Second Place Winner: “Thunderstorm at False Kiva”. I hiked out to these ruins at night hoping to photograph them with the Milky Way, but instead a thunderstorm rolled through, creating this dramatic image. – Max Seigal. National Geographic Traveler Director of Photography Dan Westergren, one of this year's judges, shares his thoughts on the second place winner: “This photo combines two different scenes into one: the small kiva in a cliff dwelling and the grand vista of Canyonlands National Park across the valley. I really like the two different color palettes – warm inside and purple outside. This two-for-one scene was caused by the lightning storm outside the dwelling, which lit up the landscape like it was a huge electronic flash. Looking at this picture I can imagine what a wonderful sight it must have been for the ancient people who lived here. It doesn't seem too amazing now in our modern world, but might have been mind-blowing for the prehistoric residents”. Location: Utah. (Photo and caption by Max Seigal/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

Portraits single nominee: Dakar fashion, by Finbarr O’Reilly. Curious residents and a street vendor selling material look on as models Diarra Ndiaye, Ndeye Fatou Mbaye and Malezi Sakho wear outfits by the Senegalese designer Adama Paris in the Medina neighbourhood of Senegal’s capital, Dakar. (Photo by Finbarr O’Reilly/World Press Photo 2019)

“The Last Pollen Spore Preparing to Leave a Ladybug Trying to Hold On, Because It Didn't Want to Be Alone”. Photo by Hiep Nguyen Hoang (Hanoi, Vietnam). Photographed in Hanoi, Vietnam, April 2012.

Contestants walk on stage during the “mini-miss” beauty contest in Bobigny, Paris suburb, September 22, 2012. The competition is open for girls aged 7 to 12. (Photo by Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

1st prize in the People Observed Portraits Stories category. Carla Kogelman, the Netherlands. The photo shows Hannah and Alena, two sisters living in the rural village of Merkenbrechts, Austria. (Photo by Carla Kogelman/World Press Photo)

In this photo provided by World Press Photo, the 1st Prize Daily Life Single of the 2011 World Press Photo Contest by Omar Feisal, Somalia, Reuters, shows a man carrying a shark through the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, September 23, 2010. (AP Photo/Omar Feisal/Reuters)

Wirittorn Narapatarapimol (Belle) a Miss Tiffany Universe contestant tries on earrings in a private dressing room on May 15, 2009 in Pattaya, Thailand. The Miss Tiffany Universe contest has been running for 12 years, with all contestants transexuals or transvestites, aiming to promote human rights for the transgender population in Thailand. In Thailand transexuals are considered a third gender given the Thai name “Katoey”. (Photo Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)