Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Photography

Soaring through the sky can be hard work, so why not land on a flower for a nectar break?

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Be Blown Away by These 15 Images of Beautiful Butterflies

These shots from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest show just why butterflies have floated into our hearts

During the squid run, tens of thousands of opalescent squids (Doryteuthis opalescens) gather together.

In Order to Unravel the Many Mysteries of Squids, Scientists Dive Into Their Mating Frenzies

Marine biologists hope to find out more about a creature that is vital to a healthy ecosystem and the state’s fishery

None

There's More to That

Looking Back on the L.A. Wildfires Through the Lens of Two Photographers

As wildfire becomes an increasingly lethal force that’s remaking broad swaths of California, people and animals alike are in the hot seat

Sophie Mousseau is identified simply as “Arapaho” on one version of the photo and “Dakota” on another.

When a Historian Saw This Haunting Photograph of a Nameless Native Girl, She Decided She Had to Identify Her

In 1868, Sophie Mousseau was photographed at Fort Laramie alongside six white Army officers. But her identity—and her life story—remained unknown for more than a century

An 1864 statue of George Washington is silhouetted against the night sky.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Get Into the Revolutionary Spirit With These Beautiful Photographs of Boston

Massachusetts’ capital city offers American history lessons at every turn

LaBrea Letson, 8, sells lemonade made with bottled water outside her grandmother’s home near the derailment site. A van passing by tests the air for hazardous chemicals.

See 26 Captivating Images From the World Press Photo Contest

In stark black-and-white and stunning color, this year’s winning photographs capture global events on a human scale

The bow of the Titanic

See the Titanic in Remarkable Detail With a 3D Scan That Reveals New Secrets of the Doomed Ship’s Final Moments

A documentary called “Titanic: The Digital Resurrection” will unveil the most detailed digital reconstruction of the shipwreck ever created. Experts are using the model to study the vessel’s demise

NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover spotted a large dust devil (on the right) consuming a smaller, fainter twister (on the left in the foreground).

Watch a Spinning Martian Dust Devil ‘Consume’ Another in a New Video Captured by NASA’s Perseverance Rover

Tracking dust devils helps researchers learn more about Mars’ atmosphere, wind and weather conditions

Błażej Mikuła (left) and Amélie Deblauwe (right), of the Cambridge University Library, 3D scan the manuscript

New Research

High-Tech Imaging Allows Researchers to Read Handwritten Medieval Arthurian Tales Hidden in the Binding of a Property Record

The stories are part of a French sequel to Arthurian legend, and its binding was repurposed in the 16th century

Clyde Reese, Michael Jones, Evan Boatman and Cory Allen at a gunfight show last spring in Tombstone, Arizona.

These Dramatic Photos Reveal How It’s Always High Noon in Tombstone

Saddle up for a visit to the most notorious town in the West, where a certain infamous showdown happens day after day

None

See the Spectacular Winners of Smithsonian Magazine’s 22nd Annual Photography Contest

By toying with perspective, this year’s best photos capture the sublime—and the uncanny

Appearing in a landscape that looks as though it were painted in watercolor, a male red deer roars in the rain. This photograph was the runner-up in the animal behavior category.

See 15 Captivating Images From the British Wildlife Photography Awards, From a Majestic Shark to Hungry Pigeons

The winning photographs highlight the diversity of animal and plant life in Britain as well as the often hidden behaviors of wild creatures

Mars and Deimos viewed by Hera's Hyperscout H

Check Out These Rare Images of Deimos, One of Mars’ Mysterious Moons

The spacecraft Hera’s photographs are some of the few visuals ever captured of the Martian moon’s dark side

The statue Brooklyn by Daniel Chester French being hoisted at the Brooklyn Museum in 1964

Over the Last 200 Years, a Small Library Became One of New York City’s Biggest Museums. A New Showcase Tells the Story of Its Unique Legacy

To mark its bicentennial, the Brooklyn Museum highlights the pieces that have shaped its collection—and the foundational art made in the borough

Completed in 2011, the Stuttgart City Library is one of the country’s most photographed locations.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Discover These 15 Enchanting Libraries Sure to Thrill Any Book Lover

Wall-to-wall books tell an interior design story without saying a word

None

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

See 60 Remarkable Finalists From the 22nd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

From stunning landscapes to captivating portraits, the photographs showcase the diverse beauty of the world around us. Vote for your favorite, too, for the Readers’ Choice competition

In this 1936 photo by Eddie Worth, an anti-fascist demonstrator is arrested during the Battle of Cable Street in London.

Nearly 200 Captivating Photographs Spotlight a Century of Protest in Britain

Titled “Resistance,” a new exhibition curated by filmmaker Steve McQueen examines 100 years of struggles against the status quo, from women’s suffrage to the war in Iraq

The photos were taken between 1966 and 1970.

Can You Identify the Mystery Photographer Who Captured Thousands of Captivating Images of 1960s San Francisco?

Discovered in an abandoned storage locker, the 2,042 processed color slides and 102 rolls of black-and-white film depict key moments in the city’s history

Paul McCartney took photos during a three-month period during the Beatles' rise to fame.

Paul McCartney Is Selling His Rediscovered Photos of the Beatles’ Rise to Fame

Ahead of the sale, the collection of 36 images—all taken between December 1963 and February 1964—will be exhibited at Gagosian

Rosenthal’s iconic shot came early in the bloody campaign, and it led him to win the Pulitzer Prize for Photography that year.  

On This Day in History

The Story Behind the World-Famous Photograph of U.S. Marines Raising the American Flag During the Battle of Iwo Jima

Joe Rosenthal’s iconic photos from Iwo Jima helped the United States raise $26 billion for the war and served as the basis for the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia

Page 7 of 62