Burmese Day
Photograph by Alexandros Tsoutis, National Geographic Your Shot

While walking the mountain villages between Kalaw and Inle Lake in Myanmar (Burma), Your Shot member Alexandros Tsoutis woke early one morning to find this scene. “The foggy, exotic landscape gave me the opportunity to experience the beautiful sunrise hues while locals were making their way to the farms,” he writes.

Berlin’s Reichstag
Photograph by Gerd Ludwig, National Geographic

Berlin, the imposing power city at the heart of Europe’s 20th-century tragedy, is learning to live with its troubled inheritance. Here, a central glass dome symbolizes transparency in the 1894 parliament building, the Reichstag, damaged in World War II and restored by British architect Norman Foster in the 1990s.

Jet Set
Photograph by George Steinmetz, National Geographic

Though many coastal places around the world are at risk from rising sea levels due to climate change, Florida is one of the most vulnerable. Here, powerful water jets keep pleasure-seekers aloft in Biscayne Bay, near downtown Miami. They’re the latest toys in a city that embraces an exuberant aquatic lifestyle, even as rising seas threaten its long-term survival.

Salt of the Bay
Photograph by Jassen T., National Geographic Your Shot

“I’m fascinated and drawn to these shapes and colors at sunset,” says Your Shot member Jassen T., who captured this aerial image of a salt marsh in northern California’s San Francisco Bay. “It’s a very unique and photogenic area.”

Fire Flies
Photograph by Hidenobu Suzuki, National Geographic Your Shot

“These homemade and handheld ‘pistol fireworks’ are used at the Gion Matsuri festival at the Yoshida Shrine in Toyohashi City, Japan,” writes Hidenobu Suzuki, who shared this picture with our Your Shot community. “The festival takes place on the third Friday in July.”

Sunset on the Grand Canal
Photograph by Osamah Alajmi, National Geographic Your Shot

A gondola floats through the waters of Venice’s famed Grand Canal at sunset. Venice's gondolas are painted black in accordance with a 17th-century law preventing nobles from competing for the most elaborate boat.

Title Fight
Photograph by Andy Skillen, National Geographic Your Shot

“Late afternoon was when we happened upon a large pride of lions resting on a dam wall in Phinda, South Africa,” writes Your Shot member Andy Skillen of his encounter at the private game reserve in KwaZulu-Natal Province. “Although the adults had not yet decided to stir for their evening activities, two of the cubs took it upon themselves to get some sparring practice in and fought a wide-ranging bout for around half an hour, burning off all that excess adolescent energy.”

Arcadian Oasis
Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

A placid pond high in the Graian Alps mirrors the snow-crowned peaks of Italy’s Gran Paradiso National Park—the oldest protected area in a country known more for culture than for conservation.

The 'Do' Seller
Photograph by Ly Hoang Long, National Geographic Your Shot

After the harvest, farmers in the village of Tat Vien in Vietnam’s Hung Yen Province spend their spare time knitting do, writes Your Shot member Ly Hoang Long. “It may be the simplest way to catch fish: Put some bait inside, and after a few hours pick them up and just collect the fish, eels, and crabs.” Here, a man sells the bamboo traps from his bicycle.

Snow Bird
Photograph by P. Vaudry, National Geographic Your Shot

During a milder February day in Alberta, Canada, Your Shot member P. Vaudry went for a hike along the Bow River in Fish Creek Provincial Park. “While walking through Hull’s Wood, I noticed this northern flicker in a tree. I approached, and the flicker remained still. To me, [it] was thoroughly enjoying the warmth of the sun, so much so that it didn’t seem to notice that I was there.”

Sunset Walk
Photograph by Terry Allen, National Geographic Your Shot

“I’ve long had a romance with wildlife and admired the work done by Marlice van Vuuren and her husband at the N/a’an ku sê Foundation in Windhoek, Namibia, especially in the area of cheetah conservation,” writes Terry Allen, who shared this picture with our Your Shot community. “Marlice hand-raised an orphan cheetah as part of her conservation efforts and enjoys educating visitors by providing the opportunity to walk with her and her cheetah. At the end of a sunset walk, [they] were interacting at the top of a small rise. I took several shots to get just the right positioning of both heads, conveying the great trust between the two.”

