Cowabunga

Photograph by David Bengtsson , National Geographic Your Shot

Highland cattle ignore a paraglider in Denmark, where Your Shot member David Bengtsson seized an opportunity to capture his airborne friend while his camera captivated at least one onlooker. Great memory from a great summer day in Denmark, he writes.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Jet Set

Photograph by George Steinmetz, National Geographic

Though many coastal places around the world are at risk from rising sea levels due to climate change, Florida is one of the most vulnerable. Here, powerful water jets keep pleasure-seekers aloft in Biscayne Bay, near downtown Miami. They re the latest toys in a city that embraces an exuberant aquatic lifestyle, even as rising seas threaten its long-term survival.

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Salt of the Bay

Photograph by Jassen T. , National Geographic Your Shot

I m fascinated and drawn to these shapes and colors at sunset, says Your Shot member Jassen T. , who captured this aerial image of a salt marsh in northern California s San Francisco Bay. It s a very unique and photogenic area.

Jassen T.'s picture recently appeared in Your Shot's Daily Dozen .

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Fire Flies

Photograph by Hidenobu Suzuki , National Geographic Your Shot

These homemade and handheld pistol fireworks are used at the Gion Matsuri festival at the Yoshida Shrine in Toyohashi City, Japan, writes Hidenobu Suzuki , who shared this picture with our Your Shot community. The festival takes place on the third Friday in July.

Suzuki s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

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Alpine Oasis

Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Summer night falls over an alpine meadow stippled with wildflowers in Italy s Gran Paradiso National Park. In a busy country on a crowded continent, Gran Paradiso s unspoiled landscape is an arcadian oasis.

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Spiritual Revival

Photograph by Paul Nicklen, National Geographic

Best friends Ha a Keaulana, at right, and Maili Makana dive under a wave on their way to a surfing spot near their hometown of Makaha on Oahu, Hawaii. Like generations before them, they visit these waters almost every day to refresh both body and spirit.

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Misty Morning Fog

Photograph by Malgorzata Walkowska , National Geographic Your Shot

This beautiful pond is actually not too far from my home in Poland, says Your Shot member Malgorzata Walkowska , who came across this scene while taking a shortcut home one December morning. "I really loved how it was surrounded by very old trees that reflect in the still water, especially on foggy mornings. Since I discovered this unusual place, I like to go back during different light and weather conditions and photograph it."

Walkowska's image recently appeared in Your Shot's Daily Dozen .

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Annakut in Kolkata

Photograph by Sudipta Maulik , National Geographic Your Shot

Devotees catch rice during Annakut ( heap of grain ) celebrations at a temple in Kolkata, India. I was keen to capture the expressions on the faces along with the showering food, writes Your Shot member Sudipta Maulik . I planned to take the photograph at the moment the food was thrown from just [behind] me on the first-floor veranda of the temple building. I had to wait for a few hours to take it, as there was no way to enter or exit the temple until the end.

Maulik s picture recently appeared in the Your Shot Assignment The Story of Hunger and Hope .

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Bird of Paradiso

Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Gran Paradiso National Park is the oldest in Italy. Its namesake, the Gran Paradiso massif, rises 13,324 feet. Here, with the massif looming beyond a cloud bank, a yellow-billed Alpine chough swoops and soars on thermals and updrafts. The park is home to some hundred species of birds.

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Crossing Cultures

Photograph by Alex Visbal , National Geographic Your Shot

Plain luck put Your Shot member Alex Visbal in the main plaza of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, during a patronage festival. In front of the Parroquia de San Miguel Arc ngel, the square s historic rose-colored church, small bands and indigenous groups danced and made offerings. The mixture of cultures was so interesting that I wanted to capture it and include the mystique of the moment, writes Visbal. I tried every possible angle, even climbing trees, and went for a relatively low shutter on a low angle so I could have the dancing in the image while also having the church in the frame, backed with a twilight sky.

Visbal s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Glacial Pace

Photograph by Silvia Aresca , National Geographic Your Shot

Hikers journey across a glacier near the Formazza Valley on the Swiss-Italian border. I was walking toward the top of the 3,374-meter [11,069-foot] Blinnenhorn, writes Your Shot member Silvia Aresca . The path climbed steeply until the brow of the Gries Glacier, where finally in the distance I saw the peak that owes its name [blind horn] to how difficult it is to see until one is almost at the end of the walk. I stopped to get my breath back and saw these two silhouettes [moving] over the glacier.

Aresca s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Fox Found

Photograph by Stefano Unterthiner, National Geographic

Once a royal hunting retreat, Gran Paradiso National Park preserves a wild side of Italy. Here, a red fox lies in wait, camouflaged in the autumn woods. Like all foxes, those in Gran Paradiso are adaptable opportunists; they ll catch fish, hunt rabbits, or scavenge picnic scraps.

