NIGHT TIME HAMMERHEAD: Curious hammerhead at dusk. Cat Key, Bahamas. (Photo and caption by Raul Boesel/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
RHEA'S PORTRAIT: A different angle from an American Rhea (Rhea americana) seen in Pantanal, Brazil, on a cloudy day. Pantanal, Miranda, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. (Photo and caption by Simony Blanco/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
WILDEBEEST CROSSING: Beautiful mayhem. Masai Mara, Kenya. (Photo and caption by Samantha Gargour/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
SAND SPHERES: The food filtered 2-3mm sand ball creations of a tiny Sand Bubbler Crap. Done so that it knows which sand has been filtered for food. Daintree Rainforest region, Cairns, Austrailia. (Photo and caption by Baron Collocott/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
SUMMER AT GRANNY'S: This is a heart-shaped stawberry in the hand of my grandmother. Love is the message. Gyula, Hungary. (Photo and caption by Szabo Eszfer/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
GOOD MORNING: Jabulani the elephant greeting his caretaker, Stavros Chakoma, before heading out on safari. Kapama Game Reserve, Kruger region of South Africa. (Photo and caption by Paula Durham/Nature/National Geographic Photo Contest)
DUSK IN THE BALE MOUNTAINS: A kitten and an elderly woman stand outside their hut deep in the subalpine Bale Mountains of southeastern Ethiopia. Bale Mountains, Ethiopia. (Photo and caption by Benjamin Guez/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
THE PENITENTS: The day of Friday, there is the traditional procession of penitents through the village streets beating their backs with the discipline of rings and metal plates. San Lorenzo Maggiore, Benevento, Italy. (Photo and caption by Salvatore Picciuto/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
DAY OF YOUTH: Muslim girls at the day of the youth on the 11th of February. The girls are walking in a procession to the mayor of the village and are singing about the power of Cameroon. Lagdo, Cameroon. (Photo and caption by Ronnie Dankelman/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
SUNBATHING UNDERWATER: The sun gives us energy even underwater. This image was captured during freediving (diving on a single breath without scuba gear) in the Red Sea. Eel Garden, Dahab, Sinai, Egypt. (Photo and caption by Vaclav Krpelik/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
WEATHERED HANDS: The Kara women collect the water, cook for family, harvest the fields, make the clothing, and are the backbone of the tribe. This elderly woman was the only white-haired person I came in contact with. I tried desperately to get a pleasing portrait and caught her hands in my peripheries; the perfect symbol of the woman's role in tribal society in the Omo River Valley. Her bracelets are made from salvaged AK-47 shell casings, a symbol in itself for the cyclic theme of war and revenge between the Kara and the neighboring tribe, the Nyangatom. Omo River Valley, Ethiopia. (Photo and caption by Nicholas Wiesnet/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
CHILDHOOD: When does childhood become adulthood? When does snack time become lunch at your desk? When did safety shift from blankies to insurance? When did magic turn into illusion? Childhood. When the whole world is magic. Portland, Oregon. (Photo and caption by Mei Ratz/National Geographic Photo Contest)
THE UNTOLD STORY: A young Afghan refugee girl living, with her family, in a village named Bhaun near district Chakwal in Punjab, Pakistan. Village Bhaun, Punjab, Pakistan. (Photo and caption by Mohsin Khawar/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
WRESTLER'S HANDS: A wrestler at the US Olympic Training facility in Colorado Springs, CO, stops to rest and catch his breath after a hard training session. Colorado Springs, CO. (Photo and caption by Stephanie Zollshan/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)
TERENCE STAMP: The actor at my home in Ojai, California, during a casual photoshoot in my living room. Ojai, CA. (Photo and caption by Betina La Plante/People/National Geographic Photo Contest)