After the Rain
Photograph by Guy Nesher, National Geographic Your Shot

“It rained during the second evening of our jeep tour of the Bolivian salt desert,” writes Your Shot member Guy Nesher. “The next day we discovered that the ground had turned into an almost perfect mirror due to a thin layer of water that accumulated on it overnight. It was breathtaking. Initially I tried to shoot the empty desert, but the lack of any distinct features made the photos quite boring. I soon realized that my best bet was the other jeeps traveling beside us.”

Sheep Family Portrait
Photograph by Cameron Zegers, National Geographic Your Shot

“While I was driving through a sheep farm near Waiuku, New Zealand, these four sheep stopped grazing to watch me watch them,” writes Your Shot member Cameron Zegers. “To achieve this shot, I waited for the sheep in the back to walk into the frame. Luckily, it stopped in the perfect place, and the result looked like a well-posed family portrait.”

Inside the Drop
Photograph by Gus Schiavon, National Geographic Your Shot

“As a professional canyoning photographer ... I had seen and taken plenty of shots from the top or bottom of a waterfall but never from the inside of one,” writes Gus Schiavon, who submitted this photo to a recent Your Shot assignment. Here, a canyoneer begins descending the Campuhan waterfall in Bali, Indonesia’s Kerenkali canyon.

“Getting in position for the shot involved using a secondary belay and my own rope, rappelling until I was slightly behind the waterfall’s flow, carefully securing myself, finding good foot balance, and, most importantly, using a special waterproof cover for my camera while keeping the front element clear from water spray, which would have ruined the shot.”

House of Sand
Photograph by Romain Veillon, National Geographic Your Shot

In the abandoned diamond-mining town of Pomona on the Namibian coast, sand devours buildings like this one, a house on a hill outside the main village. “I was amazed by what I saw inside, the purity of the sand that was untouched for years, maybe decades,” writes Your Shot member Romain Veillon, who was shooting Pomona and nearby Kolmanskop for a photography project. “This picture always makes me wonder about the story of the people who used to live there—and what they were thinking when they were looking at this incredible view.”

Spring Fed
Photograph by Ryan Nelson, National Geographic Your Shot

“The winter season is when some manatees find sanctuary from the chilly Gulf of Mexico by migrating to the freshwater springs of Kings Bay in Crystal River, Florida,” writes Ryan Nelson, a member of our Your Shot community. “[A] colder than normal morning created a good opportunity to observe these peaceful giants seeking refuge. The ambient light was perfect for catching the rays of sunlight ... [and] the fallen palm stump, natural lighting, and two animals feeding set the perfect stage.”

Monumental Storm
Photograph by Emma Rogers, National Geographic Your Shot

While touring Arizona’s Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, Your Shot member Emma Rogers and her partner were undeterred from a day of sightseeing by the stormy weather sweeping the landscape. Here, a mass of thunderclouds hovers above the Mitten Buttes, a scene made more dramatic by a bolt of lightning. “While it was a lucky shot,” writes Rogers, “I feel like it perfectly captured the atmosphere of the day.”

Flashes of Summer
Photograph by David Liittschwager, National Geographic

Fireflies flash and streak through a Tennessee summer night, putting on a spectacular light show to seduce prospective mates. The summertime ritual is one of the most familiar examples of bioluminescence on land.

Tyrolean Night
Photograph by Torsten Muehlbacher, National Geographic Your Shot

Moonlight floods snow-covered peaks in this high-altitude selfie captured in the Tyrolean Alps. “I put my camera on a 25-second exposure and myself on a 25-second ‘do not move,’” writes Muehlbacher, a member of our Your Shot community. Muehlbacher’s headlamp provided additional lighting.

Turkish Air
Photograph by Francois Nadeau, National Geographic Your Shot

“You cannot go to Cappadocia without taking a trip in a hot-air balloon and making some pictures—it's a must!” writes photographer Francois Nadeau. “Most of the photographers were taking shots of the sunrise, the landscape, etc. But I was also attracted to what was under me—the patterns, the little villages. So while I was taking pictures of other balloons and the sunrise and filming at the same time, I was keeping an eye under me for the best shot."

Trunk Show
Photograph by Ashwati Vipin, National Geographic Your Shot

“I’ve had a keen interest in wildlife from the time I was a little kid feeding the neighborhood elephant lots of bananas and plums at my grandma's place in Haridwar, India,” writes Your Shot member Ashwati Vipin, who captured this tussling pair at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi National Park, Kenya. The trust rescues and rehabilitates orphaned elephants and rhinos. “[They] held a short event where they brought out their resident elephants and discussed their history, feeding habits, and the state of elephant conservation. Meanwhile, the elephants went about playing and feeding. I knew I could not miss this opportunity to photograph [these two].”

