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National Geographic is a benchmark in travel journalism. The places they go to, the photographs they take, and the way they write about anything and everything on this planet is a gold standard. And to be part of this gold standard, they organise a photography contest every year, which pans out over 8 weeks.
At the end of those 8 weeks, 12 brilliant photographers are crowned winners in 3 different categories: People, Nature, and Cities. So without further ado, here are the winners of this year’s National Geographic Travel Photographer Of The Year.
Category 1: People
Grand Prize winner: Winter Horseman by Anthony Lau
“The Winter in Inner Mongolia is very unforgiving. At a freezing temperature of minus twenty and lower with constant breeze of snow from all direction, it was pretty hard to convince myself to get out of the car and take photos. Not until I saw Inner Mongolia horsemen showing off their skills in commanding the steed from a distance, I quickly grab my telephoto lens and capture the moment when one of the horseman charged out from morning mist.”
Second Place winner: Rooftop Dreams, Varanasi by Yasmin Mund
“I arrived at my guest house in Varanasi at 5:30am, I instinctively climbed the 7 sets of stairs to the rooftop (which happened to be the highest in the vicinity) to see the sunrise over the famous Ganges River. As the sun was rising I looked over the right hand side of the balcony and my jaw dropped with disbelief. Below were families – mothers, fathers, children, brothers, sister and dogs all sleeping on the top of their houses. It was mid summer in Varanasi and sleeping sans AC was difficult.”
Third Place winner: Remote life at -21 degree by Mattia Passarini
“Kinnaura tribal old women in remote village in Himachal Pradesh carrying big log back home to warm up her house.”
Honourable Mention: Muscle Beach Gym by Dotan Saguy
“A weightlifter lifts a barbell loaded with heavy plates while a bodybuilder performs an aerial handstand at the Muscle Beach Gym in Venice Beach, CA.”
Category 2: Nature
First Place winner: Wherever you go, I will follow you!! by Hiroki Inoue
“Romance is in the air. It was the time of day immediately following sunset. I heard a voice. “Wherever you go, I will follow you” the voice says.”
Second Place winner: Double trapping by Massimiliano Bencivenni
“Picture taken in the Brazilian Pantanal… when I downloaded the CF did not want to believe it …. The nature knows we always give magnificent events but sometimes extraordinary”
Third Place winner: Lagunas Baltinache (Atacama Desert) by Victor Lima
“The Baltinache Ponds, also called Hidden Ponds are a set of seven salt ponds located in the area of the Salt Cordillera, near San Pedro de Atacama, in the second region of northern Chile, in the Atacama desert.
After much research, I believe to be the first photographer to publish night photos of this place, but it is still necessary to confirm this information.
Tech Details: Photography done in one shot. Foreground was illuminated by the moonlight.”
Honourable Mention: Bears on a Berg by John Rollins
“This photo was taken far out on the sea ice in the Davis Straight off the coast of Baffin Island. This mother polar bear and her yearling are perched atop a huge snow covered iceberg that got “socked in” when the ocean froze over for the winter. To me, the relative “smallness” of these large creatures when compared to the immensity of the iceberg in the photo represents the precariousness of the polar bear’s reliance on the sea and sea ice for its existence.”
Category 3: Cities
First Place winner: Ben Youssef by Takashi Nakagawa
“Even though there were a lot of people in Ben Youssef, still here was more quiet and relaxing compare to the street outside in Marrakesh. I was waiting for the perfect timing to photograph for long time.”
Second Place winner: Silenced by Wing Ka H.
“This photo was taken on my last trip to GuangZhou, China. This place is a school dormitories of South China Normal University. When I was hanging around, most of them were taking a break. After the lunch time, they need to go back to study. The dormitories were smelly and messy.”
Third Place winner: Celestial Reverie by Jeremy Tan
“Lightning seemingly strikes Komtar Tower, the most iconic landmark of George Town, capital of Penang state in Malaysia. It is symbolic of the rejuvenation that the city, famous for a unique blend of centuries-old buildings and modern structures, has enjoyed in recent years. While many of its old neighbourhoods fell into neglect in the 1990s and early 2000s, UNESCO World Heritage listing in 2008 sparked a transformation, and today, they are all part of a vibrant tourist destination.”
Honourable mention: Divide by Kathleen Dolmach
“In the helicopter looking south on Central Park West – dividing the architecture and Central Park, on November 5th 2014, a day before my 27th birthday. The flight was my birthday gift.”
These photographs are mesmerising and I can keep surfing through the site all day. For all the entries and how the competition panned out, head over to National Geographic.
All images source: 2016 National Geographic Travel Photographer of The Year Contest
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