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By
Anuradha.
Pictures can say many things which can hardly be expressed even by using hundreds of words. the emotions hidden inside a photo is so pure and they directly speak to our hearts. That is why many people have chosen photography to be a part of themselves.
This year’s National Geographic Travel Photo Contest was held recently and they had paid more attention to picturesque villages, majestic animals and too candid human moments this time. Each year, various landscapes of the world were covered through the competition and many people were awed with all these pictures as they have shown something beyond what we normally see.
In
2019, the grand prize of $7,500 went to Weimin Chu for his whimsical ‘Winter in
Greenland’ photograph. The image portrayed a small fishing village in
Upernavik, whose brightly colored homes shine brightly amidst the fog and snow.
Top winners from the other categories include Huaifeng Li’s Showtime image,
which won 1st Place in the People category and captures actors preparing for an
evening opera performance in Licheng County, China. Winning 1st Place in the
Nature category, Tamara Blazquez Haik’s photograph of a griffon vulture—titled
Tender Eyes— perfectly timed to capture the bird soaring through the skies in
Monfragüe National Park in Spain.
So, scroll
down below to see all the winners and don’t forget to upvote your favorites
among them!
#1. People’s Choice, Nature: ‘Couples Goals’ By Brian Larrosa.
Instead
of taking the bus tour to Rainbow Mountain, I camped the night before, about an
hour and a half away, to be the first up at sunrise. That morning was full of
fog, and when I arrived, I could barely see the seven-color mountain. I waited
an hour for the fog to clear, but it didn’t. On my way down, I passed this
lovely alpaca couple wearing the Aymara culture colors—which made the wait
worth it.
#2. Grand prize winner: ‘Greenlandic winter’ by Weimin Chu.
Upernavik
is a fishing village on a tiny island in west Greenland. Historically,
Greenlandic buildings were painted different colors to indicate different
functions, from red storefronts to blue fishermen’s homes—a useful distinction
when the landscape is blanketed in snow. This photo was taken during my
three-month, personal photo project to present life in Greenland.
#3. People’s choice, Nature: ‘Wildlife under lightening’ by Kevin Yuen.
This
was my very first trip visit to Africa. A group of rhinoceros drank water from
a watering hole while lightning [thundered] at night. I captured over 10,000
photos to get this shot and show the relationship between nature and wildlife.
Wildlife is a part of the environment and we should not treat them as a tool—we
should protect them.
#4. People’s choice, Nature: ‘Practice makes perfect’ by Taylor Albright.
With
everything, practice makes perfect. That couldn’t be more evident than when
fishing for salmon atop Brooks Falls in Alaska. This brown bear was attempting
to snag one mid-air, but his timing was a bit early causing the salmon to land
like a slap across his face.
#5. Second place, Nature: ‘Dream catcher’ by Danny Sepkowski.
What
happens before a wave breaks? That question has been my assignment this past
year. On this particular day, I decided to shoot the sunset on the east side of
Oahu, Hawaii. About 100 photographers were out in the morning, but I had the
evening to myself. The textures from the trade winds [created] subtle colors
from the west and blended well using my 100mm lens. I had to look into my
viewfinder while this wave was breaking. Not an easy task when a wave is about
to crush you.
#6. First place. Nature: ‘Tender eyes’ by Tamara Blazquez Haik.
A
gorgeous griffon vulture is seen soaring the skies in Monfragüe National Park
in Spain. How can anyone say vultures bring bad omens when looking at such
tenderness in this griffon vulture’s eyes? Vultures are important members of
the environment, as they take care of recycling dead matter. Vultures are noble
and majestic animals—kings of the skies. When looking at them flying, we should
feel humbled and admire them.
#7. People’s choice, Cities: ‘Cat in the city sky’ by Jonas Chan.
When
are you traveling around the city, humans are not the only living species. When
we look up at the sky, there are sometimes surprises.
#8. People’s choice, People: ‘The laugh’ by Jorge Delgado- Urena.
It
was not an easy task to capture the little lamas—as the older monks call them.
They spend their free time hanging out with each other, checking their social
media, or playing football.
#9 People’s choice, people: ‘How to train your dragon’ by Leo Kwok.
Showered by molten, firework-like
sparks, people in Meizhou, China performs fire dragon dance to celebrate the
Lantern Festival. This celebration has been performed since the Qing Dynasty
and was listed as Intangible Cultural Heritage in China in 2008. [The festival]
marks the first full moon night in the Chinese lunar year.
#10. People’s choice, cities: ‘Volcano emerging from the cloud’ by Paul Rozek.
Walking
around all day in Antigua, Guatemala, there was a persistent cloud layer that
obscured the mountainous terrain surrounding the town. Late in the evening,
while walking through Antigua just for a few moments, one of the volcanoes
became clear and offered a spectacular view with the Santa Catalina Arch. The
volcano complex known as La Horqueta surrounds the town of Antigua in Guatemala
with numerous volcanic peaks in the area including Fuego, Agua, Acatenango, and
Pico Mayor.
#11. People’s choice, nature: ‘Split shot taken of Crabeater seals’ by Rita Kluge.
A
crabeater seal is seen trying to get a spot on the same ice floe as his buddy.
#12. People’s choice, cities: ‘Follow the light’ by Junhui Fang.
This
photo was taken at Seda Larung Gar Buddhist Academy. It’s around a 14-hour
drive to get to Larung Gar [from the nearest city], and the journey is quite
tough due to the mountainous roads. This view [shows] small red homes on the
left side, while empty green roads [curve] on the other side. The monks follow
the lights to [return] home. I was lucky to document [the area] and was deeply
moved by [the monks] faith. I plan to [return] to Seda next summer [to make]
more photos.
#13. People’s choice, nature: Colorado river by Stas Bartnikas.
