10 AMAZING PHOTOS FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’S 2014 PHOTO CONTEST

Harrison Jacobs

National Geographic opened up its annual photo contest for submissions last month, and the photos have been pouring in. With only a month left until the call for entries closes, this year’s batch of entries looks to be as strong as the previous year’s, with tons of breathtaking moments and stunning scenes captured on film.

Photos are divided into three different categories: People, Places, and Nature. The winning photos in the contest, chosen by a panel of National Geographic photographers, will be published in an upcoming issue of National Geographic and each photographer will receive $2,500, with the grand prize winner receiving $7,500 and a trip to National Geographic headquarters in Washington, DC.

National Geographic shared a selection of this year’s entries with Business Insider. You can enter your own photos here up until October 31st. The winners will be announced in early December.

Photographer Carey Nash visited Ethiopia for a three-week adventure. He camped near this woman’s village in the Omo Valley. The Omo Valley is home to some of the most unique and ancient tribes in the world, and they are currently in danger of being pushed off their land.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/

This stunning sunset was seen over Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon in South Iceland. Francesco Riccardo Iacomino photographed the sky using a long exposure to capture incredible detail.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Francesco Riccardo Lacomino

In the Strezlecki Desert in Australia, a flock of Galahs drink from the only water available at the base of this tree.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Christian Spencer

Photographer Colin MacKenzie caught this Polar Bear cub playing on iceflows in Svalbard near Norway. This is the male cub.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Colin MacKenzie

This photo shows an authentic industrial diver system. It is part of a collection of a retired diver who worked during the 1950s with this equipment in Lake Geneva. The equipment weighs 140 pounds and air is supplied by a manual pump operated by two people.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Marc Henauer

This photo was taken on Baronda Trail in Big Sur. It’s hard to see because of the fog, but the sea is in the distance.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Douglas Croft

This beautiful jellyfish was seen floating horizontally in Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco, California.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/

There are many curious green turtles off the coast of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Photographer Montse Grillo spends much of his time photographing the affectionate creatures.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Montse Grillo

Young women dress up and have their faces painted to celebrate the Mexican holiday La Dia De Los Muertos in Oaxaca, Mexico.

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Daniel Kudish

At Burning Man, nothing is more intense than the Thunderdome, run by a group called The Death Guild. In the Thunderdome, combatants use foam bats to assault each other for five minutes while the crowd cheers on from on top the dome. 

National Geographic 2014 Photo Contest/Aaron Feinberg