• Tagged outdoor scenes, people, photo contest, photographers, photography, places, travel, Wikimedia Commons Picture of the Year

A decade ago, there were not tons of terrific photos to choose from in the Commons, but photographers have really stepped up by licensing their photos so people can share them along with knowledge. While you may or may not agree with the 12 Wikimedia Commons Picture of the Year winners, most everyone could agree the competition was smoking hot. Categories like animals, plants, people, panoramas, nature, space, architecture and even miscellaneous objects give us a chance to go globe hopping as we celebrate these 45 sizzling snaps. Congratulations winners and thank you to all photographers who make the Commons a fountain of beautiful knowledge! Why don’t you consider uploading your photos to the Commons and maybe we’ll see you listed as a winner next year? [45 Photos]

• Tagged animals, autumn, autumn squirrel, cute squirrels, fall season, funny squirrels, hungry squirrels, nature, photography, seasons, squirrel, squirrels, squirrels gathering nuts, squirrels in fall, squirrels preparing for winter

Fall seems to officially be here, based the feverish pace of squirrels preparing for winter. When we went out and about to enjoy autumn, there was one constant other than the beautiful foliage changing colors, and that was the squirrels gathering acorns and other nuts. Everywhere we went, the squirrels were acting squirrelly, running around with nuts in their mouths, performing ninja-like gymnastics in tree branches, or digging to hide their winter stash. There are about 285 species of squirrels and the antics of these furry cute critters are fun to watch and to photograph. [60 Photos]

• Tagged animals, environment, National Geographic Travel Photo Contest, nature, outdoor scenes, people, photographers, photography, places, sense of place, spontaneous moments, travel, travel portrait, travelers

National Geographic Traveler magazine reported receiving more than 12,000 entries from 6,615 talented photographers in 152 countries around the globe for its 24th annual traveler photo contest. Photos, like music, are subjective and stir up different emotions for different people. What makes each of us unique also guides us to individually interpret art as it influences us. The winners have been chosen, but it must have been extremely difficult to select the best from four travel photography categories: Sense of Place, Outdoor Scenes, Travel Portraits, and Spontaneous Moments. Over the 14 weeks of the contest, the editors picked their favorites among the many awesome shots and turned them into wallpaper. Here’s a look at few of those winning photos and many more that seemed like winners to us. While National Geographic often runs various photo contests in different categories, did you know that it also has photography guides and free tips like the “Ultimate Field Guide to Photography” to help photographers take better photos? Even if you don’t travel, if you keep your camera handy then you might be ready to snap a spontaneous moment that happens around you. Maybe next year you can enter the traveler’s photo contest? We can’t encourage you strongly enough to browse through the 12,000 traveler photo entries. You can be awed while virtual globe hopping and have a ‘staycation’ if you can’t afford a vacation to travel right now . . . all thanks to National Geographic which is kind enough to share these images with all of us. Congratulations and thank you to all the talented photographers! Keep up the great work and fantastic captures! [49 Phenomenal Photos]

• Tagged archaeological, China, dive, diving, lake, Lion City, lost city, photography, Qiandao Lake, Shi Cheng, Thousand Island Lake, underwater

Once upon a time, an ancient city in China was named Lion City because Five Lion Mountain loomed large behind it. The city, also known as Shi Cheng, has been buried beneath the water for 53 years. Like the lost Incan City of Machu Picchu was ‘rediscovered,’ so was this lost underwater city that had been founded about 1,300 years ago. Lion City is now located about 85 – 131 feet (26-40 meters) beneath the gorgeous Thousand Island Lake (Qiandao Lake). This valley was submerged when a dam was constructed and a lake was needed. The lake and thousands of islands were man-made. Shi Cheng ‘defied’ the Chinese norm since 5 gates and 5 towers were built into the city instead of 4. Lion City is about the size of 62 football fields. International archaeologists and a film crew recorded the amazing perservation of the lost ‘ruins.’ [23 Photos, 2 Videos]

• Tagged abandoned houses, Ben Canales, environment, nature, night photography, Oregon, photographer, photography, space, star trails, stargazing, stars

Ben Canales has astounding skills as a night photographer, capturing the child-like wonder and awe of our world as we stare up at the stars. When he was younger, he lived in an urban area where a starry night means maybe seeing a maximum of 20 stars. Now he lives on the West Coast “nearby some very dark, much less light-polluted night skies. It’s been a thrill and a treasured experience to look up and see a literal field of diamonds in the stars above.” Besides photographing the stars for personal enjoyment, Ben does it for us so we can feel the wonder of the sky as if we are standing under it ourselves and gazing up. He snaps glittering starry shots in amazing natural landscapes and also captures the night sky nearby abandoned houses way out in the middle of nowhere. He climbs mountains and pitches a tent far away from civilization to better bring us these amazing images of the stars. Ben quotes Van Gogh: “For my part I know nothing with any certainy, but the sight of the stars make me dream.” We were blown away, absolutely dazzled, when we saw his breathtaking photos on The Star Trail. Wowza! We love these pics! [40 Photos]

• Tagged animals, Appalachians, black bears, Blue Ridge Mountains, cougar, environment, Grandfather Mountain, habitats, mountains, nature, North Carolina, photography, puma, river otters, wildlife