Home on the Water
Photograph by George Steinmetz, National Geographic

Some 2,100 miles of canals built over the past century to drain the Florida Everglades empty into the Atlantic Ocean. Higher seas have already allowed salt water to flow inland through the canals. Gates now keep out most salt water, and massive pumps, including on the Miami River, keep canals from overflowing by pushing excess rainwater out to the ocean. Given just two feet of sea-level rise, more than 80 percent of the gates will no longer work. In Biscayne Bay the Venetian Causeway connects Miami Beach to Miami by way of the six man-made Venetian Islands, which epitomize waterfront living. The canals have made developments at the edge of the swampland possible in places like west Palm Beach County (pictured here).



Arabian Sight
Photograph by Glenn Jacobs, National Geographic Your Shot

“This Arabian mare was photographed in Dhashur, which is in the desert on the west bank of the Nile, not too far south of Cairo,” writes Glenn Jacobs, a member of our Your Shot photo community. “Because of the light, we waited until sunset to give this mare her temporary freedom. She was very much in tune with her handler, and he was able to guide her to the spot I had in mind for this shot. [It] was wide open, without any fence. The mare, though, always returned to her handler, which was a nice sight to behold.”

Winter Lodgings
Photograph by John Warner, National Geographic Your Shot

A solitary beaver pauses at dawn on its way home from a night of chewing off tree branches, newly within reach under the weight of freshly fallen snow. Your Shot member John Warner explains that the beaver, a mate, and two kits appeared late in the fall on Montana’s Lake Elmo and hastily built a lodge before the winter freeze.

Cowabunga
Photograph by David Bengtsson, National Geographic Your Shot

Highland cattle ignore a paraglider in Denmark, where Your Shot member David Bengtsson seized an opportunity to capture his airborne friend while his camera captivated at least one onlooker. “Great memory from a great summer day in Denmark,” he writes.

Snow Fall
Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Late winter snow cascades down the rocky slopes of Valsavarenche valley in Italy’s Gran Paradiso National Park. Ruinous avalanches are rare in Gran Paradiso, but in 2008 one destroyed several houses in two park villages.

Ursa Minors
Photograph by Fudulu Catalin, National Geographic Your Shot

In Bucharest for the holidays, boys from Romania’s Moldova region participate in a tradition called ursul, dressing as bears to go caroling in the streets. “The custom is rare and occurs between Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve,” writes Fudulu Catalin, who shared this picture with our Your Shot photo community. “This image was taken downtown, where I photographed people facing the first snow. I heard the music of singers, who were accompanied by whistles and drum beats, and I went in [their] direction.”

Alpine Oasis
Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Summer night falls over an alpine meadow stippled with wildflowers in Italy’s Gran Paradiso National Park. In a busy country on a crowded continent, Gran Paradiso’s unspoiled landscape is an arcadian oasis.

Spiritual Revival
Photograph by Paul Nicklen, National Geographic

Best friends Ha‘a Keaulana, at right, and Maili Makana dive under a wave on their way to a surfing spot near their hometown of Makaha on Oahu, Hawaii. Like generations before them, they visit these waters almost every day to refresh both body and spirit.

Misty Morning Fog
Photograph by Malgorzata Walkowska, National Geographic Your Shot

“This beautiful pond is actually not too far from my home” in Poland, says Your Shot member Malgorzata Walkowska, who came across this scene while taking a shortcut home one December morning. "I really loved how it was surrounded by very old trees that reflect in the still water, especially on foggy mornings. Since I discovered this unusual place, I like to go back during different light and weather conditions and photograph it."

Annakut in Kolkata
Photograph by Sudipta Maulik, National Geographic Your Shot

Devotees catch rice during Annakut (“heap of grain”) celebrations at a temple in Kolkata, India. “I was keen to capture the expressions on the faces along with the showering food,” writes Your Shot member Sudipta Maulik. “I planned to take the photograph at the moment the food was thrown from just [behind] me on the first-floor veranda of the temple building. I had to wait for a few hours to take it, as there was no way to enter or exit the temple until the end.”

Bird of Paradiso
Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Gran Paradiso National Park is the oldest in Italy. Its namesake, the Gran Paradiso massif, rises 13,324 feet. Here, with the massif looming beyond a cloud bank, a yellow-billed Alpine chough swoops and soars on thermals and updrafts. The park is home to some hundred species of birds.

