Coastline in sunglint
In 2008 I built a 3D globe model (pure vector, no image mapping) and when watching my model I found it visually most interesting to use a camera view toward the horizon against the sunlight.

My 3D-rendered image (2008) shows Denmark, Skagerrak and in the background Scotland.
image: nasa.gov/IOTD (2014). click image to enlarge
Addition 2014-07: It's quite weird how similar the two images are since I hadn't seen any photograph from space against the sunlight so far when I designed my rendering in 2008. – It's the same favorite region, the same direction of view, same field of view, same lighting (solar altitude), same dichromatism.
Another similar contrast effect: Earth Observatory IOTD from February 25, 2013 (below).
image: nasa.gov/IOTD . click image to enlarge
The Skagerrak seen from space towards the North Pole (with aurora borealis):
image: nasa.gov/IOTD . click image to enlarge
Web links - cartography
- Best Maps of 2013
- Rotate
- Tokyo
- Time for Maps
- Global Forest
- Wikipedia: Projection
- @amazingmap
- The History of Cartography (The University of Chicago Press)