Vaux-le-Vicomte Gardens, France

Photograph by Diane Cook and Len Jenshel , National Geographic

A fete like this, in the sumptuous gardens of Vaux-le-Vicomte, marked the beginning of the end for owner Nicolas Fouquet in 1661. Louis XIV came, saw, and coveted; he confiscated the property and imprisoned Fouquet.

Watch a time-lapse sequence of a night-blooming water lily » Go behind the scenes in a Q&A with Diane Cook and Len Jenschel »