Merit Prize Winner: “A Well Earned Rest in the Sahara”. This photo of Moussa Macher, our Tuareg guide, was taken at the summit of Tin-Merzouga, the largest dune (or erg) in the Tadrat region of the Sahara desert in southern Algeria. Moussa rested while waiting for us to finish our 45-minute struggle to the top. It only took ten minutes of rolling, running, and jumping to get back down. The Tadrat is part of the Tassili N'Ajjer National Park World Heritage area, famous for its red sand and engravings and rock paintings of cattle, elephants, giraffes, and rhinos that lived there when the climate was milder. Photo location: Summit of Tin-Merzouga, Tadrat, Tassili N'Ajjer National Park, Algeria. (Photo and caption by Evan Cole/National Geographic Photo Contest)

Maria Ines Banegas portraying “La Pirata” (The Pirate) takes part in a human living statues contest in Buenos Aires, Argentina, September 24, 2016. (Photo by Enrique Marcarian/Reuters)

The Grevy’s Illusion by Yaron Schmid, USA: a Grevy’s zebra staring at the camera in Lewa, Kenya. Third place – wildlife. (Photo by Yaron Schmid/The Nature Conservancy Global Photo Contest 2019)

“The Dragon and The Hopper”. Eyrean earless dragon (Tympanocryptis tetraporophora) standing tall on a very hot rock in western Queensland. For a short time it was joined by a hopper, who jumped off before becoming lunch. (Photo by Harrison Warne/Nature Conservancy Australia 2021 Photo Contest)

A selection of winning images from the Life in Another Light photo contest 2020, from Kolari Vision. Here: Lights and Shadows in the Dolomites, in the landscape infrared category. (Photo by Tomasz Grzyb/Kolari Vision)

The overall winner of the 2013 Red Bull Illume photography competition from Lorenz Holder. (Photo by Lorenz Holder/Red Bull)

A dog dives during a pet dog swimming contest at the Taoyuan Pet Center on July 31, 2005 in Chengdu of Sichuan Province, southwest China. Over 30 dogs have attended the match. According to state media, with the country's pet population growing fast, analysts predict that the market potential for the “pet economy” in China could reach a minimum of RMB 15 billion (about USD 1.85 billion). (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Honorable Mention: “The Storm”. During I was taking photo with my nephew, the storm came and I caught this beautiful moment. Photo location: Kocaeli, Turkey. (Photo and caption by Aytül Akbaş/National Geographic Photo Contest)