Crossing Cultures
Photograph by Alex Visbal, National Geographic Your Shot

“Plain luck” put Your Shot member Alex Visbal in the main plaza of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, during a patronage festival. In front of the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel, the square’s historic rose-colored church, small bands and indigenous groups danced and made offerings. “The mixture of cultures was so interesting that I wanted to capture it and include the mystique of the moment,” writes Visbal. “I tried every possible angle, even climbing trees, and went for a relatively low shutter on a low angle so I could have the dancing in the image while also having the church in the frame, backed with a twilight sky.”

Glacial Pace
Photograph by Silvia Aresca, National Geographic Your Shot

Hikers journey across a glacier near the Formazza Valley on the Swiss-Italian border. “I was walking toward the top of the 3,374-meter [11,069-foot] Blinnenhorn,” writes Your Shot member Silvia Aresca. “The path climbed steeply until the brow of the Gries Glacier, where finally in the distance I saw the peak that owes its name [blind horn] to how difficult it is to see until one is almost at the end of the walk. I stopped to get my breath back and saw these two silhouettes [moving] over the glacier.”

Fox Found
Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Once a royal hunting retreat, Gran Paradiso National Park preserves a wild side of Italy. Here, a red fox lies in wait, camouflaged in the autumn woods. Like all foxes, those in Gran Paradiso are adaptable opportunists; they’ll catch fish, hunt rabbits, or scavenge picnic scraps.

Kirkjufell
Photograph by Francesco Russo, National Geographic Your Shot

Iceland’s Kirkjufell, which means “church mountain,” is located on the coast of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in the country’s west.

Surfing Makaha
Photograph by Paul Nicklen, National Geographic

Located on the west coast of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Makaha has a reputation as a tightly cloistered community dominated by descendents of ancient Polynesian seafarers. Here, two sisters and their cousin head into the surf at Makaha just after dawn to warm up before a competition. Participating from an early age in this ancient sport of Hawaiian chiefs teaches children to take pride in the culture they’ve inherited.

Браво Инс 

On the Bayou
Photograph by Keith Yahl, National Geographic Your Shot

“I was up before sunrise on a chilly January morning in Monroe, Louisiana,” writes Keith Yahl, who shared this picture with our Your Shot community. “I hoped to capture the changing light over the nearby Black Bayou Lake. There was a serenity in the early morning scene. I continued to capture the sunrise from different angles as it changed the colors around me from orange to blue.”

Morning Takeoff
Photograph by Aijing He, National Geographic Your Shot

“Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico is a well-known winter home for thousands of migrating sandhill cranes,” writes Your Shot member Aijing He. A particular pond in the refuge hosts a large flock of cranes at night. “Every morning they fly out, one by one, to the nearby grass field to feed.”

On a cold December morning, He waited patiently for the cranes’ morning takeoff. “At around 7 a.m., they started their daily routine. The early morning light was still very dim, so I decided to reduce the shutter speed to 1/30th of a second to give a blurring effect to the flapping wings, and with some panning techniques, I managed to make the eye and the red crown stay well in focus.”

In the Loop
Photograph by Harrison Hill, National Geographic Your Shot

Calf and team ropers chat before competing in the Lone Star Rodeo in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, in this picture by Your Shot member Harrison Hill. The family-run rodeo company travels through 13 states a year and features bull riding, calf wrangling, bareback horse riding, and other events.

Rapa River Delta
Photograph by Sven Zacek, National Geographic Your Shot

“We went backpacking in Sarek National Park but wanted to go deeper into the wilderness, which is why we chose to fly to the border with a helicopter,” writes Your Shot member Sven Zacek. The park in northern Sweden is sometimes called the “Alaska of Europe,” he says. “The sight of the Rapa River Delta in autumn colors was amazing, and I asked the pilot to do a couple of circles before landing.”

Two to Tonga
Photograph by Fabrice Guerin, National Geographic Your Shot

“This day the sea was clear and quiet,” writes Your Shot member Fabrice Guerin, who captured this picture of a humpback whale and calf off the South Pacific island of Tonga. “The baby played for a few moments, and before joining the depths of the ocean, rubbed its mother as if to [give her] a hug.”

A Curtain Lifts
Photograph by Johan Brouwer, National Geographic Your Shot

Rain and fog nearly spoiled Your Shot member Johan Brouwer’s plan to photograph lava dunes during sunset near Stokksnes in southeastern Iceland. “I was looking for other opportunities to make the most out of the moment,” Brouwer writes. “I saw this great reflection of lava dunes in the water, and suddenly the fog disappeared partly, which gave the whole scene a mystical appearance.”

