Night lovers; Hormozgan province, Iran. “In this picture, you can see the Milky Way rising on a fascinating spring night on the Persian Gulf coast. The stunning cliffs of this area make every viewer imagine and even talk to them! The light pollution from a faraway city was quite strong, so it was a challenging post-processing process. I’m a nightscaper who tries to achieve an artistic look in my images, and in this image, I tried to convey and capture the magic of this location”. (Photo by Mohammad Hayati/Milky Way Photographer of the Year)

Lush green rice terraces sprawl over 2,200 hectares of mountainside ready to be harvested. These stunning images, captured by photographer Saravut Whanset, show the incredible terraces throughout the course of the day, including at sunrise and sunset. Workers tend to the fields, with each terrace between 1 and 1.5 metres wide, while wooden huts stand on stilts on the mountainside. The beautiful panoramic pictures were taken in Mu Cang Chai, Vietnam, with the fields located at the foot of the Hoang Lien Son mountain range, 1,000 metres above sea level. (Photo by Saravut Whanset/Solent News and Photo Agency)

Winner – Animal Portraits: The pose by Mogens Trolle, Denmark. A young male proboscis monkey cocks his head slightly and closes his eyes. Unexpected pale blue eyelids now complement his immaculately groomed auburn hair. He poses for a few seconds as if in meditation. He is a wild visitor to the feeding station at Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary in Sabah, Borneo – “the most laid-back character”, says Trolle, “quite unlike anything I’ve ever seen on another monkey” – connects us, he hopes, with a fellow primate. (Photo by Mogens Trolle/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2020)

A winter swimming enthusiast dives into a partly frozen lake in a partly frozen lake in Shenyang, in northeastern China's Liaoning province on January 25, 2022. (Photo by AFP Photo/China Stringer Network)

Stadium security stop a pitch invader during the UEFA EURO 2020 Group B football match between Finland and Belgium at Saint Petersburg Stadium in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on June 21, 2021. (Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev/Pool via AFP Photo)

An Ezo red fox, or kitakitsune, and her cub are seen at night near the city of Sapporo, northern Japan, 15 May 2022. Authorities are calling population to avoid contact with the animals due to risks of echinococcosis infection. (Photo by JIJI Press/EPA/EFE)

Jenn Brown of CFX (Composite Effects) adjusts a silicon mask based on Pinhead from the movie franchise “Hellraiser” in their stall during Preview Night at the 2022 Comic-Con International at the San Diego Convention Center, Wednesday, July 20, 2022, in San Diego. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/AP Photo)

Tourists wearing protective face masks walk in Nanluoguxiang alley, a famous touristic spot at Hutong neighborhood, in Beijing, China, 01 May 2020. China is loosening up nationwide restrictions after months of lockdown over the coronavirus crisis. Labor Day in the country kicked off with a long weekend and an extended holiday, from 01 to 05 May, after the tourism industry has been hit during the coronavirus and COVID-19 disease pandemic. (Photo by Roman Pilipey/EPA/EFE)