This is the magical moment a photographer from the UK draws a spiral of light around a famous tower – creating a spooky fairy-tale scene in the night sky.

Will Ferguson, 29, used a drone to transform Broadway Tower in The Cotswolds into a mystical portal by twisting the ring of light around the ancient monument.

He strapped lights to his drone and flew it around the 65ft tall stone structure to create the effect, capturing the light trail in a long-exposure 30-second image.

The result would have been impossible to see with the naked eye but comes to life through a lens, complimented by the gloomy shadows cast across the picture.

Will said: “I ran with the drone to check we were a safe distance from the tower while creating a spiral around it.

“It took a few attempts as we had to get the speed right and to get it perfect it takes a few goes.

“You only see how it turns out afterwards, you just hope that the timing is perfect and when you reveal the image, you don’t know if it’s worked out at all.

“It looks quite spooky, and people have asked if the green windows were photoshopped in when in fact that was a low glow from a fire exit sign, but it adds to the effect.”

Will from Hertford, Herts., spent up to four hours waiting for the perfect weather conditions before circling the tower, balancing the shutter speed settings with how fast the drone flew.

“There were so many balancing acts to work with and I was really using rough parameters from previous experience to try and predict how it would work out,” he said.

“Because of the wind, I came out a little to keep a safe distance and pointed the light down to create dark, gloomy shadows.

“Because it’s summer and due to the light pollution, there is a faint glow in the background, so the light had to be intense to compensate for the background.

“There is no strict formula to it but it’s very rewarding and seeing the final result feels like such an achievement.”

After posting a video of the spiral to TikTok on Sunday, Will increased his followers by more than 2,000 in just 24 hours.

He added: “Some people have suggested you could create the same effect on Photoshop, but I haven’t seen it done yet.

“I spend a lot of time waiting for the clouds to be in the right place and for the stars to be shining in the right way to get the perfect image.

“There’s lots of barriers to get through to make sure it’s perfect.”

This is the magical moment a photographer draws a spiral of light around an historic tower – creating a spooky fairy-tale scene in the night sky.



Will Ferguson, 29, used a drone to transform Broadway Tower in The Cotswolds into a mystical portal by twisting the ring of light around the ancient monument.



He strapped lights to his drone and flew it around the 65ft tall stone structure to create the effect, capturing the light trail in a long-exposure 30-second image.



The result would have been impossible to see with the naked eye but comes to life through a lens, complimented by the gloomy shadows cast across the picture.



Will said: “I ran with the drone to check we were a safe distance from the tower while creating a spiral around it.



“It took a few attempts as we had to get the speed right and to get it perfect it takes a few goes.



“You only see how it turns out afterwards, you just hope that the timing is perfect and when you reveal the image, you don’t know if it’s worked out at all.



“It looks quite spooky, and people have asked if the green windows were photoshopped in when in fact that was a low glow from a fire exit sign, but it adds to the effect.”



Will from Hertford, Herts., spent up to four hours waiting for the perfect weather conditions before circling the tower, balancing the shutter speed settings with how fast the drone flew.



“There were so many balancing acts to work with and I was really using rough parameters from previous experience to try and predict how it would work out,” he said.



“Because of the wind, I came out a little to keep a safe distance and pointed the light down to create dark, gloomy shadows.



“Because it’s summer and due to the light pollution, there is a faint glow in the background, so the light had to be intense to compensate for the background.



“There is no strict formula to it but it’s very rewarding and seeing the final result feels like such an achievement.”



After posting a video of the spiral to TikTok on Sunday, Will increased his followers by more than 2,000 in just 24 hours.



He added: “Some people have suggested you could create the same effect on Photoshop, but I haven’t seen it done yet.



“I spend a lot of time waiting for the clouds to be in the right place and for the stars to be shining in the right way to get the perfect image.



“There’s lots of barriers to get through to make sure it’s perfect.”



Broadway Tower is one of Britain’s most iconic viewpoints, with more than 16 counties being visible from the top.



It stands on Beacon Hill, the second highest point in the Cotswolds, rising 312 metres above sea level.



The hill was historically used as a place to send long-distance signals after being designed in 1794 to resemble a mock castle.



It has since featured in several TV programmes and films such as Sherlock Holmes, Interceptor and Crush with Andie McDowell.



ENDS