Photo by Michael Yamashita
"Winter reflection frozen in time, Jiuzhaigou National Park."

Photo by Paul Nicklen
"At -20 degrees celsius, a grizzly bear feeds along the Fishing Branch River in Canada’s Yukon Territory. Wet fur turns to ice and lips turn red from feasting on salmon. With luck, this bear is sound asleep far above the Arctic Circle, saving energy until it wakes up in the spring."

Photo by Renan Ozturk
"Happy holidays from these howling hooligans!"

Photo by Shah Selbe
"The maned wolf is the largest canid in South America. It’s looks like a very tall fox, but it’s not closely related to foxes or wolves. Interestingly, these canids have formed a symbiotic relationship with leafcutter ants. They tend to defecate on the nests of the ants, and the ants then use the dung to fertilize their fungus gardens. The seeds found in the dung (maned wolves are omnivores) are discarded into a refuse pile by the ants, and this process is seen to significantly increase the germination rate of those seeds. It really is quite beautiful how the natural world can form these dynamic interspecies relationships that help the health of the ecosystem overall."

Photo by Keith Ladzinski
"When the rain clouds part sometimes you get lucky and this happens. The sky exploded over Santa Marta, Colombia, photographed high in the jungly mountains on our finale day in El Dorado. The little hut to the left was my home for the night, an experience I won’t soon forget. Thanks Where Next Life for the killer trip and more 3am alpine starts then I can ever remember having! Wildlife waits for no one, good times chasing birds all over the Northern Colombia Birding Trail."

Photo by Robert Clark
"I meet and photographed the ostrich while working on a story about the origin of birds for National Geographic. The common ostrich was originally described by Carl Linnaeus from Sweden in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae, under its current binomial name. Its scientific name is derived from Latin, struthio meaning 'ostrich' and camelus meaning 'camel,' alluding to its dry habitat."

Photo by Jodi Cobb
"The world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, rises 2,717 feet (163 stories) from the desert floor. From a distance, it pierces the sky like a stiletto, but from its base it has a more sensual appearance."

Photo by Thomas Peschak
"Galapagos marine iguanas are the world's only ocean going lizards. They graze on cold water seaweeds and increases in sea temperature due to climate change will have detrimental effects. In this photograph, a marine iguana scratches its nose on the claws of a dead and desiccated compatriot. If temperatures continue to warm, these Galapagos icons could become the first to disappear."

Photo by Heather Perry
"Swimmer portrait day is my favorite. Abaco gives me a whole new color palette. This is Swim Vacation."

Photo by Pete McBride
"The magical world of books and their homes that inspire us. Allegedly one author got the idea for a place called Hogwarts somewhere around here."

Photo by Ashima Narain
"The riders bathe the ponies that have arrived from Imphal to the outskirts of the city to prepare for the Lai Haraoba festival. The Manipuri ponies are recognized as one of five indigenous horse breeds of India. The other Indian horse breeds include the Marwari, the Kathiawari, the Zanskari and the Spiti. The Manipuri ponies are recognizable by their small size, yet are capable of incredible stamina, agility and speed, qualities essential in the sport of polo."

Photo by Luca Locatelli
"A greenhouse on the top a former Philips building in the Hague in the Netherlands. Growing locally inside a city is a trend everywhere and the Dutch have their own way. Here is the Urban Farmer."

Photo by Jed Weingarten
"After the snow leopard peered out at me from behind the snowy ridge, appearing and disappearing several times, often bringing his head up just high enough to look at me with only one soul-piercing eye, he finally decided again that I was not a threat. I had hoped he would proceed to feed on the sheep, but I had no such luck. He had of course been eating during the night, and I guess his belly was full, so he decided to go to sleep again. I laid on the snowy slope at over 15,500 ft (4725m) in the frigid wind thinking about how lucky I was to be sharing the slope with the rare cat and his kill, and my mind wandered—to my family at home, to my career, to my friends, to life and death—all the things that time in the mountains allows one to ponder. My stream of consciousness was suddenly interrupted by the sound of feathers slicing through air, and I looked up to see a stunning lammergeier fly by over head. I scolded myself for not paying more attention to my surroundings, thereby missing a shot, and refocused on the task at hand—making images that stir emotions. Another bird, likely the mate of the first, was fast approaching, and I grabbed a camera and started composing. Bones make up 70-90% of these large birds’ diet. Their home range can encompass thousands of square kilometers, they fly to heights in excess of 26,200 ft. (8000m), and they can live as long as 40 years! Can you remember the magical sound of a large bird flying close by you? What kind of bird was it, and where were you?"

Photo by Keith Ladzinski
"Chamonix for the win."

Photo by Rena Effendi
"The beauties of Tel-Amarna, Egypt."

Photo by Robbie Shone
"Emerald swimmer underground in Postojna jama (cave). Postojna jama is a 24,340m (15miles) long karst cave system near Postojna, in southwestern Slovenia. It is the second-longest cave system in the country as well as one of its top tourism sites. The caves were created by the Pivka River, flowing through the limestone."

Photo by David Guttenfelder
"Sundown swing."

Photo by Beverly Joubert
"Like sleeping ghosts in the darkness. It’s a somber picture. One that needs explanation as the slumbering mass of blindfolded rhinos is not something that is often seen. But these rhinos have been moved from a poaching hotspot and are ready to be released into their new home – a land that is full of nutrient-rich grasses and water; a land that has the lowest rate of poaching in Africa; a land that has missed these animals and will rejoice at seeing these small populations take hold, begin to breed and once again be a part of the ecosystem that relies on them in so many ways. The fact that the sun has set has no bearing on the project. This is an operation that needs to be seen through to its conclusion, without rest for the Rhinos Without Borders crew. The fact that the night is cool will aid in not stressing the rhinos on their transfer. It has been a few years of hard work and the generosity of so many people to get these rhinos here, but they are ready to be released into this safer land and it is incredible seeing the result of all of this."

