“With the traditional tapping-ritual, the Oktoberfest has been opened on saturday, September 22, 2012. Despite the rather wet weather on saturday, the first weekend was te xpeted sucess: Approximately 850.000 guests from Munich, Bavaria, the rest of Germany and from all over the world came to visit the 179th Oktoberfest on the opening weekend. About one million liters of beer and about nine oxen have already been sold”. – Oktoberfest.de. (Photo by ◊CHЄЄKY◊MINX◊PHOTO◊DIARY◊)

Tim Laman is a field biologist and wildlife photojournalist. His pioneering research in the rain forest canopy in Borneo led to a PhD from Harvard and his first National Geographic article in 1997. Since then, he has pursued his passion for exploring wild places and documenting little-known and endangered wildlife by becoming a regular contributor to National Geographic. He has eighteen articles to his credit to date, all of which have had a conservation message. Some have focused on endangered species such as Orangutans or Hornbills, while others, such as a series of articles on Conservation International’s Biodiversity Hotspots, have highlighted regions under intense pressure.

The Smilovichi Felting Factory in Belarus was founded in 1928, when Smilovichi was a small Jewish settlement of craftsmen. Five of those craftsmen organized a small artel (a cooperative association of craftsmen who all live and work together), which produced warm boots called “valenki” for cold weather. Photo: Belarusian workers works at a felt boot factory in Smilovichi, some 35km from Minsk, Belarus, 16 January 2012. (Photo by Tatyana Zenkovich/EPA)

A man takes a picture of part of what is set to be the UK's largest street art project on August 19, 2011 in Bristol, England. The See No Evil art project on Nelson Street in Bristol will see several multi story buildings in the street covered with art over the coming days. Organisers hope that the project, which has involved top graffiti artists from all over the world, will become a major tourist attraction for the west country city, often said to the spiritual home of Banksy. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

U.S. Park Police work to keep people away from the area surrounding the Washington Monument after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck the east coast August 23, 2011 in Washington, DC. Police officers said that unidentified material had fallen off the Washington Monument as a result of the earthquake. All the monuments and buildings along the National Mall have been evacuated and closed. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Retired teacher Geoff Ostling displays his tattooed skin at a portrait session at his home in Petersham on May 11, 2009 in Sydney, Australia. The 62-year old has pledged to donate his skin to the National Gallery in Canberra after his death. Ostling, who did not get his first tattoo until he was in his forties, is now covered in the artwork by artist eX de Merci from neck to ankle with the theme 'all the flowers of a Sydney garden'. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

Shephen Shine, 27, who lost a leg when serving in Iraq in 2007, is tattood with a regimental tattoo reading “Their Sacrifice – Our Freedom” during the Ink For Heroes event on June 18, 2011 in Catterick, England. Ink For Heroes is a charity event to raise money and awareness of the soldiers that get injured during service, with all proceeds going to both “Help The Heroes” and “The British Legion”. Injured soldiers can also get tattooed for free during the event. (Photo by Bethany Clarke/Getty Images)