20+ Of The Best Entries From The 2016 National Geographic Nature Photographer Of The Year

2016 National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year contest has come to an end, but before the judges pick the winners, let's take a look at the best entries ourselves.

This year, photographers from around the world were competing in four categories: Landscape, Environmental Issues, Action, and Animal Portraits. "The four categories of this year’s contest will give photographers a chance to capture the complexity and beauty found in the world around us," remarked Sarah Polger, senior producer for National Geographic Travel and manager of National Geographic photo contests. "We anticipate compelling and revealing images."

The photographers are competing for a grand prize consisting of a 10-day trip for two to the Galápagos with National Geographic Expeditions, and an incredible chance for two 15-minute portfolio reviews with National Geographic photo editors.
Who'd you give the grand prize to? Shout out in the comments below!

More info: National Geographic (h/t: mymodernmet)

#1 Hummingbird

Emily Riley

"A baby humming bird found his way into my home. He was a bit stunned so I let him recoup on our front porch. While waiting for his nectar to cool I captured a few images of him as he came back to his own."

#2 Dancing In The Rain

Vladislav Kamenski

"Fox caught in action under the rain"

#3 Bathing In The Snow Flake

Hiroki Inoue

"The fox was bathing in the snow flake."

#4 Pacific Storm

Santiago Borja

A colossal Cumulonimbus flashes over the Pacific Ocean as we circle around it at 37000 feet en route to South America

#5 Moving At A Snail's Pace...

Samira Qadir

"While enjoying the sights of Chicago's Garfield Conservatory found this unlikely traveler taking a closer look at this Bromeliad. Sometimes you have to slow down to appreciate the tiny wonders right in front of you!"

#6 Icescape

Kelly King

#7 Puffin Studio

Mario Suarez Porras

"This image was taken last summer on Skomer Island, Wales. It is well known for its wildlife, the puffin colony is one of the largest in U.K.The photo shows a detail or study of an Atlantic puffin resting peacefully under the rain. As Skomer is inhabited, puffins do not feel afraid of humans, and so people can be close to puffins and the photographer can think about the right composition and take this kind of intimate portraits. Also that morning the conditions came together: rain and light."

#8 Under The Waves

Christopher Markisz

"Waves of fog roll over a neighborhood in Mill Valley, California, as seen from the top of Mount Tamalpais."

#9 Mystic Woods

Andrew George

#10 Ocean Guest

Mike Korostelev

"Every autumn walruses swim to this rookery place in the North of Russia (Chukotka, Vankarem cape). One day, walking along the beach away from the rookery, I came across a lone walrus, who was sleeping on the shore, its tusks sticked in the sand. I carefully crept up to it and photographed it with a wide-angle lens. At some point it woke up and noticed me."

#11 Dragging You Deep Into The Woods !

varun aditya

"A morning stroll into the blissful forest ! Ceaseless drizzles dampening the woods for 12 hours a day; The serene gloom which kept me guessing if it was a night or a day. Heavy fog, chilling breeze and the perennial silence could calm roaring sprits; And there I spotted this 20cm beauty the Green vine snake ! I wondered if i needed more reasons to capture this with the habitat; For I was blessed to see this at the place I was at. I immediately switched from the macro to the wide angle lens."

#12 Crocodile Waterline

Brett Lobwein

"An American Crocodile on the surface in Gardens of the Queen, Cuba."

#13 Alien Lights

Russell Wiltshire

#14 Great Horned Owl Returning

Robert Strickland

"This Great horned Owl is returning to her nest in an urban area near the busy Citrus county sheriffs office where the county deputies come and go pretty much on a regular basis. As well as it be near the highway leading to the high school campus."

#15 Engagement Present

Andrés Miguel Domínguez

"Kingfisher ( Alcedo athis) male with an engagement present for the female."

#16 Aerial Autumn

Manish Mamtani

"Aerial view of Fall colors, New Hampshire (09/10/2016)"

#17 A Portrait Of "Trapper"

Graham McGeorge

"Trapper...she is a Great Horned Owl that has recently been fighting cancer of her eye lids (squamous cell carcinoma), but that doesn't stop her in any way.Trapper gets her name being used as a decoy to attract Swallow Tail Kites, where the research team will catch the kite and fit with telemetry and gain lots of helpful information about kites and their migration. But that's not her only trait. Trapper also serves as a foster mother for orphaned Great Horned Owlets at Avian Recondition Center."

#18 Wild Horses

Javier Arcenillas

"Taking place every year across Galicia, Rapa das Bestas, or "Shearing of the Beasts," involves cutting the manes of semi-feral horses that live in the mountains. Horses are rounded up into enclosures called curros, foals are branded and the adults groomed before being freed. The best known is the Rapa das Bestas of Sabucedo, which occurs on the first weekend in July."

#19 Sandstorm

Eugene Kitsios

"As I was photographing this young grey seal, we both got caught up in a sandstorm."

#20 Hair Lines Of Zebra

Yu huiping

"Hair lines of zebra"

#21 Phantom Spring

Comyu Matsuoka

#22 Confrontation

Karen Prisby

"A White-tailed eagle swoops in on a Hokkaido red fox to set it straight for stealing a fish. This confrontation happened out on frozen Lake Fuhren in Hokkaido, Japan. The fox escaped with the fish."

#23 Aladdin's Cave

Denis Budkov

#24 Great Egret Against The Setting Sun

Arun P

#25 Stare Into My Eyes

Octoyura Bamahry

#26 Fire Dancer

Brina Bunt

#27 The Frozen Pond With Snow

Kent Shiraishi

#28 Under The Milky Way

Ignacio Carrera

#29 Crocodile Tears

Harry Lyndon-Skeggs

#30 Ufo Formation

Takashi

#31 From The Shadows

Harry Lyndon-Skeggs

#32 Larger Than Life

Alex Wiles

#33 Proud Momma

Michael O'Neil

#34 Covered With Mist

pradeep raja

#35 Diving

felipe foncueva

#36 Tequilla Sunset

Zhayynn James

#37 Long Shadows

Jassen T.

#38 Huge Scale Of Bats Hibernation

Kei Nomiyama

#39 The Zebra And The Oxpecker

YARON SCHMID

#40 The Glacier Pattern

Takashi Tsuneizumi

#41 Never Bother Dad When He's Sleeping

p. Kuhn

"During our trip to Botswana, we came across two lionesses and their six cubs, resting under a bush during mid-day. This male lion came along to visit the den. The females were very wary at first. We were told that a male lion will kill cubs that aren't his offspring. Fortunately, he laid down with the cubs and closed his eyes to sleep. The cubs were VERY excited to see their Dad! This little guy was trying so hard to get him to play! Dad was definitely NOT happy to be woken up."

#42 Life And Death

Vadim Balakin

"These polar bear remains have been discovered at one of the islands of Northern Svalbard. Unfortunately we do not know definetely wether the bear died from starving or aging, but more likely if we see the good teeth status - from starving . They say nowdays such remains to be founded very often - global warming and ice situation influence the polar bear population a lot. Svalbard, Norway, august 2014"

#43 Harvest

Laura Barnett

#44 Time At The Water Hole

Richard Costin

#45 Wet! Wet! Wet!

Gillian Lloyd

#46 Colorado River Trees

Stas Bartnikas

#47 Empire Rising

Sam Morris

#48 Land Of Everlasting Salt

A TOM

#49 Our Beloved Possessions

Jassen T
Source: Bored Panda