of the image are the Foreign Office and Downing Street. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Red London buses line up between government buildings near the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben, far left, and the green-roofed Ministry of Defence, right. (Photo by Jeffrey Milstein/Rex Features/Shutterstock)