Revealed: The stunning winners of the prestigious Smithsonian Photo Contest

[Surya Gayatri]

* A selection of nine breathtaking snaps have been named the winners of the Smithsonian 13th Annual Photo Contest
* Contest this year received 46,000 incredible submissions from photographers across 168 countries and territories


Altered images: Photographer Radim Schreiber took this photo of fireflies in almost complete darkness using the latest low-light camera technology. he said: 'I was completely surrounded by the fireflies and witnessed one of the most amazing and magical natural phenomena: fireflies that synchronize.' The photograph was taken using several long exposures over several minutes and they were later merged together


Readers' choice: Photographer Alice van Kempen captured the above image on an empty train in Belgium. She said: 'This is my bull terrier Claire photographed in an abandoned train, it is one of a series that I am currently working on. The series is called Leave Only Pawprints: Urbex Adventures With My Bull Terrier Claire.' This image is HDR and composed of three different images


Sustainable travel: In 2014, photographer Tihomir Trichkov from the US took this shot inside an orphan school in Likoni, one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Mombasa, Kenya. He said: 'My videos and pictures helped raise money to finish the building of a school for 150 children and a sleeping building for 30 orphan kids. This is the school director's daughter on her break, while at school'


Mobile: Jian Wang from Beijing won the 'mobile' category for this shot of a woman in a red dress walking in front of a red wall with light pouring down on her

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3508001/From-volcanic-ash-clouds-Indonesia-Japanese-monkey-braving-cold-stunning-winners-prestigious-Smithsonian-Photo-Contest-revealed.html

[demmiblue]

1. Gorgeous pics!

Here is the original link: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/photocontest/archive/2015/

I am partial to this one:

[Surya Gayatri]

2. Stunningly good photography and inspiring world tour!

Just had to get away from the primary madness around here and find relief in some truth and beauty.

[demmiblue]

6. I know what you mean.

Funny thing about your post, I saw the dog photo earlier this morning on Messy Nessy Chic:

If the internet was to ban photographs of abandoned places or funny dog videos, I really don’t know which one I would be more upset about. Both get my clicks every time. But of course the internet would never do that; it just keeps on giving. Take this photo project for example, by Dutch photographer Alice van Kempen, who went road-tripping around Europe exploring abandoned places with Claire, a 3-year-old bull terrier as her companion.



Together, they crawled under fences, climbed walls, jumped through windows and sometimes just walked through the front door.

“Finding a new location is great fun but getting inside is where the real fun starts,” Alice tells Caters News. “Once we’re inside we check the building from top to bottom and I always start photographing the best spot in the house first.”



Much, much more: http://www.messynessychic.com/2016/03/22/ridiculously-photogenic-dog-is-an-abandoned-explorers-best-friend/

http://alicevankempen.zoom.nl/fotos/index.html

[Surya Gayatri]

7. Gotta love Claire...she fits in wherever she goes! LOL!

Thanks for bringing these great pics over here!

[justiceischeap]

14. I love the Claire photos but I worry for Claire

For example, in that photo with the ironing board, that room is filled with asbestos. How do I know this? Because I explore too and the ceiling tiles the dog is standing on is just chalk full of that bad stuff.

So, the question is, can dog lungs handle asbestos exposure? And the answer is, no they can't.

http://www.mesothelioma.com/asbestos-cancer/pets-animals.htm

Dogs can also be victims of direct asbestos exposure. It is not unusual for a dog to carry home dangerous fibers on their feet or fur if they have been in a location where asbestos is present, including at a demolition site that might be contaminated with the toxic mineral.

[marble falls]

15. Good choice. It definately tells a story.

[malaise]

3. Stunning is the word

Thanks

[Surya Gayatri]

4. My pleasure...

[Omaha Steve]

5. Stunning!

K&R!

IS

[Duppers]

8. Splendid photos. If anyone wants to see more firefly shots..

Check these pics...
http://www.fireflyexperience.org/photos/elkmont-synchronous-fireflies/



These were made near Elkmont, and roughly 12 miles from my property, in GSMNP.

[Surya Gayatri]

10. Thanks for the link. Gorgeous...

We used to call them "lightening bugs" back in the day. Used to catch them and make a lamp in a glass jar.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. We call them "lightning bugs" here in Philly

That pic sort of reminds me of the some of the animated scenes from the Disney movie "The Princess and the Frog".



Of course this guy would approve!

[Surya Gayatri]

12. Who knew? I thought "lightening bug" was more of a midwest expression (Nebraska).

Glow worm or firefly always sounded more "eastern" and sophisticated.

[BumRushDaShow]

17. There was a map that I had seen a few years ago that showed the usage

This is one -



Another version with the survey data plotted separately - http://www4.uwm.edu/FLL/linguistics/dialect/staticmaps/q_65.html

I only heard "firefly" used because of the P.D. Eastman children's book "Sam and the Firefly" (which I had back in the mid-60s when I was a kid and the firefly's name was Gus...lol).

[Surya Gayatri]

18. I only ever read "firefly" in books, and heard "glow worm" in the 50's song...

Thanks for posting that dialect map. Fascinating.
But, according to them, I was definitely supposed to "use lightening bug and firefly interchangeably"--which I didn't.

[BumRushDaShow]

22. I never heard "glow worm" used for that insect

But looking at pictures of them, they do almost look like the flying versions, although they are apparently mostly located outside of the U.S.

The other term was "peenie wallie", which was a Jamaican usage (plus the name of the popular song)!

[Surya Gayatri]

23. Dialects are so interesting. Wherever did "peenie wallie" come from? LOL!

[BumRushDaShow]

24. You have to ask malaise. She did post in this thread!

[GreenEyedLefty]

13. GSMNP is one of my favorite places!

So stunningly beautiful.

[Thespian2]

9. Amazing photography!

I remember when I first learned to develop and print black and white...the technology today is so far beyond anything we could imagine back in those days...

[shireen]

16. colors and textures are spectacular! nt

[FourScore]

19. This is my favorite from the National Geographic winners this year -

[FourScore]

20. Love.

Thanks for posting, Surya Gayatri!

[Surya Gayatri]

21. My pleasure. Great choice from NG, too. Cobalt blue!

[sheshe2]

25. Spectacular!

Thanks Surya

[Eleanors38]

26. Good stuff! Thanks.

[awoke_in_2003]

27. I haven't seen lightning bugs

(sorry, it's an Ohio thing) in over 20 years