2015 Sony World Photography Awards —
There's nothing like a set of beautiful images from around the world to inspire travel plans, which is why the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards is already getting our attention. The results of the competition -- pitting professionals against amateurs -- aren't released until April, but with several weeks to go before the January 5 deadline, organizers have released a collection of some of the best entrants so far.
First up is "Orangutan in The Rain," captured in Bali, Indonesia, by Andrew Suryono.
"I was taking pictures of some orangutans in Bali and then it started to rain," says Suryono. "Just before I put my camera away, I saw this orangutan take a banana leaf and put it on top on his head to protect himself from the rain!
"I immediately used my DSLR and telephoto lens to preserve this magic moment."
"Dog Fight," by Cioplea Vlad —
"Dog Fight," by Cioplea VladCioplea Vlad's dramatic image shows aerial acrobatics performed by pilots of YAK stunt planes at a Romanian air show.
"This is exactly the moment when Romanian YAK Team is breaking the formation just in front of the public at Bucharest International Air Show," says Vlad. "At that moment they look just like they are hunting each other."
"Blaak," by Cor Boers —
"Blaak," by Cor BoersCor Boers from the Netherlands photographed this shot of unusual angular buildings in his homeland. The Cube Houses, or Kubuswoningen, were designed by architect Piet Blom.
"Blom tilted the cube of a conventional house 45 degrees, and rested it upon a hexagon-shaped pylon," says Boers. "His design represents a village within a city, where each house represents a tree and all the houses together, a forest."
"Holi," by Ioulia Chvetsova —
"Holi," by Ioulia ChvetsovaFrance's Ioulia Chvetsova took this photograph at the annual Lathmar Holi Festival in India. Here, Hindu holy men from the village of Nandgaon are covered in colored powder as they sing and pray.
"Covered," by Courtney Colantonio —
"Covered," by Courtney ColantonioU.S. photographer Courtney Colantonio submitted this image taken in an undisclosed location
Colantonio says: "So much of a portrait relies on the face in a photo
"But when it's covered, we can see a whole different side of a person through their movement, their posture and even what we think the expression on their face will be when it is finally uncovered."
"The Morning Ritual," by Nick Ng —
"The Morning Ritual," by Nick NgMalaysian photographer Nick Ng captures another moment of devotion with this image from India. Here a man readies himself for ablutions in the Hooghly River, part of the Ganges River, on an early morning in Kolkata.
"Timeless Affection," by Arief Siswandhono —
"Timeless Affection," by Arief SiswandhonoArief Siswandhono, from Indonesia, used Fina, the youngest of his two daughters, as his subject.
"Fina used to be scared of cats, which was the reason why we decided to adopt two kittens," Siswandhono says.
"We wanted Fina to learn how to live with cats, how to hold them, how to care for them and how to treat them as family members to help her overcome her fear. Now we can proudly say she did!
"Day by day, seven months passed by and today Fiona and the cats are best friends, and love and care for each other. In this picture I wanted to show how gracefully they are together."
"Desert Dawn," by Gareth Lowndes —
"Desert Dawn," by Gareth LowndesNew Zealand's Gareth Lowndes took this image titled "Desert Dawn" in an undisclosed location.
Lowndes says the image was shot about 20 minutes after sunrise. The balloon in the distance is about to begin its descent to land in a camel farm.
"Morning Hour," by Georg May —
"Morning Hour," by Georg MayGerman photographer Georg May captured this white fallow deer in early morning mist in his country's Eifel National Park.
"One hardly dares to move," he says of the moment.
"Vigorous Touch of the Morning," by Jubair Bin Iqbal —
"Vigorous Touch of the Morning," by Jubair Bin IqbalAnother early morning scene is captured by Bangladeshi photographer Jubair Bin Iqbal. Here, a Hindu monk walks in a mango garden in Dinajpur on a foggy winter morning.
"Dinner," by Kyle Breckenridge —
"Dinner," by Kyle BreckenridgeCanada's Kyle Breckenridge got close to wildlife in British Columbia for this shot. "The mother and the cub are spirit bears, or Kermode bear, a subspecies of the North American black bear living in the Central and North Coast regions of British Columbia" he says. "These bears are more rare than pandas in the wild."
"In a crowd of King Penguins," by Lisa Vaz —
"In a crowd of King Penguins," by Lisa Vaz"In a crowd of King Penguins" by Portuguese photographer Lisa Vaz shows a colony
of birds on South Georgia, a small island in the South Atlantic.
Vaz says: "They are very beautiful, gracious and yet almost comical birds and a true delight to observe. This image aims to capture and reflect how gracious and colorful wildlife can be even at the ends of the Earth."
"The trace of an ancient glacier" by Miquel Artus Illana —
"The trace of an ancient glacier" by Miquel Artus IllanaSpanish photographer Miquel Artus Illana explores Alaska with his image, "The trace of an ancient glacier." The photo shows Denali National Park, where a rough road bisects six million acres of wilderness.
"Travelers along it see the relatively low-elevation taiga forest give way to high alpine tundra and snowy mountains, culminating in North America's tallest peak Mount McKinley," says Artus.
"What used to be glaciers are now white and blue rocks that contrast with red, yellow, orange and green tundra of this vast natural paradise. The image is taken in autumn when the colors multiply and make the landscape truly remarkable."
"Hamer Man," by Diego Arroyo Mendez —
"Hamer Man," by Diego Arroyo MendezSpanish photographer Diego Arroyo Mendez's shot from Ethiopia's Lower Omo Valley shows a Hamer tribesman collecting wood to build a fence to enclose cattle.
"Step by step," by Ralf Wendrich —
"Step by step," by Ralf WendrichGerman photographer Ralf Wendrich captures the minimalist beauty of a staircase in Berlin.