National Geographic Has Announced The Top Photos Of Its 2018 Travel Photo Contest. In This Competition, An Image By Riku Takahashi Of The Tail Of A Baby Whale Taken Underwater Was Recognized As The Best Photo.

National Geographic has announced the winning images of its famous Travel Photo of the Year 2018 competition. This competition is held annually in the three main categories of nature, cities, and people, and the best images are selected. The grand prize of this competition was given to the Japanese photographer Riko Takahashi for his photograph of the tail of a baby humpback whale underwater.

The winning “Mermaid” photo was selected from 13,000 images submitted this year. The photographer of this picture said about the story of taking this picture:

I was lucky to encounter a humpback whale and her baby while diving near Kumijima Island, Japan. Most of the time, the baby whale swims close to its mother, but at one point, the baby near us starts jumping and slapping the water with its tail.

He was very curious and friendly.

Finally, the mother, watching the child’s behavior nearby, came forward and took him with her. He was very energetic and big and had a lovely tail. I fell in love with this kid.

Takahashi is a seasoned photographer who quit his office job to pursue underwater photography and traveled to Japan’s Kumijima Island to photograph humpback whales and their babies.

“It was a special feeling to photograph the baby whale happily frolicking in the calm waters,” he told National Geographic. I did not believe that the dream I always had in my mind would become a reality. I am proud to have been placed in this position, and I think it will give me strength and energy for my future work.”

Mrs. Takahashi received 10,000 dollars as a prize. You can see the rest of this year’s winning photos below.

Nature, second place

“Rise of the Flamingos” by Hao. J won second place in National Geographic’s 2018 Best Travel Photo Contest. “Flamingos need to move quickly on the water for a while to get the momentum they need to take off. At the moment of taking the photo, a large group of flamingos is accelerating, and their long red legs create waves like curves in the water, which looks like the movement of plants in the water from above. This photo was taken from inside the helicopter.

Nature, third place

“Mars” by Marco Grassi won third place in National Geographic’s 2018 Travel Photo Contest. These natural sand towers covered with large stones are known as the Earth Pyramids of Platten. Located in the Southern Tyrell region of northern Italy, these towers were created centuries ago by storms and landslides, giving them the appearance of an extraterrestrial landscape.

The towers have changed a lot over the years since they were created and even changed with the changing of the seasons due to the changes in the weather. This natural phenomenon has been caused by continuous periods of heavy rains and successive droughts, which have caused land erosion and sharp peaks.

Cities, first rank

Hiro Kurashina’s “Another Rainy Day in Nagasaki” took first place in the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photo Contest. This image shows a view of Nagasaki’s main street from inside a tram on a rainy day.

The photo was taken inside an old tram equipped with modern ticketing equipment. The guide (driver’s help) is not in the picture, and only the driver can be seen. The quiet street and its contrast with the busy urban centers of Japan, such as Tokyo and Osaka, which can be seen from inside the tram, attracted my attention. “Riding the old streetcar through a relatively quiet street was one of the most memorable experiences I had during my week-long trip to the historic city of Nagasaki.”

Cities, second place

“Geometry of the Sun” by Enrique Pescantini won second place in the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photo Contest. “This image was taken from an ancient city called Teotihuacan, where the gods are born. When visitors walk on the street of the dead in this ancient city, the feeling of this place is completely transferred to them, and it is as if they feel the presence of gods.

I took this picture at sunrise from the pyramid dedicated to the Sun God, and what caught my attention was the surprising fact that at dawn, the sun covered half of the pyramid and the other half was in the shade. . Because of my interest in archeology and old civilizations, I traveled to this country to search and see the remains of the pre-Columbian culture of Mexico.

For my visit to Teotihuacan, I planned to be there at sunrise to capture the combination of golden sunlight, the play of shadows, and the sparse population around it. To capture the image I had in my mind, I took a photo from above with a private plane, and fortunately, this image was waiting for my camera at the bottom.”

Cities, third place

“Reflection” by Ganesh Prasad won third place in the city category in the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year contest. “It was early in the morning, and I wanted to photograph the foggy scenery in Dubai, which is the dream of any photographer in this part of the world. Between December and January, a beautiful fog in the morning in the city of Dubai has a poetic feeling.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to the top floor on the roof, so I looked through a glass window from one floor down. I opened the window as far as possible and took a picture of the reflection of the city in the glass with an outstretched hand. I was so excited to see the beauty of the town and the mood that the fog created when suddenly I saw the reflection of the road and the city’s buildings on the building I was in.

People, first rank

“Culture of Tea” by Alessandra Manicunzi won first place in the National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year 2018 in the People category. Mongolia is sparsely populated, but its people are hospitable and warm-hearted. It had been a long time since I had been introduced to and deeply impressed by the unique Mongol hunting method of golden eagles. In early 2018, I followed one of the hunting families and migrated with them from their winter to summer residence.

Tea is one of the symbols of hospitality in Kazakh culture. In this culture, tea is not just a drink but a combination of tradition, culture, relaxation, ritual, and pleasure. Daniel, the girl in the photo, is protecting herself from the extreme cold of western Mongolia by wearing a woolen dress and drinking tea during the region’s bitterly cold winter.

People, second place

“Lida and Leila, I’ll Lift You” by Tati Itat won second place in the People category of the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year.

“Since 2016, I got to know the Haitian immigrants and asylum seekers who lived in the city where I live, Estrella, and gradually established a relationship. I became friends with many families, especially two twin sisters, Lida and Leila. For them, living in Brazil was like living in paradise, utterly different from living in their own country.

They would play in front of their house and perform improvisations to develop their imagination and creativity. It was as if these two actress sisters were acting in the same play. In a moment, Li Li raised Lyda’s face with her hand and showed her where to look. In this brief moment, I took this photo.

People, third place

“Challenging Journey, by Tanveer Hassan, won third place in the 2018 National Geographic Photography Contest in the People category. This photo of Dhaka Airport train station was taken during the Eid holiday. People return to their villages to spend the Eid holidays with their families.

In the last moments of the train, everyone is in a hurry. A man caught my attention; he was hanging onto a train handle and trying to get into the train. It suddenly started to rain at this moment, and the train slowly began to move.

The family had their tickets in hand but could not sit in their seats. Many people like this family have to leave the village and come to Dhaka for work, and holidays are an excellent opportunity to see their families. They don’t want to miss the chance to spend days with their loved ones at any cost or difficulty.”