To get this shot, taken below Vestrahorn mountain, Brouwer focused on the reflections with his camera on a tripod, protecting it against the wind and rain. “The wind stopped very briefly, and I was able to take the picture. A few seconds later the fog came back and the wind and rain continued.”

Ram’s Eye
Photograph by Dawn Wilson, National Geographic Your Shot

“During a recent trip to Wyoming to photograph wildlife, I made a point of stopping in the North Fork Canyon outside Cody, Wyoming, to photograph the bighorn sheep during their annual rut,” writes Your Shot member Dawn Wilson. “The weather had been warm, so activity was a bit low. But on my final drive out of the canyon before heading home, I came upon two rams fighting nonstop, to the point that each had a bloody nose. An hour into the battle, this ram, which wound up being defeated, stopped for the briefest of moments to look at me, almost like a plea for help.”

A Day’s Work
Photograph by Hemad Nazari, National Geographic Your Shot

A shepherd carries heavy luggage on a snowy mountain in northern Iran. According to Your Shot member Hemad Nazari, shepherds must walk 12 miles a day when moving their flocks of sheep from the high mountains to the valley.

Water Towers
Photograph by John English, National Geographic Your Shot

"One morning as I lifted off from my local airport into perfectly clear skies, I could see these water towers (long a favorite subject) protruding from a rapidly receding cloud bank ten miles east," writes John English, who took this photo and shared it on our Your Shot community. "Racing as fast as I could, I made a hurried pass to pick an angle and rip off a couple of test exposures. By the time I circled around for the 'real' shots, the fog had mostly receded. This is one of the 'test' shots. The towers are part of the decommissioned Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant, near De Soto, Kansas. SAAP was built to supply ammo for World War II and also served the Korean and Vietnam conflicts."

Flashy Feathers
Photograph by Ivan Lesica, National Geographic Your Shot

"One of my favorite places to photograph exotic birds is in New York's zoo in Central Park," says Your Shot community member Ivan Lesica, who took this photo. "On a high branch in a bright spot with a deep shadow behind it, I noticed a beautiful [Nicobar] pigeon, one of my favorite birds in the zoo. I knew that the bird's glorious colors would 'explode' if the bird would slightly move its wings. Waiting for the right moment was the name of the game. I did not have to wait long. The bird decided to stretch its wings, and I was fortunate enough to be there to capture it."

Local Color
Photograph by Robin Hammond, National Geographic

Vendors hawk goods at one of many markets on Lagos Island, demonstrating the entrepreneurial fervor that has made Nigeria’s economy Africa’s most vibrant.

Hungry Birds
Photograph by Klaus Nigge, National Geographic

“The bald eagle is an opportunist,” says photographer Klaus Nigge, whose images of bald eagles in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands appear in the January 2015 issue of National Geographic. “He’s a scavenger. Even if food is stinky and old, he’ll take it.” Here, eagles still await a free meal near the home of a woman who used to feed them roadkill and fish scraps.

Museum of Islamic Art
Photograph by Zeqiant Wang, National Geographic Your Shot

A modern spin on Islamic architecture characterizes the exterior of the I.M. Pei-designed Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar. As a form of practice, Your Shot member Zeqiant Wang tries to capture the museum from different angles and in different light, here shooting in the early evening. “I had already been waiting there for two hours when I saw a Qatari man in traditional clothes walk by,” Wang writes. “I got my camera ready fast. The walking posture of the man is perfect and can be called beautiful.”

Over the Bay
Photograph by Gordon Campbell, National Geographic Your Shot

Shooting at Hog Island Bay on the eastern shore of Virginia, Your Shot member Gordon Campbell is inspired by the natural textures, patterns, and colors of the area’s salt marshes, as well as what he calls the seemingly random nature of the "veins" running through them. The scenery, he writes, is in a state of constant change, depending in part on the tides, the season, and the time of day.

Campbell photographs while flying an open cockpit aircraft. “I’m always looking for the unique combinations of pattern and light,” he writes. “When I find an interesting area, I can change angles relative to the sun and fly higher or lower, sometimes just feet above the marsh grasses. The tidal wetlands shown here play a very important part in the ecosystem and are home to a large variety of wetland flora.”

Gathered Greens
Photograph by Matthieu Paley, National Geographic

A group of Wakhi women return from a daily excursion across Pakistan’s Hunza riverbed to gather fodder and wood for their cooking fires. Photographer Matthieu Paley has been traveling the world in search of our ancestral ties to the food we eat.

