April 23, 2008: Today in Pictures

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Today's best photos: around the world in pictures is a daily look at photos from Atlanta, national and world news, entertainment, sports and celebrities through the eyes of photographers from ajc.com and other sources.

Quintin McCoy uses his 50-foot ladder truck to replace lights inside the famous golden arches of a downtown Decatur McDonald's on Wednesday. McCoy often scales tall buildings in the metro area and rappels down them to repair signs or lights. He says everyday is different and thinks it's much more interesting than his previous job as a meat shipper. "You ain't always doing the same thing," he said.

Le Stiff lighthouse in ele d'Ouessant, France, began operating in 1699. Time, harsh weather and automation have conspired against France's lighthouses, which have seen better days.

There's a spacious view inside one of the domes of Enel's coal-fired power plant in Civitavecchia, Italy, on Tuesday. The plant, which is scheduled to open in two months, is converting from oil to coal.

Braves starting pitcher John Smoltz hugs catcher Brian McCann after Smoltz logs his 3,000th career strikeout before a hometown Atlanta crowd in the game against Florida, on Tuesday.

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., celebrates with Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell at her primary election night party in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Swiss player Roger Federer serves the ball to Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo of Spain during their second round match of the Monte Carlo Tennis Open tournament in Monaco, on Wednesday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and president-elect Dmitry Medvedev, center, bring flowers to the unveiling of a monument to first Russian president Boris Yeltsin in Moscow on Wednesday. Hundreds of the country's political elite gathered at Novodevicheye cemetery to pay their respects to Yeltsin on the first anniversary of his death.

A boy splashes into an irrigation canal to beat the summer heat, in Bhubaneshwar, India, on Wednesday. The heat claimed at least four lives.

Tyler Lockhart, 8, takes a big leap during soccer practice at the McCleskey-East Cobb YMCA's weekly session of a soccer league for special needs children in Marietta. The new program was started by parent volunteer Gus Carpio and is a big hit with close to 40 kids participating.

Philadelphia Flyers' Joffrey Lupul celebrates his game-winning goal against the Capitals during overtime of their Game 7 NHL playoff series in Washington on Tuesday. The Flyers won 3-2 to take the series.

Competitors line up for the girls 200-meter dash at the Region 6-AAAA track meet at Atlanta's Lakewood Stadium on Tuesday. High school track championships started this week.

U.S. Army soldiers from B Company, 1st Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment lead a blindfolded man suspected of planting a roadside bomb near their patrol in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City in Baghdad, Iraq, on Wednesday The man later tested positive for traces of explosives on his hands.

Workers install the oversized spring display at the MGM Grand Casino in Detroit, Michigan.

Commercial salmon fisherman Ben Platt, whose boat is docked at Noyo Harbor in Fort Bragg, Cal., is looking at the loss of a big chunk of his income with the closure of the salmon season this year.

A group Vaughan Elementary School second graders brace themselves from the turbulence of two U.S. Marine Corps helicopters taking off from their Powder Springs school on Tuesday. The Marines from HMLA-773 safely returned in March from their post in Iraq and the students were pen pals during the deployment.

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Quintin McCoy uses his 50-foot ladder truck to replace lights inside the famous golden arches of a downtown Decatur McDonald's on Wednesday. McCoy often scales tall buildings in the metro area and rappels down them to repair signs or lights. He says everyday is different and thinks it's much more interesting than his previous job as a meat shipper. "You ain't always doing the same thing," he said.

Today's Gallery Headlines

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