Mariachi musicians prepare to perform to celebrate the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe outside the Basilica of Guadalupe in San Salvador, El Salvador December 11, 2015. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)

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)

A woman performs during a march to commemorate International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, in Bogota, November 25, 2015. (Photo by John Vizcaino/Reuters)

Mural of wartime leader Sir Winston Churchill wearing stockings and suspenders and giving the “V” sign by illusive local artist who goes by the name Horace, on the side of the Sandpiper guest house in Brighton on November 22, 2020. (Photo by Gareth Fuller/PA Images via Getty Images)

A Palestinian man sells corn at Gaza Beach during sunset on August 8, 2021. (Photo by Sameh Rahmi/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A group of volunteers dressed as elves and a man dressed as the grinch take part in a Christmas celebration organised by the NGO “Unos Venezolanos” in the neighbourhood of Petare, in Caracas, Venezuela on December 21, 2022. (Photo by Gaby Oraa/Reuters)

A sparrow feeds its nestlings inside a hole in a building while waiting for food in Lalitpur, Nepal on Friday, March 17, 2023. (Photo by Skanda Gautam/ZUMA Press Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

An Iraqi camel herder poses in the desert of Samawa in Iraq's southern province of al-Muthanna on January 27, 2024. (Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)