Photo by Matthieu Paley
"Lahore in Pakistan is full of youthful energy. I shot a story for National Geographic there last year, a few days spent mostly with art students, feeling their enthusiasm and their respect for each others, listening to that love & hate relationship (often) they have with their country. Mostly portraits. Like anywhere, the youth has a mind of its own, playing with ideas and concept. Here, a model rehearses her walk for a fashion shoot organized by photo students, in Lahore's Walled City. Burqa and headphones on, but this is a whole set-up, playing with stereotypes is very healthy."

Photo by Hannah Reyes Morales
"A young girl walks home in Smokey Mountain, which was one of Manila's major landfills. Though most of the scavengers have vacated Smokey Mountain, many shanty dwellers continue to live in makeshift homes the area."

Photo by Andy Mann
"A little different take on a common Bahamian seascape. A healthy Caribbean reef shark over a flat sandy bottom. It never gets old for me. One of my favorite places to go diving and spend time with my finned friends."

Photo by Rena Effendi
"Modern day residents of Tel- Amarna city. Over 3,500 years ago the 18th dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten moved about 30,000 people here into the desert to start a new religion of worshipping Aten, the horizon of the sun."

Photo by Paul Nicklen
"I love how this print from the Paul Nicklen Gallery exhibits the sometimes complicated, but beautiful relationship between man and dog. Obviously I’m an animal lover, and dogs are one of my favourites. The relationship humans have with dogs is no more important than in the Arctic, where hardworking sled dogs enable safe, efficient travel across an icy, unforgiving landscape. It’s an often misunderstood partnership that—when witnessed—deserves reverence. This fine art print is available through my New York City gallery, and partial proceeds go to funding Sea Legacy‘s efforts in turning the tide for our oceans."

Photo by Bertie Gregory
"Meet this awesome family and their house, which has got to be in the runnings for coolest house of all time. I was lucky enough to hang out with this family for last two weeks as they fished on the river pictured. I’m now back home in Bristol and already missing their epic way of life."

Photo by Martin Edström
"Peering into a Kathmandu courtyard. Wonder what they were talking about?"

Photo by Matthieu Paley
"After ten days without meeting anyone, we came across this nomadic tent on the edge of the Lut desert. The chief sat next to his home under the stars, later offering me a golden pen. His tent felt like an extension of the hills in the distance."

Photo by Rena Effendi
"A man sits in a bath of petroleum in a spa near Bibi-Heybat village of Baku. Oil is believed to have analgesic qualities and a few spas in Azerbaijan are offering treatment of petroleum baths against arthritis and other ailments. Patients spend up to ten minutes in the petrol bath and then get washed off with warm water. Regular bath sessions continue throughout the day and treatments can last for several weeks."

Photo by Babak Tafreshi
"A face in the clouds under the four brighter stars of the Dragon head (constellation Draco). The lower clouds are lit by yellow sodium streetlights. I have photographed many 'faces' at night. These are good examples of Pareidolia when our brain detect faces even in irrelevant contexts, neuroscience can explain it today."

Photo by Pete McBride
"The power of a few. A gondola development, The Grand Canyon Escalade, was proposed to whisk 10,000 people a day into the confluence site inside Grand Canyon. After two days in an emotionally-charged Navajo Tribal Council meeting, the tribe voted down the project citing an array of concerns. The grassroots opposition to the tram, Saver the Confluence, was led by a group of predominantly Navajo women, want economic growth, but not there. The women added that they don't want, 'A Disney-style development at our sacred places.' It has been an honor to document this small, but mighty group of women and their unwavering dedication to a landscape they love."

Photo by Babak Tafreshi
"A single exposure image of majestic Milky Way view, as constellation Scorpius with bright orange star Antares, the Scorpion’s heart, rises above the Valley of the Moon, in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Planet Saturn is on the top left. As some of you know I prefer single exposure photos. The main reason is the value of moment and historic credibility in a single raw file. But I also like to challenge myself with old-school in-the-field techniques which I have done with film too, a joy that I can’t find in Photoshop composites and exposure blends which is currently very common in night photography. That’s just my personal taste and respect those composite photos as long as they are not fake! That means a mix of photos taken at different places, or in day and night, or with different lenses, without notifying the viewer. For example double exposing the moon in somewhere it does not exist.
The secret behind my bright clear views at night in single exposure photography are using: fast lens, excellent night sky conditions, star tracker at 1/2 speed, fine processing on raw files, and a full-frame camera with low noise performance. While I’m not able to answer your technical questions here I hope this helps."

Photo by Michael Yamashita
"It’s all in the eyes. Classical dance students practice facial expressions and eye exercises at the Kerala Kalamandalam Dance School in Thrissur, College of Art and Culture."

Photo by John Stanmeyer
"A head unseen, reclusion within a space of reverence. In prayer before the head of Saint James, beheaded by sword in 44 AD by Herod Agrippa, grandson of King Herod the Great, whose head is buried beneath an alter behind ornate doors covered in Mother of Pearl inside this small chamber at the Church of Saint James, Armenian Quarters, Jerusalem. If you are wondering, as I was, where the other part Jesus’s apostle is, legend has it that Saint James body was taken shortly after death by small boat to Spain and is buried in what today is the city of Santiago de Compostela."