2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year winners | CNN

Grand prize, and 1st prize Nature category -- "Mermaid": Top prize in the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest and first in the Nature category went to Reiko Takahasi. "I was fortunate to have encountered a humpback whale with her calf on my first day snorkeling near Japan's Kumejima Island," says Takahasi. "I fell in love completely with the calf and it's very energetic, large and beautiful tail."

Courtesy Reiko Takahashi/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

2nd prize Nature category -- "Flamingos taking off": The second prize winner of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest Nature category is hao j, depicting flamingos in Lake Natron in Tanzania. "Before taking off, flamingos need to take a short run on water to build up some speed," says the photographer. "At that moment, their long, red legs create a series of water ripples on the surface of the lake."

Courtesy hao j./ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

3rd prize Nature category -- "Mars": The third prize winner of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest Nature category is Marco Grassi, who says: "These natural sand towers, capped with large stones, are known as the Earth Pyramids of Platten. They are situated in Northern Italy's South Tyrol region," says Grassi, who adds that the land formations "look like a landscape from outer space."

Courtesy Marco Grassi/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

1st prize Cities category -- "Another rainy day in Nagasaki, Kyushu": The first prize in the Cities category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is Hiru Kushina. Kushina says: "This is a view of the main street from a tram in Nagasaki on a rainy day [...] The quiet streetscape seen through the front windshield of the tram somehow caught my attention."

Courtesy Hiro Kurashina/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

2nd prize Cities category -- "Geometry of the Sun": The second prize winner in the Cities category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is Enrico Pescantini, who photographed Teotihuacan, the Mexican archaeological site. "This pyramid was dedicated to the god of Sun, and I found it mesmerizing how the rising sun in the picture conquered just half the image, while the other half is in the shadows," he says.

Courtesy Enrico Pescantini/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

3rd prize Cities category -- "Reflection": The third prize winner in the Cities category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is Gaanesh Prasad. Prasad says took the photograph from a glazed window. "I was overwhelmed and excited to see how beautiful the city looks, and my excitement was quadrupled as soon as I saw the reflection of the road and building on the building that I was in," says the winner.

Courtesy Gaanesh Prasad/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Cities honorable mention -- "Alone in the crowds": The honorable mention in the Cities category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest goes to to Gary Cummins who says "In this photo, I tried to bring the intense and stacked living conditions that Hong Kong is famous for into perspective for the viewer," says Cummins.

Courtesy Gary Cummins/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

1st prize People category -- "Tea Culture": The first prize winner in the People category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is Alessandra Meniconzi, who photographed a Mongolian Golden Eagle hunter drinking tea. "Tea for Kazakh culture is one of the attributes of hospitality," says Meniconzi. "Tea isn't just a drink, but a mix of tradition, culture, relaxation, ceremony, and pleasure."

Courtesy Alessandra Meniconzi/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

2nd prize People category -- "Leida and Laelle - I will lift you up": The second prize winner in the People category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest goes to TATI ITAT, who photographed two twin sisters who are Haitian immigrants living in Estrela, Brazil. "Laëlle reached for Leida's face and lifted her head up, showing her where she should look," says the photographer. "At this brief moment, I took the photo."

Courtesy TATI ITAT/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

3rd prize People category -- "Challenging Journey": The third prize winner in the people category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is MD Tanveer Hassan Rohan, who took this photograph of Dhaka's airport rail station during the Eid vacation. "One man caught my attention: he was dangling on a train's handle with his family, trying to get inside the train. At that time, rain started and the train began to slowly move," says the photographer.

Courtesy MD Tanveer Hassan Rohan/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Amazing pictures from Nat Geo Travel's 2018 photo contest

CNN —

From flamingos about to fly to spectacular Italian sand towers resembling another planet, the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year award winners are pretty incredible.

The published awarded prizes for images in three categories – Nature, Cities and People – with photography experts sifted through an incredible 13,000 entries from destinations around the world before choosing 10 winners.

Sensitive and original

This image of Nagasaki, Kyushu won the 1st prize in the Cities category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest.

Courtesy Hiro Kurashina/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Reiko Takahasi was named Grand Prize winner and awarded first in the Nature category for an image titled “Mermaid,” which depicts a humpback whale gliding through the waters near Japan’s Kumejima Island.

The judges included ocean and adventure photographer Andy Mann and polar photographer Camille Seaman.

“I was amazed at the quality of images and the sensibility towards subject in all three categories for this competition,” said Seaman. “Looking at hundreds of images choosing the winners was a daunting task. The images that stood out did so based not solely on their technical execution but also a sensitivity for a feeling of the moment and originality,” she adds.

This is photo won 1st prize in the People category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest.

Courtesy Alessandra Meniconzi/ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

In the Cities category, the top gong went to Japanese photographer Hiro Kurashina, who took an atmospherically moody shot of Nagasaki in the rain.

In the People section, Alessandra Meniconzi of Switzerland won first prize for her portrait of a Mongolian eagle hunter drinking a warming cup of tea to fight off the chill.

“Tea isn’t just a drink, but a mix of tradition, culture, relaxation, ceremony, and pleasure,” says Meniconzi in her caption.

Incredible experiences

This shot of flamingos taking off won 2nd prize in the nature category.

Courtesy hao j./ National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest

Takahasi has been awarded $10,000, while Meniconzi and Kurashinao won $2,500 each.

Takahashi said it was an honor to have her image recognized.

“It was a special scene for me, to be able to take a photo of the calf, completely relaxed in gentle waters,” she says. “I really cannot believe it. It was my dream to win. I am honored and it will be the driving force for my future shooting.”

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Stunning photos win 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year contest

Amazing pictures from Nat Geo Travel's 2018 photo contest

Sensitive and original

Incredible experiences