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Kirkjufell

Photograph by Francesco Russo , National Geographic Your Shot

Iceland s Kirkjufell, which means church mountain, is located on the coast of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in the country s west.

Russo s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Surfing Makaha

Photograph by Paul Nicklen, National Geographic

Located on the west coast of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Makaha has a reputation as a tightly cloistered community dominated by descendents of ancient Polynesian seafarers. Here, two sisters and their cousin head into the surf at Makaha just after dawn to warm up before a competition. Participating from an early age in this ancient sport of Hawaiian chiefs teaches children to take pride in the culture they ve inherited.

Read more about Nicklen's experience learning to photograph beneath the waves on Proof.

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On the Bayou

Photograph by Keith Yahl , National Geographic Your Shot

I was up before sunrise on a chilly January morning in Monroe, Louisiana, writes Keith Yahl , who shared this picture with our Your Shot community. I hoped to capture the changing light over the nearby Black Bayou Lake. There was a serenity in the early morning scene. I continued to capture the sunrise from different angles as it changed the colors around me from orange to blue.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Morning Takeoff

Photograph by Aijing He , National Geographic Your Shot

Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico is a well-known winter home for thousands of migrating sandhill cranes, writes Your Shot member Aijing He . A particular pond in the refuge hosts a large flock of cranes at night. Every morning they fly out, one by one, to the nearby grass field to feed.

On a cold December morning, He waited patiently for the cranes morning takeoff. At around 7 a.m., they started their daily routine. The early morning light was still very dim, so I decided to reduce the shutter speed to 1/30th of a second to give a blurring effect to the flapping wings, and with some panning techniques, I managed to make the eye and the red crown stay well in focus.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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In the Loop

Photograph by Harrison Hill , National Geographic Your Shot

Calf and team ropers chat before competing in the Lone Star Rodeo in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, in this picture by Your Shot member Harrison Hill . The family-run rodeo company travels through 13 states a year and features bull riding, calf wrangling, bareback horse riding, and other events.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Rapa River Delta

Photograph by Sven Zacek , National Geographic Your Shot

We went backpacking in Sarek National Park but wanted to go deeper into the wilderness, which is why we chose to fly to the border with a helicopter, writes Your Shot member Sven Zacek . The park in northern Sweden is sometimes called the Alaska of Europe, he says. The sight of the Rapa River Delta in autumn colors was amazing, and I asked the pilot to do a couple of circles before landing.

Zacek s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Two to Tonga

Photograph by Fabrice Guerin , National Geographic Your Shot

This day the sea was clear and quiet, writes Your Shot member Fabrice Guerin , who captured this picture of a humpback whale and calf off the South Pacific island of Tonga. The baby played for a few moments, and before joining the depths of the ocean, rubbed its mother as if to [give her] a hug.

Guerin s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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A Curtain Lifts

Photograph by Johan Brouwer , National Geographic Your Shot

Rain and fog nearly spoiled Your Shot member Johan Brouwer s plan to photograph lava dunes during sunset near Stokksnes in southeastern Iceland. I was looking for other opportunities to make the most out of the moment, Brouwer writes. I saw this great reflection of lava dunes in the water, and suddenly the fog disappeared partly, which gave the whole scene a mystical appearance.

To get this shot, taken below Vestrahorn mountain, Brouwer focused on the reflections with his camera on a tripod, protecting it against the wind and rain. The wind stopped very briefly, and I was able to take the picture. A few seconds later the fog came back and the wind and rain continued.

Brouwer s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Ram s Eye

Photograph by Dawn Wilson , National Geographic Your Shot

During a recent trip to Wyoming to photograph wildlife, I made a point of stopping in the North Fork Canyon outside Cody, Wyoming, to photograph the bighorn sheep during their annual rut, writes Your Shot member Dawn Wilson . The weather had been warm, so activity was a bit low. But on my final drive out of the canyon before heading home, I came upon two rams fighting nonstop, to the point that each had a bloody nose. An hour into the battle, this ram, which wound up being defeated, stopped for the briefest of moments to look at me, almost like a plea for help.

Wilson s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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A Day s Work

Photograph by Hemad Nazari , National Geographic Your Shot

A shepherd carries heavy luggage on a snowy mountain in northern Iran. According to Your Shot member Hemad Nazari , shepherds must walk 12 miles a day when moving their flocks of sheep from the high mountains to the valley.

