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Volcanoes belching lava and ash, lions play-fighting
in the African desert and the Northern Lights over an icy landscape -
these are the dramatic images that every tourist would love to add to
their photo album. Captured at some of the world's best beauty spots,
the spectacular snaps reveal the divide between the tranquillity and
fury of Mother Nature.
And they are among the most breathtaking shots that are in the running
for National Geographic Traveler's coveted photographer of the year
contest.
The annual competition celebrates the best in travel photography with
entrants submitting snaps from their time in destinations such as
Australian Outback, the valleys of Norway and the Great Plains of the
US.
Among the astonishing photos is Reynold Dewantara jaw-dropping shot of a
young man on horseback as Mount Bromo erupts at Probolinggo, East Java,
Indonesia. A massive plume of smoke pours from the volcano, filling the
sky with black ash.
Another stunning image shows streaks of lightning over Uluru, or Ayers
Rock, at Yulara, Northern Territory, Australia. The image is one of
several mesmerising submissions from photographer Christoph
Schaarschmidt.
Photographers have until May 27 to enter the competition. The grand
prize winner will receive a seven-day polar bear photo safari for two in
Churchill, Manitoba, in Canada’s Arctic – the self-proclaimed polar bear
capital of the world and a popular destination for nature photographers.
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Christoph Schaarschmidt snapped this shot at Trollstigen, Norway, as the
fog disappeared and a car drove along a winding road
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Backdropped by sunlight, an enormous
supercell forms over the town of Blackhawk, South Dakota - leading to
flash flooding in the state
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A wooden shed is caught in winter's icy grip on a frigid night on the
top of a hill in Lapland, Finland, as the Northern Lights appear
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Uluru, or Ayers Rock, is illuminated by several bolts of lightning as a
storm rolls through Yulara, Northern Territory, Australia |
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Photographer Reynold Dewantara snapped this dramatic picture as Mount
Bromo erupted at Probolinggo, East Java, Indonesia
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Two lions collide - with one leaping into the air - during a play-fight
at the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in South Africa
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Thierry Bornier waited a week to get the right conditions before
capturing this early-morning shot of a village in the mist at Guizhou,
China
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During a snowstorm in Bryce Canyon, Utah, a single tree looks stark
against the frozen landscape, where visibility was almost zero
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Photographer Gaby Barathieu witnessed one of nature's
greatest wonders as the La Fournaise volcano erupted on Réunion Island
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Doris Landertinger's amazing photo shows a lone
springbok grazing in front of a dune at Swakopmund, Erong in the
Namibian Desert
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Utah proved to be a popular beauty spot for
photographers. This image shows the Balanced Rock and a lone tree in
Arches National Park
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Tourists flock to Minobu, Japan, every year to see the cherry blossoms.
Smoke from a bonfire adds a fantastic effect to this photograph
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