9th Annual Photo Contest Winners and Finalists

See the winning photos from our 2011 contest

READER'S CHOICE WINNER
Old man walking on the streets of Évora
Évora, Portugal • Photographed June 2009
While vacationing in Portugal, Balogh made a stop in Évora. “This is a unique place where time has stopped,” he says. “The whole downtown was preserved from the Roman ages to the present.” Zoltan Balogh
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FINALIST: Natural World
An anhinga emerges to swallow his dinner
Jacksonville, Florida • Photographed June 2011 Savannah Whitwam
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FINALIST: Natural World
Steam from Mammoth Hot Springs
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming • Photographed October 2009 Steven Ross
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FINALIST: Natural World
Shrimp within vase sponge
Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles • Photographed September 2011 William Goodwin
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WINNER: Natural World
Clamming at the Oregon Coast
Garibaldi, Oregon • Photographed June 2010
“Oregon will always be a special place for me, having grown up there,” Chien says of this coastal scene. “Little did I know that even clams have a personality and know how to smile for the camera.” Lucy Chien
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FINALIST: People
A homeless boy sleeping inside the train
Jakarta, Indonesia • Photographed August 2009 Budi Prakasa
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FINALIST: People
Teala above and below water
Redding, California • Photographed July 2010 Bridget Bailey
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FINALIST: People
The invisible chase
Santa Monica, California • Photographed November 2011 Afshin Javadi
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FINALIST: People
The flower girl
Boston, Massachusetts • Photographed June 2011 Joseph Richard
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FINALIST: People
Behind the blue
Lilongwe, Malawi • Photographed May 2011 Paolo Patruno
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FINALIST: People
Disguised fun
Kolkata, India • Photographed April 2009 Somnath Mukherjee
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FINALIST: People
Village boys relaxing
West Bengal, India • Photographed November 2009 Nimai Chandra Ghosh
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FINALIST: People
The shadow strikes back
Highlands, North Carolina • Photographed August 2011 Tihomir Trichkov
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FINALIST: Natural World
A praying mantis as the sun rises over the Everglades
Everglades National Park, Florida • Photographed November 2010 Paul Marcellini
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WINNER: People
A lazy afternoon on the bank of the River Ganga
Kolkata, India • Photographed September 2011
“I was on a photo outing on the bank of the River Ganga,” Ghosh recalls. “I saw this man in a deep sleep and some boys playing in the river. I enjoyed this scene and started to capture those moments.” Nimai Chandra Ghosh
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FINALIST: Travel
Women making traditional art
Rajasthan, India • Photographed November 2010 Chetan Soni
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FINALIST: Travel
The golden rock
Kyaiktiyo, Myanmar • Photographed February 2010 David Lazar
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GRAND PRIZE WINNER
Sunset clamming
Xiapu, Fujian, China • Photographed January 2009
Xiapu, China “is famous for photo ops because it has lots of small hills along the coasts,” says Dong. “I zoomed in with my Nikon so that the reflection filled the whole frame. I waited till those fishermen walked into the right position and took the shot.”

