“The fantastic landscape of Bagan in Myanmar features hundreds of temples and pagodas as far as the eye can see. Experiencing this sight at dawn from the basket of a hot air balloon will remain engraved in my memory for ever. Mick Ryan, judge – What a magical photograph and place. The Buddhist temples and pagodas fill the plains of Bagan in Myanmar at sunrise… the golden hour providing beautiful light to illuminate the retrogression of the temples and balloons toward a misty, mountainous distance. An excellent, exotic photograph that makes you want to book a flight”. (Photo by Alastair Swan/The Guardian)

Talk about being in the eye of the storm! These stunning snaps show breath-taking storms from an extraordinary up-close perspective. Taken by daredevil storm chaser Dennis Oswald, from Neuss, Germany, the amazing pictures capture spectacular storms from around the globe. Having chased storms for nearly 15 years, experienced Dennis gets right in the action to get these incredible shots. Here: scenic mothership supercell just north of Howard, Kansas. (Photo by Dennis Oswald/Caters News)

A displaced Pakistani girl collects recyclable goods from a garbage to earn living for her family in Islamabad, Pakistan, Tuesday, January 19, 2016. (Photo by B.K. Bangash/AP Photo)

This aerial photo taken on December 28, 2018 shows commercial and residential buildings in Hong Kong. (Photo by Dale De La Rey/AFP Photo)

Shortlisted: “Two big eyes” by Miao Yong (Zejiang province, China). Damselflies look over the leaves. “I was photographing insects in a park near my home when suddenly I found two damselflies in the grass. They kept flying and it was very difficult to focus until suddenly they parked behind a leaf”. (Photo by Miao Yong/2017 Royal Society of Biology Photographer of the Year)

Vietnam’s Son Doong cave, the largest in the world, could hold a 40-story skyscraper inside. The pristine ecosystem has its own river and jungle. Despite its size, Son Doong wasn’t discovered until 1991. It was lost again for nearly two decades and was fully explored for the first time in 2009. (Photo by Jason Speth/HuffPost)

This aerial photograph taken on January 27, 2024 shows a camel in the desert of Samawa in Iraq's southern province of al-Muthanna. (Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)

A burned vehicle sits among a destroyed home in the Mountain fire, Wednesday, November 6, 2024, near Camarillo, Calif. (Photo by Ethan Swope/AP Photo)