Winner. “This was taken in the South Ari Atolls, Maldives, as the south-west monsoon season was setting in. It features my partner – and dive buddy – Emma after surfacing at the end of the last dive of the day to find 1.5 metre swells and dark monsoon clouds. MICK RYAN, JUDGE: This beautiful portrait of a diver in an ocean swell below a menacing sky stands out this month for its emotional and elemental beauty. It is a reminder that while we may play among nature we are always dwarfed by its power and must be constantly on our guard”. (Photo by Simon Dunn/The Guardian)

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)

A girl dances in front of the digital art installation “Light in Dark” created by teamLab, a collaborative of Japanese digital artists, during a special exhibition of “Shake! Art Exhibition! and Learn and Play! teamLab Future Park” at National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (or Miraikan) in Tokyo, Japan, 19 January 2015. The exhibition is held through 01 March 2015. (Photo by Kimimasa Mayama/EPA)

American model Kaia Gerber (L) and American actress Kate Hudson attend the “Shell” After Party during the Toronto International Film Festival at Elevation Pictures on September 13, 2024. In this dark comedy and body horror about society's obsession with youth and good looks, an actress (Elisabeth Moss) challenges a beauty firm CEO (Kate Hudson) over her company's questionable science. (Photo by ZUMAPRESS.com/The Mega Agency)

Indian police officers walk wearing virus themed helmet during an awareness drive aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus in Hyderabad, India, Wednesday, June 9, 2021. (Photo by Mahesh Kumar A./AP Photo)

A model waits backstage before participating in AFI Joburg Fashion Week show with the theme #AfroAsia, in Johannesburg, South Africa October 4, 2018. Picture taken October 4, 2018. (Photo by Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters)

A participant in a tiger-themed costume walks during the “bakeneko” or supernatural cat festival as a Halloween parade in the Kagurazaka district of Tokyo on October 13, 2024. (Photo by Philip Fong/AFP Photo)

This picture taken on June 18, 2025 shows a woman posing for a picture next to the character Mokoko as she visits Pop Mart's theme park Pop Land in Beijing. (Photo by Pedro Pardo/AFP Photo)