Surprising next: National Geographic Traveler 2016 winners

The first place was taken by the author from Hong Kong Anthony Lau (Anthony Lau) with a picture & laquo; Winter rider & raquo ;. The photograph was taken in Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region in the territory of North China. The photographer said that it was necessary to shoot in the conditions of a strong cold wind from the steppe. In the street it was minus 20, the snow was flying in all directions, and I thought that I would not leave the car in such weather for anything. Suddenly, out of the snow shroud riders emerged, galloping about their business. I realized that it was foolish to miss such a moment, and managed to make a couple of successful shots.

Photo: Anthony Lau

In the category & laquo; Nature & raquo; the first place went to the frame with Japanese foxes photographer Hiroki Inoue. He called his work "I will always follow you & raquo; and said that it was hard to catch up with the beasts. During the love games, foxes are inseparable — They are so attached to each other that they forget about food and sleep. But this is also the time of great activity of animals, so it was not easy to keep up with the couple in love & raquo;

Photo: Hiroki Inoue

In second place in the category & laquo; Nature & raquo; — photo from Brazil called & laquo; Double trap & raquo ;. Italian Massimiliano Bencivenni took a picture while traveling through the swamps of the Pantanal region. & laquo; I just sailed, and decided to take off the hunt for Paraguayan caimans. And when I made the shot, I realized that a real drama had just taken place before my eyes. "

A high estimate was taken of a picture of the lagoon in the Atacama Desert of photographer Victor Lima. & laquo; In search of new frames, I went on a solitary journey through the Atacama Desert, the driest place in the world. Imagine my surprise when I accidentally went to several lagoons in this realm of stones and sand! & Raquo;// img src="/storage/images/pages/2016-08/18f583a499db7d5023116ac6c65c76ed.jpg" />

Photo: Victor Lima

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The sympathy of the judges and readers was caused by a picture of the polar bears resting on an iceberg near the island of Baffin Island in Canada. & laquo; Bear and bear cub for some reason climbed onto the iceberg and went on it to the sea. Why they did this, and what was the purpose of their journey, remained a mystery to me & raquo ;, — says the author John Rollins.

Photo: John Rollins

In the category & laquo; Cities & raquo; The first place was taken by a photograph of Marrakesh by Japanese photographer Takashi Nakagawa. & la-Marrakech — a stunning city. But I was tired of street noise and decided to take refuge in the courtyard of the madrasah. A man in a cape passed by me, and his reflection in the pool was very spectacular. >Photo: Takashi Nakagawa

The second place was taken by a photograph of the "hagman" & raquo; in the Chinese city of Chuzhou. & laquo; In the photo — hostel of the university in South China. The students had a lunch break, and the building was very quiet & raquo ;, — the traveler comments.

Photo: Wing Ka H

In third place in the category — thunderstorm over the city of Georgetown (Penang Island, Malaysia), shot by John Rollins.

Photo: John Rollins

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In the category & laquo; People & raquo; most of all I liked the photo from India. The author of Yasmin Mund captures the dream of the slum dwellers of the city of Varanasi. & laquo; It was 5:30 in the morning, and I hurried to the roof to take down the dawn over the Ganges. There I saw something, from which my jaw dropped: children, women, men, cats, dogs, even monkeys slept on the roofs of houses. At night, the air is so hot that it is impossible to sleep in the room & raquo;.

Photo: Yasmin Mund

The judges noted the work of photographer Dotan Saguy, made in the street & la rocker & raquo; near the beach of Venice in California. As long as the people on the beach were relaxing, these guys worked on themselves: they made racks, raised iron & raquo;

Photo: Dotan Saguy

One of the best photos from Thailand was recognized as the work Rachen Sageamsak. The hero of his picture was an elephant pouring out crowds during the celebration of Songkran in Ayutthaya.

Photos : Rachen Sageamsak

The photo of the night market in Bangkok by Kajan Madrasmail was also highly appreciated.

Photo: Kajan Madrasmail

Come to Thailand and try your hand at removing local exotic beauty! Perhaps, the next winner of the National Geographic Traveler competition will be you!