This photo taken on July 19, 2020 shows a person taking photos while water is released from the Three Gorges Dam, a gigantic hydropower project on the Yangtze river, to relieve flood pressure in Yichang, central China's Hubei province. Rising waters across central and eastern China have left over 140 people dead or missing, and floods have affected almost 24 million since the start of July, according to the ministry of emergency management. (Photo by AFP Photo/China Stringer Network)

Combat between two male stag beetles, Italy, 2022. During the mating season, male stag beetles (Lucanus cervus) go into a frenzy, with lively but harmless clashes, in which bigger males often have the advantage over smaller ones due to their impressive mandibles. Longer larval development and genetic traits can increase the size of some individuals, but all saproxylic beetles are threatened by poor forest management, logging and dead wood removal to “clean” the forest. (Photo by Iacopo Nerozzi)

Is it strange to party in a cemetery, do you think? Thousands, many elaborately dressed and made up, thronged the Hollywood Forever cemetery on October 30th to celebrate the Day of the Dead with music, dancing, food and artistic renditions of family altars, all among the graves of Rudolph Valentino, Marion Davies, Tyrone Power, Douglas Fairbanks and Johnny Ramone.

Photographer Howard Schatz had an idea: place actors in a series of roles and dramatic situations to reveal the essence of their characters. Such was the premise behind his book, In Character: Actors Acting, which captures some of Hollywood’s most emotive stars in the act of, well, making faces. Luckily for us, he continued the tradition for Vanity Fair. Here are some of the best.

UK-based digital artist Dan Lester combines photography and illustration into clever and intriguing images that really make you question what you're looking at. Is it a photograph or a drawing? In actuality, it's both. The digital illustrator manages to bewilder his audience by merging the roles of model and artist into one entity in an innovative fashion. (Photo by Dan Lester)

Taronga's first female elephant calf explores the paddock with her mother Pak Boon at Taronga Zoo on November 3, 2010 in Sydney, Australia. The 120kg elephant was born at 1:12am and is Taronga's first female calf and fifth born to The Australian Conservation Management Plan for endangered elephants. The calf will be given a Thai name to reflect the herds' cultural origin. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

Dachshunds are seen during a performance and art installation titled “Dachshund U.N.” at the Melbourne Museum on May 15, 2010 in Melbourne, Australia. The installation by Perth artist Bennett Miller is part of the New Wave Festival and sees 47 dachshunds representing national delegates taking part in a meeting of the United Nations' Commission on Human Rights, examining the role of the United Nations as a risk management organisation. (Photo by Lucas Dawson/Getty Images)

Elvish writing is seen on “Anduril”, a prop sword belonging to Aragorn, hero of “The Lord of the Rings” movie trilogy on July 31, 2014 in London, England. The sword, belonging to actor Sir Christopher Lee and estimated at $150,000-250,000, forms part of Bonhams “There's No Place Like Hollywood” movie memorabilia auction taking place in New York on November 24, 2014. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)