Jia Han Dong, a shipping company manager from New Jersey, was vacationing in a small fishing community in southern China when he climbed a hill, intending to photograph the setting sun above the East China Sea. He walked around for hours trying to find the best spot to set up his equipment, but the conditions weren’t ideal. “It was kind of cloudy,” recalls Dong. Then the sun appeared and lent the shoreline a golden cast. “I saw those fishermen going out for low tide clamming with their tools on their shoulders. I loved the color, the pattern of the posts in the foreground, the texture of the water. Jia Han Dong
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FINALIST: Travel
Burmese novices playing soccer in the evening
Myanmar • Photographed April 2011 Kyaw Kyaw Winn
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FINALIST: Travel
The Kara women are the backbone of the tribe
Omo River Valley, Ethiopia • Photographed September 2011 Nicholas Wiesnet
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FINALIST: Travel
Segways on tour in Valencia near a modern building
Valencia, Spain • Photographed October 2010 Marcel van Balken
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FINALIST: Travel
Jabulani the elephant greeting his caretaker
Kapama Private Game Reserve, South Africa • Photographed September 2011 Paula Durham
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FINALIST: Travel
House collage
Sikkim, West Bengal • Photographed October 2010 Shyamal Das
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WINNER: Travel
Three fishermen on Inle Lake
Inle Lake, Myanmar • Photographed January 2011
At Inle Lake in Burma, Lazar was up at sunrise to capture fishermen who use their legs to wield oars. “I found a high vantage point,” he recalls, “and wanted to photograph this iconic and unique Burmese fishing style.” David Lazar
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FINALIST: Travel
Packed in the cabin of a train to Jodphur
Jaipur, India • Photographed January 2011 Ho Lee
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FINALIST: Americana
Elderly lady walking up the hill on Park Slope
Brooklyn, New York • Photographed October 2011 Nicky Chang
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FINALIST: Altered Images
The diversity of ordinary life
Novi Sad, Serbia • Photographed November 2011 Branko Stojanovic
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Red umbrella
Bisbee, Arizona • Photographed December 2010 Dan Gindling
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Everything will be all right
Detroit, Michigan • Photographed April 2011 Brian Day
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Interior of an abandoned train station
Northeastern United States • Photographed February 2011 Matthew Murray
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Where the soul meets the body
New York City, New York • Photographed November 2011 Laura Diliberto
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Girl on top of a teddy bear pyramid
Campinas, Brazil • Photographed September 2011 Paulo Bortolini
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Tubes inverted
Taunton, Massachusetts • Photographed July 2011 Pamela Maiato
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WINNER: Altered Images
Negative image of an octopus
Atlanta, Georgia • Photographed February 2009
A not unusual vacation shot at the Georgia Aquarium became a striking winner with digital manipulation. “I tried a negative filter and loved the look of the glowing, otherworldly octopus,” Jackson says. Sarah Jackson
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Color palettes
New York City, New York • Photographed October 2011 Janwalai Kusuwan
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FINALIST: Americana
Ranch dog taking a break from work
Dallas, Texas • Photographed April 2011 Jamie Illian
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FINALIST: Americana
Samantha on her farm
Connorsville, Wisconsin • Photographed May 2011
Bernadette Pollard
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FINALIST: Altered Images
Flight path of the white collared kingfisher
Sabah, Borneo • Photographed July 2011 C.S. Ling
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FINALIST: Americana
99 cent dreams
New York City, New York • Photographed December 2010 Nancy Breslin
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FINALIST: Americana
Dog watching tourists on the street
Ketchikan, Alaska • Photographed August 2009 Peter Jacobson
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FINALIST: Americana
Old mine on Red Mountain Pass
Ouray, Colorado • Photographed October 2009 Robert Castellino
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FINALIST: Americana
Forgotten office
Lincoln, California • Photographed May 2011 Robyn Meyer
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FINALIST: Americana
Brooklyn Bridge
New York City, New York • Photographed February 2011 Wayne Bennett
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WINNER: Americana
Wanting to see her big brother during his baseball game
Mobile, Alabama • Photographed March 2011
“The determination of a 3-year-old” is captured in this photograph of Fox’s daughter, Olivia, who struggled to sneak a peek at her brother in the dugout—and finally succeeded. Stephanie Fox
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FINALIST: Americana
A waterfowl hunter and his dog call it a day
Denver, Colorado • Photographed March 2010 Mallory Olenius
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FINALIST: Natural World
Neighborly dispute
Katmai National Park, Alaska • Photographed July 2009 Donald Montemorra
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FINALIST: Natural World
Blue Ice Cave
Antarctica • Photographed December 2011 Jamie Scarrow
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FINALIST: Natural World
Moonrise over Northern Lights
Northern Alaska • Photographed March 2011 Ben Hattenbach
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FINALIST: Natural World
King Penguins
South Georgia • Photographed November 2010 Jamie Scarrow
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