Grandfather Mountain, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, a part of the Appalachians, rises 5,946 feet above sea level. The elevation allows the mountain to boast of 16 distinct ecological communities. There are 7 environmental habitats featuring cougars, white-tailed deer, black bears and river otters. The Mile High Swinging Bridge is one mile up and offers visitors 360-degree panoramic views as far as 100 miles away on a clear day. Hikers, nature and animals lovers flock here for the outstanding views, rugged landscapes, and to find the ‘peace of mind’ that nature gives those of us who love it. The Grandfather Mountain website suggests that there is still a part us that is 9 years old and ready for fun and play. “With rocky outcroppings and fragile forest hideaways to explore, it’s easy to tap your inner adventurer.” [46 Photos]

• Tagged animals, environment, Great Barrier Reef, nature, New Seven Wonders of Nature, photography, scuba diving, snorkel, UNESCO World Heritage Site

This is the planet’s largest coral reef system and it can be seen as far away as outer space! The gorgeous Great Barrier Reef is off the coast of Australia, in the Coral Sea, and stretches for 1,600 miles (2,600 kilometers); it’s made up of about 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands. It is the single biggest structure created by billions of tiny living organisms. The reef supports an extremely rich diversity of life and was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981. The beautiful Great Barrier Reef is also one of the very popular finalists in the New 7 Wonders of Nature competition. Although a large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which helps to limit human impact like fishing and tourists, tourism still generates around a whopping $1 billion per year. With the spectacular seascapes, landscapes, some of the most stunning marine scenery in the world, it’s not hard to understand why. It’s definitely on our bucket-list to see and dive before we die. Visitors often scuba dive and snorkel to photograph the remarkable and natural underwater beauty of the reef. [46 Photos]

• Tagged aerial, autumn, environment, fall colors, forests, lakes, nature, photography, seasons, space, trees, waves, woods

There is no doubt that ISS astronauts have enviable and breathtaking views of Earth, but when the fall season transforms foliage into a kaleidoscope of colors–rich hues of reds, yellows, oranges and browns, autumn is heaven as seen on Earth. As fall bursts upon the forests, changing them from green to vivid autumn colors, the tantalizing seasonal change can be seen from space. Yet astronauts may envy us for our beautiful view. Here’s a look autumn as seen from high above Earth, then zooming down to enjoy Indian Summer and the kaleidoscope of autumn colors that make our great planet a bedazzling fall spectacular. [46 Photos]

• Tagged art, bizarre, culture, Easter, ethnology, Holy Week, people, photo documentary, photographer, photography, religious

Sometimes we are fortunate enough to find a photographer previously unknown to us but with amazing talent. Jose Pereira is such a photographer. When we came across his attention-grabbing photo documentaries, the images were so compelling, so ‘different’ that we had to look closer. We are surely glad we did, or else we might not have had this look at this culture and ethnological religious expression. Mr. Pereira captured these images of Living Easter of Paradela (Meis), Spain. The photo-documentary spans 5 days and were taken during the Holy Week processions. He said it took “many hours of walking, running down the street, escaping the multitude of the public who attend the events.” Pereira added, “I have spent many years photographing events and ethnological religious expressions in Spain, other countries such as China, India, Russia, etc.” His site, RoughPhoto was a project he initiated. “In recent years for work reasons, I have a bit abandoned it. In recent years I spend more time working in office, instead of taking pictures in the street!” [27 Photos]

• Tagged Atlantis, International Space Station, ISS, Kennedy Space Center, NASA, photography, space, space shuttle, space station, transportation

It’s been only a short time since the space shuttle Atlantis completed her 135th space flight and concluded her final mission into the space frontier. It’s the end of an era for NASA, the finale of the 30-year Space Shuttle Program. That just seems wrong to us since NASA seems as American as apple pie. Although it’s not the end of NASA, we already miss NASA in its former capacity. We love to stare at images of the shuttle and adore pictures captured far above Earth. This time, all of these photographs are either of Atlantis or taken from Atlantis. Here’s some of our favorite photos in a nostalgic look back at the Space Shuttle Atlantis. We still love you, NASA! [42 Photos]

• Tagged environment, erupt, eruption, Hawaii, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, National Park, nature, phenomena, photography, photos, pics, places, UNESCO World Heritage Site, volcano, volcanoes

Volcanic activity is spiking in Hawaii and people are flocking there to see the spectacular show. Visitors, both regular folks and scientists, to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park are able to witness the active volcanic personality and the formation of new cinder cones, glowing pit craters, rivers of lava and fountains of spatter. This volcanic paradise shows off 70 million years of volcanism, but was only established as a National Park in 1916. It stretches over 333,086 acres (505.36 square miles) and has two active volcanoes. While Kīlauea is one of the world’s most active volcanoes and has been in nearly continuous eruption since 1983, Mauna Loa is the world’s most massive volcano. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has seven ecological zones, was designated an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980 and became a World Heritage Site in 1987. Welcome to the Big Island and volcanic paradise! We love these pics! [48 Photos]

• Tagged military, military photographers, photographs, photography, pics, transporation

What did you do at work today? Although I wish I could have, I surely didn’t help “save the world.” What did you drive? I’m not sure about you, but I mostly drove a keyboard. Certainly nothing as exciting as these guys and gals did. Military photographers have captured some spectacular and very cool images to show a day in the life of our U.S. troops. These photos show some definite cool rides and slick tricks that show how the U.S. military goes to work and some of what they do. [40 Photos]