The most dangerous selfies ever taken, from the Grand Canyon to an active volcano

After a British-American couple tragically fell to their death 'while taking a selfie' in Portugal, The Independent rounds up the most extreme photos ever taken

There's a growing trend for extreme selfies (Bradley Ambrose)

A British woman and an Australian man have fallen to their deaths while apparently trying to take a selfie above a popular beach in Portugal.

The couple were discovered by a fisherman returning from work on Wednesday at 6am local time, the Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manhã reported.

The pair were found below a 30m drop on the Praia dos Pescadores (Fisherman’s Beach), in the west coast town of Ericeira, and a mobile phone was discovered on the wall above the beach.

Rui Pereira da Terra, the head of the rescue service at the Cascais port near Lisbon, told the paper that authorities suspect the man and woman had been trying to take a picture together when they fell, or that they could have been trying to retrieve personal possessions that had been dropped.

“We believe [the incident] occurred when one or both of them tried to take a selfie near the wall,” he said.

Sadly, this is not the first instance of someone risking their life for the perfect shot. Here are the most dangerous selfies ever taken.

This Christ the Redeemer selfie isn't one for those with a fear of heights (Lee Thompson)

Christ the Redeemer selfie

Many thrill seekers have taken photos from the top of the famous statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This one, taken by Lee Thompson, the founder of solo travel company Flashpack, is among the most stomach-churning.

A Russian model went to great lengths to get the perfect Instagram shot (Instagram/Viki Odintcova)

Skyscraper selfie

A Russian model hit headlines in February 2017 after she posted a photo on Instagram of herself dangling without safety ropes from a skyscraper in Dubai. Viki Odintcova, 23, hung off the arm of her male assistant from the 1,000ft high Cayan Tower to get the perfect shot. The footage and videos quickly went viral, garnering over a million views.

The dangerous trend of bear selfies started in 2014 (Twitter/Coconutchanel)

Bear selfie

The notorious “bear selfie” trend, which took off in 2014, led to the US Forest Service warning against the dangerous practice. “Visitor Centre staff routinely encounter unsafe situations as guests ignore their instructions and get too close to bears to take photos and videos,” the Forest Service warned in a statement. Few listened though, and dozens of snaps were taken with the dangerous animals in the background.

Explorers have taken the ultimate extreme photos, volcano selfies (Twitter/George Kourounis)

Volcano selfie

Some have taken the art of the selfie to the extreme by posing in front of active volcanos. Among these daredevils is George Kourounis, the Canadian adventurer and storm chaser, who couldn’t resist taking a picture of himself to a backdrop of the active Benbow volcano on Ambrym Island in Vanuatu.

Selfies at attractions like the Grand Canyon have become de rigueur (Reddit/Wholesale Grapefruit)

Grand Canyon selfie

A woman tragically fell to her death from the Grand Canyon in 2016. While many headlines claimed she was taking a selfie when it happened, in fact she was politely squeezing out of the way for someone to pass by and stumbled over the side of the trail. Many other people take risky photos while at the landmark though, including this chap who uploaded his photo to Reddit.

Gun selfies often have unforeseen consequences (Facebook/Jules Bahler)

Gun selfie

A trend for posting gun selfies to social media – where the person is holding a gun or even pointing it at their own head – has had unforeseen consequences in various instances. There are several tragic accounts of people losing their lives after accidentally shooting themselves while taking the dangerous photos. Meanwhile, it has led to others being caught after committing crimes; Jules Bahler, 21, was arrested for three bank robberies in Michigan after posting a photo of himself with a gun to Facebook.