The
Colorado River is very shallow due to the active withdrawal of water from it
for agricultural purposes. When [the river] meets the ocean in Mexico, it is
almost dry. This aerial photo was taken from a Cessna [airplane].
#14. Third place, nature: ‘Dusky dolphins’ by Scott Portelli.
Dusky
dolphins often travel together in great numbers in the deep canyons of the
Kaikoura, New Zealand in search of food. They glide through the ocean
effortlessly, coming up only to breathe. Dusky dolphins are fast and will often
keep pace with a speeding boat. I waited on the bow of the boat as the Dusky
dolphin almost broke [through the surface]. Their elegance and streamlined
bodies are built for speed and maneuverability—accentuated by the smooth, clear
water of the New Zealand coastline.
#15. Honorable mention, people: ‘Mood’ by Navin Vatsa.
I captured this layered moment during sunrise along the banks of the Yamuna River in Delhi, India. This boy was thinking silently, and visitors were enjoying the loud musical chirping of thousands of seagulls. The early morning golden light from the east mixed with the western blue light, creating a [ethereal atmosphere]. I am a regular visitor [here] and have photographed this place for the past three years. Now, many national and international photographers have begun visiting.
#16. Honorable mention, nature: ‘King of Alps’ by Jonas Schafer.
A
herd of ibexes in Switzerland’s Bernese Oberland cross a ridge above Lake
Brienz. Their powerful and impressive horns show who the king of the Alps are.
Ibexes are ideally adapted to live at dizzying heights. The continuing ridge
path and the rising fog show the natural habitat of these animals. After a few
hours of observing the animals, I spotted the ibex herd on one side of the
ridge. Several ibexes stopped at the transition [to view the world around
them].
#17. People’s choice, cities: ‘Sunrise glow decorates the city in Fog’ by Carlo Yuen.
The
morning’s sunrise glow decorated the city in fog. Hong Kong is a coastal region
and it has always been covered by fog during the spring. Fortunately, landscape
photographers meet this wonderful scenery. However, this scene may be
disappearing forever because of global warming, Winter will disappear, and no
more cold air will meet the warm air during the springtime. So, this is a very
precious capture.
#18. First place, people: ‘Showtime’ by Huaifeng Li.
Actors
prepare for an evening opera performance in Licheng County, China. I spent the
whole day with these actors from makeup to [stage]. I’m a freelance
photographer, and the series “Cave Life” is a long-term project of mine.
In China’s Loess Plateau, local residents dig holes in the loess layer [to
create cave living spaces, known as yaodongs] and use the heat preservation
properties to survive cold winters.
#19. Second place, cities: ‘In the age of Aviation’ by Jassen Todorov.
There
are four runways at San Francisco’s International Airport (SFO). This is a rare
look at the approach end of runways 28 left and right. I had dreams of
documenting the motion at SFO and [arranged] permission to fly directly
overhead. What a windy day it was. Winds at SFO were 35-45 miles per hour,
which meant a bumpy flight, and it was much harder to control the plane while
photographing. The flight was challenging, but it was also so thrilling that I
couldn’t sleep for several days.
#20. People’s choice, people: ‘On the streets of Bulgaria’ by Kristyn Taylor.
Dressed
in his long-haired goat costume, a man is ready to walk the streets of Pernik,
Bulgaria. The Bulgarian Surva Festival is an annual gathering of villagers
masquerading as Kukeri. The ceremony is a pagan festival intended to ward off
evil spirits and welcome renewal in the New Year.
#21. Second place, people: ‘Daily routine’ by Yoshiki Fujiwara.
This
photo was taken at a public park at Choi Hung House in Hong Kong. When I
visited during the afternoon, it was very crowded with many young people taking
pictures and playing basketball. But when I visited at sunrise, it was quiet
and a different place. [The area] is [designated] for neighborhood residents in
the early morning, and there was a sacred atmosphere. I felt divinity when I
saw an old man doing tai chi in the sun.
#22. People’s choice, people: ‘Cherry blossoms in the concrete’ by Lester Lau.
Having wandered around Seoul during my spring trip, I saw a cherry blossom tree blooming near the street corner. There is only a [single] light beam for the tree to grow in the concrete jungle. It seems that the human invasion has made (the trees) struggle and force them to find a way to live with us.
#23. Third place, cities: ‘Streets of Dhaka’ by Sandipani Chattopadhyay.
People
pray on the street in Dhaka, Bangladesh during Ijtema. Bishwa Ijtema is one of
the major Islamic religious gatherings which is [observed] annually in Dhaka
and millions of Muslims visit [during this time]. Dedicated prayer grounds are
not [large] enough to handle this huge number of people, so large numbers of
people come to [Tongi], the main street of Dhaka. All the ground transportation
and [pedestrian crossings] are suspended during that time.
#24. People’s choice, cities: ‘Tokyo life’ by Shan W.
This
room in the Tokyo Tower looks dynamic. In the busy city, the natural light
entering this room gave us time to relax. My wife was reading a magazine while
enjoying the scenery and slow time.
#25. People’s choice, people: ‘Beach- Chaung Thar, Myanmar’ by Maciej Dakowicz.
A
quiet evening on the beach in Chaung Thar, one of Myanmar’s most popular beach
towns.
#26. Third place, people: ‘Horses’ by Jose Antonio Zamora.
Every
year on the feast of Saint Anthony the ceremony of the purification of animals,
called Las Luminarias, is celebrated in Spain. In the province of Avila, horses
and horsemen jump over bonfires in the ritual that has been maintained since
the 18th century. The animals [are not hurt], and it is a ritual that is
repeated every year. To make the photo, I moved from Seville to San Bartolomé
de Pinares because I am very interested in photographing ancestral rites.
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