10 Outstanding Entries From Nat Geo's Travel Photographer of the Year Awards

You can enter until June 30.

BY Shaunacy Ferro

PHOTOGRAPHS BY National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

May 10, 2017

National Geographic is known for producing some of the best photography around, and each year, it rewards great photographers (both amateur and professional) with trips to far-flung locales through the National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest. The 2017 contest is accepting entries until June 30, but below are a few of the outstanding images that have already been submitted.

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"The Mirror"

Takahiro Bessho / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Photographer Takahiro Bessho of Japan writes: "Lake Yogo, called 'The lake of Mirror,' sometimes reflects everything in front of you."

"Swallows Cave"

Marc Henauer / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Marc Henauer of Switzerland describes his photo: "A free diver swims in the deep of "swallows cave" in Tonga. This cave is settled by more than few thousand fish. They offer you a spectacular ballet when you dive inside. The contrast between the dark of the bottom and the light of the top make [the fish bright] like stars."

"Lost in White"

Adam Cunningham-White / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

As English photographer Adam Cunningham-White describes, "This photo captures the moment that I, along with three other Sami reindeer herders become a little lost while migrating with 350 reindeer. They were rounded up from a section of forest around 30 kilometers [about 19 miles] south of this point. Our goal was to take them, via rivers, northwards to pastures new using the network of rivers and lakes that flow through Sweden."

"Lonely Salt Lake"

Stas Bartnikas / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

According to photographer Stas Bartnikas, this "aerial shot was taken in Death Valley National Park from a small plane."

"Little Eyewitness"

Hidetoshi Ogata / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

"'Little Eyewitness' was taken in Jigokudani Monkey Park, Nagano, Japan on December, 2016," photographer Hidetoshi Ogata of Japan writes. "On a cold winter's day, monkeys have several ways to keep off the cold. For example, in order to keep them warm, they have a soak in a hot spring, take a bedrock bath or huddle together, etc. While monkeys were huddling together, I approached them with the stealthy footsteps. Then I photographed them from directly above at the moment when a little monkey nestled in mother's arms looked to the camera."

"Blue Pond the Stellar Sky"

Nao Akimoto / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Japanese photographer Nao Akimoto describes his photo as a "voice from the stars."

"Powerful Cloud"

Takashi / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Tokyo photographer Takashi describes the process of taking this image: “Mt Fuji is a treasure trove of mysterious shaped clouds. Various forms of clouds appear when a fast air current blows over the Mt Fuji. I stayed in the car during the night at the Inokashira forest road about 0.8 miles above sea level about 25 miles west of Mt Fuji. The small clouds that appeared before dawn grew bigger and bigger. Just before sunrise they had become a huge cloud covering Mt. Fuji. The shadows of them in the backlight were the most powerful masterpieces.”

"Morning Cranes"

Hiroki Inoue / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

"I was able to capture the silhouettes of the cranes through the morning fog," explains photographer Hiroki Inoue of Japan.

"The Salt Miners"

Tugo Cheng / National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

"As the most ancient and grueling trade in Ethiopia, the salt miners in the Afar region are still using the most traditional camel caravan to carry loads of salt bricks extracted from the vast salt flats everyday," explains photographer Tugo Cheng of the UK. "However, an under-construction railway from Djibouti and new road traversing the old salt route may soon render the camel caravan obsolete."