An Iraqi man cooks traditional Masgouf fish on a barbecue for sale in the Karada market July 02, 2014. Masgouf, one of the national dishes of Iraq is a grilled carp seasoned with olive oil, rock salt, tamarind and ground turmeric. (Photo by Scott Nelson for the Washington Post)

Two girls run through the heavy rain as people head out to Wind Street in Swansea, Wales to celebrate Halloween on Monday, October 31, 2022. (Photo by Robert Melen)

A zookeeper counts penguins through an observation window during the annual stocktake at ZSL London Zoo in central London on January 3, 2023. (Photo by Justin Tallis/AFP Photo)

A man from the Dominican Republic wears a devil mask while dancing in the street during Carnival celebrations in Panama City, Monday, February 16, 2015. (Photo by Arnulfo Franco/AP Photo)

This artist image released from Japan's airline All Nippon Airways (ANA) on April 17, 2015 shows ANA's Boeing 787-9 aircraft into the colors of R2-D2 robot of Star Wars. Japanese air carrier ANA will place the special colored jetliner in service in this autumn. (Photo by AFP Photo/All Nippon Airways)

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)

Chamrock, an Irish wolfhound, sports a green coat as he waits for the start of the St. Patrick's Day parade on March 17, 2012 in Chicago, Illinois. Tens of thousands took advantage of record high temperatures and sunny weather to attend the city's annual St. Patrick's Day celebration. (Photo by Brian Kersey/Getty Images)

Syrians gather during an evacuation operation of rebel fighters and their families from rebel-held neighbourhoods on December 15, 2016 in the embattled city of Aleppo. A convoy of ambulances and buses left rebel territory in Aleppo in the first evacuations under a deal for opposition fighters to leave the city after years of fighting. The rebel withdrawal will pave the way for President Bashar al-Assad's forces to reclaim complete control of Syria's second city, handing the regime its biggest victory in more than five years of civil war. (Photo by Karam Al-Masri/AFP Photo)