Merit: A Night at Deadvlei. The night before returning to Windhoek, we spent several hours at Deadveli. The moon was bright enough to illuminate the sand dunes in the distance, but the skies were still dark enough to clearly see the milky way and magellanic clouds. Deadveli means “dead marsh. The camelthorn trees are believed to be about 900 years old, but have not decomposed because the environment is so dry. (Photo and caption by Beth McCarley/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

Runner-up. “The heavens opened and the streets around Shibuya, Tokyo, were suddenly drenched in even more colour and movement. I was taking photos (my friend was holding the umbrella) when I noticed this woman at the crossing. I’m pleased with the futuristic feel of the image”. (Photo by Katherine Bridgestock/The Guardian)

Jill Olsen (R) has her picture taken inside a giant cocoon, from the “Falling Skies” TV series, during the 2014 Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, California July 24, 2014. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Reuters)

An Edinburgh Fringe performer shows off his makeup on the Royal Mile, in the final weekend of this year's festival. The largest performing arts festival in the world has been running for the past three weeks and has enjoyed an increase in venues and visitors compared with previous years. (Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

Dillon Bracken (L) and Atalya Stachel dance during the Burning Man 2014 “Caravansary” arts and music festival in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, August 30, 2014. Over 65,000 people from all over the world have gathered at the sold out festival to spend a week in the remote desert cut off from much of the outside world to experience art, music and the unique community that develops. (Photo by Jim Urquhart/Reuters)

From towering elephants to tiny insects, photographers will be offering a rare insight into the natural world at this year’s Wildscreen Photography Festival 2014. The festival, formerly known as WildPhotos, is the UK’s largest wildlife photography show. The Wildscreen Photography Festival 2014 will be taking place between 24-26 October at London’s Royal Geographical Society. (Photo by Sam Hobson/Wildscreen Photography Festival 2014)

(L-R) Recording artists Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj perform onstage during the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 24, 2014 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images)

A devotee of the Ban Tha Rua Chinese shrine is helped with a spike pierced through her cheeks during a street procession celebrating the annual vegetarian festival in Phuket September 28, 2014. The festival, featuring face-piercing, spirit mediums and strict vegetarianism celebrates the local Chinese community's belief that abstinence from meat and various stimulants during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar will help them obtain good health and peace of mind. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)