The Village
Photograph by Gabor Dvornik, National Geographic Your Shot

“This little lake is a part of my life,” writes Your Shot member Gabor Dvornik, who lives half a mile from its location on a natural reserve in Sződliget, Hungary. “I shoot here nearly every month, sometimes every week. It has a very special air in every season, but to have a nice, misty day is rare, as wind is always present due to the nearby Duna River.”

Seeing the fog during a last glance outside the night before, Dvornik slept only three hours to make it to the lake for a “dream” shoot. “It was utterly ghostly and very moody out there,” he writes. “I felt like I was in a fantasy tale, in an enchanted land. I was so euphoric that I made around 500 captures and walked around the lake two to three times.”

Polished Porcelain
Photograph by Agorastos Papatsanis, National Geographic Your Shot

“I am a big fan of mushrooms,” writes Your Shot member Agorastos Papatsanis. He encountered these specimens on Mount Olympus. “On one of my autumn excursions in the beech forest, I found this amazing porcelain fungus (Oudemansiella mucida). I was drawn to their cyclic hats with the radial paths of the gills, the amazing porcelain texture, and the combination of rain and sun. I used the available bright sunlight as a backlight and enhanced it with an off-camera flash to create this atmosphere.”

Morning Reflection
Photograph by Noushad PT, National Geographic Your Shot

While on a stroll with friends one morning in a village near the Nilambur forest in Kerala, India, Your Shot member Noushad PT noticed the sun streaming through the coconut trees, creating a reflection in the flooded paddy. “I found an opportunity for a perfect black-and-white composition,” he writes. “I added a human element, prioritized the reflection, created symmetry, kept the sky aside—and captured it.”

Star Bright
Photograph by Melanie Huff, National Geographic Your Shot

“I came across this sea shell and noticed the delicate patterns when I held it up to the light,” writes Your Shot member Melanie Huff, who made this photograph in Humble, Texas. “I quickly decided that it would make a unique abstract, so I took it home and placed a lamp behind it and snapped a few shots."

Unsolved Mystery
Photograph by Fikry Botros, National Geographic Your Shot

While strolling in a historic neighborhood in Cuenca, Ecuador, Your Shot member Fikry Botros noticed this outsize accessory lying near an old hat factory. “Then,” he writes, “I noticed a building nearby with this beautiful old yellow wall and a half-open door. I outfitted my daughter with the hat and asked her to pretend as if she were waiting for someone at the entrance of the house. To add mystery, I metered the light on the yellow wall to make the inside of the house dark, and I made sure that the hat completely hid her face. Is she waiting? Is she hiding? Is she guarding the house? Who is she? Why this hat?”

Artists’ Cave
Photograph by Stephen Alvarez, National Geographic

Perched near Africa’s southern tip, Blombos Cave has yielded some of the earliest evidence of symbolic expression, including shell beads, engraved ocher, and ocher-processing kits that are 100,000 years old.

Spruced Up
Photograph by Pete McBride

Evergreen trees populate the Maroon Bells Wilderness in Colorado’s White River National Forest. Photographer Pete McBride argues that management of U.S. wilderness areas—including the introduction of plant and animal species to balance ecosystems—keeps these large swaths of land from being truly wild.

Wedding Colors
Photograph by Robin Hammond, National Geographic

In Nigeria it’s common to ask guests to wear color-coordinated outfits, called aso ebi, at social events, such as this wedding at the Yoruba Tennis Club in Lagos.

Winter Hues
Photograph by Sajad Rafeeq, National Geographic Your Shot

Photographing on a foggy morning near Pampore, India, Your Shot member Sajad Rafeeq waited half an hour for a passing train to complete his composition. “I had reached a village and a few kids guided me to a canal,” Rafeeq writes. “It’s surrounded by poplar trees on both sides, and as soon as I reached it, I saw their beautiful symmetry and also spotted the railway bridge. I framed the composition while having in mind the train that had yet to come.”

Scattered Snow
Photograph by Horst Bierau, National Geographic Your Shot

“This photo was taken on a chilly morning in the Austrian Alps during our ski holiday,” writes Your Shot member Horst Bierau. “I was about to clear the car of the freshly fallen snow from the night before and head off to the slopes when I noticed the tiny ice crystals on the car’s windowpane. The dark inside of the car cabin provided the perfect background for this motif.”