Nazari s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Water Towers

Photograph by John English , National Geographic Your Shot

"One morning as I lifted off from my local airport into perfectly clear skies, I could see these water towers (long a favorite subject) protruding from a rapidly receding cloud bank ten miles east," writes John English , who took this photo and shared it on our Your Shot community. "Racing as fast as I could, I made a hurried pass to pick an angle and rip off a couple of test exposures. By the time I circled around for the 'real' shots, the fog had mostly receded. This is one of the 'test' shots. The towers are part of the decommissioned Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant, near De Soto, Kansas. SAAP was built to supply ammo for World War II and also served the Korean and Vietnam conflicts."

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Flashy Feathers

Photograph by Ivan Lesica , National Geographic Your Shot

"One of my favorite places to photograph exotic birds is in New York's zoo in Central Park," says Your Shot community member Ivan Lesica , who took this photo. "On a high branch in a bright spot with a deep shadow behind it, I noticed a beautiful [Nicobar] pigeon, one of my favorite birds in the zoo. I knew that the bird's glorious colors would 'explode' if the bird would slightly move its wings. Waiting for the right moment was the name of the game. I did not have to wait long. The bird decided to stretch its wings, and I was fortunate enough to be there to capture it."

Lesica's picture recently appeared in Your Shot's Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Local Color

Photograph by Robin Hammond, National Geographic

Vendors hawk goods at one of many markets on Lagos Island, demonstrating the entrepreneurial fervor that has made Nigeria s economy Africa s most vibrant.

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Hungry Birds

Photograph by Klaus Nigge, National Geographic

The bald eagle is an opportunist, says photographer Klaus Nigge, whose images of bald eagles in Alaska s Aleutian Islands appear in the January 2015 issue of National Geographic. He s a scavenger. Even if food is stinky and old, he ll take it. Here, eagles still await a free meal near the home of a woman who used to feed them roadkill and fish scraps.

Hear photographer Klaus Nigge speak about photographing bald eagles on Proof .

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Museum of Islamic Art

Photograph by Zeqiant Wang , National Geographic Your Shot

A modern spin on Islamic architecture characterizes the exterior of the I.M. Pei-designed Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar. As a form of practice, Your Shot member Zeqiant Wang tries to capture the museum from different angles and in different light, here shooting in the early evening. I had already been waiting there for two hours when I saw a Qatari man in traditional clothes walk by, Wang writes. I got my camera ready fast. The walking posture of the man is perfect and can be called beautiful.

Wang s picture recently appeared in Your Shot s Daily Dozen .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Over the Bay

Photograph by Gordon Campbell , National Geographic Your Shot

Shooting at Hog Island Bay on the eastern shore of Virginia, Your Shot member Gordon Campbell is inspired by the natural textures, patterns, and colors of the area s salt marshes, as well as what he calls the seemingly random nature of the "veins" running through them. The scenery, he writes, is in a state of constant change, depending in part on the tides, the season, and the time of day.

Campbell photographs while flying an open cockpit aircraft. I m always looking for the unique combinations of pattern and light, he writes. When I find an interesting area, I can change angles relative to the sun and fly higher or lower, sometimes just feet above the marsh grasses. The tidal wetlands shown here play a very important part in the ecosystem and are home to a large variety of wetland flora.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Gathered Greens

Photograph by Matthieu Paley, National Geographic

A group of Wakhi women return from a daily excursion across Pakistan s Hunza riverbed to gather fodder and wood for their cooking fires. Photographer Matthieu Paley has been traveling the world in search of our ancestral ties to the food we eat.

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The Village

Photograph by Gabor Dvornik , National Geographic Your Shot

This little lake is a part of my life, writes Your Shot member Gabor Dvornik , who lives half a mile from its location on a natural reserve in Sz dliget, Hungary. I shoot here nearly every month, sometimes every week. It has a very special air in every season, but to have a nice, misty day is rare, as wind is always present due to the nearby Duna River.

Seeing the fog during a last glance outside the night before, Dvornik slept only three hours to make it to the lake for a dream shoot. It was utterly ghostly and very moody out there, he writes. I felt like I was in a fantasy tale, in an enchanted land. I was so euphoric that I made around 500 captures and walked around the lake two to three times.

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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Polished Porcelain

Photograph by Agorastos Papatsanis , National Geographic Your Shot

I am a big fan of mushrooms, writes Your Shot member Agorastos Papatsanis . He encountered these specimens on Mount Olympus. On one of my autumn excursions in the beech forest, I found this amazing porcelain fungus (Oudemansiella mucida). I was drawn to their cyclic hats with the radial paths of the gills, the amazing porcelain texture, and the combination of rain and sun. I used the available bright sunlight as a backlight and enhanced it with an off-camera flash to create this atmosphere.

Papatsanis's picture recently appeared in the Your Shot assignment Macro .

This photo was submitted to Your Shot . Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

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