David Guttenfelder was born in Iowa and graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor of Arts in cultural anthropology. He has worked for the AP since 1994 based in Kenya, the Ivory Coast, India and Japan. He is currently AP’s chief Asia photographer and his feature work has been used prominently in editorial publications throughout the world including Time and National Geographic. Photo: U.S. soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, fire mortars at known enemy firing positions from a base in the Pech River Valley in Afghanistan's Kunar province, Saturday, October 24, 2009. (Photo by David Guttenfelder/AP Photo)

Dynam employees say a greeting message as they receive customer-care training ahead of the grand opening of the company's pachinko parlour in Fukaya, north of Tokyo July 29, 2014. Japan's once-booming pachinko industry, grappling with a greying customer base and the threat of new competition from casinos, is adopting a softer touch and smoke-free zones to lure a new generation of players, particularly women. Pachinko, a modified version of pinball, is a fading national obsession, with about 12,000 parlours nation-wide and one in thirteen people playing the game. But that figure is declining as the population shrinks and younger people prefer games on their mobile phones. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

Onlookers gather around a struggling beached whale in the Yoff neighborhood of Dakar, Senegal Wednesday, May 21, 2008. Residents worked Wednesday morning to save some of the more than 80 whales that were stranded on the beach Tuesday night. This whale was successfully towed out to sea by a fishing boat, though at least 20 others lay dead on the beach by midday Wednesday. (Photo by Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo)

Dancers from Tokyo wearing traditional costumes perform during a celebration event, a day before Japan's Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako's royal parade in front of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan November 9, 2019. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

Japan Agricultural Cooperation Kagawa employees arrange cubic watermelons to be shipped within the country, in Zentsuji city, Kagawa prefecture, western Japan, Wednesday, June 24, 2020. The about 18x18x18-centimeter (7x7x7-inch) square watermelons, grown in transparent square containers, will be sold for about 10,000 yen ($94) each. (Photo ny Maiko Hirai/Kyodo News via AP Photo)

Actors dressed as zombies and ghouls perform during a drive-in haunted house show by Kowagarasetai (Scare Squad), for people inside a car in order to maintain social distancing amid the spread of coronavirus, at a garage in Tokyo, Japan on July 3, 2020. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

A model presents creations from the 2023 Spring/Summer collection by Japanese designer Lim Asafuji for the label “pays des fees” during the Tokyo Fashion Week in Tokyo, Japan, 01 September 2022. The presentation of the 2023 Spring/Summer collections runs from 29 August to 03 September. (Photo by Franck Robichon/EPA/EFE)

Guardian of the Mangroves – Overall Winner. Tanya Houppermans, Cuba. A curious American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) swims right up to Tanya, at Gardens of the Queen (Jardines De La Reina), an archipelago off the coast of Cuba. It has been strictly protected since 1996, and is one of the most untouched marine ecosystems in the world. ‍ “The healthy population of American crocodiles is down to the pristine condition of the mangroves and I wanted to capture close ups of this gentle giant in its natural habitat. I hope this image can illustrate that protecting areas like this is so critical”. (Photo by Tanya Griffin Houppermans/Mangrove Photographer of the Year)