Back in 2010, French photographer Antoine Bruy began hitchhiking around Europe without any fixed route. Along his travels, he met people who had entirely abandoned city life in favour of an isolated country existence they found more fulfilling. Bruy began seeking out people who lived off-the-grid. After three years on the road, staying in makeshift houses and on community farms, he has released Scrublands, a documentation of the lifestyle. While each living situation is different, Bruy found that all the people he met shared a common desire to escape the rat race and achieve a quieter life in harmony with nature. (Photo by Antoine Bruy)

Vultures gather to eat waste in Bica beach, on the banks of the Guanabara Bay, with the Sugar Loaf mountain in background, 500 days ahead the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro March 24, 2015. As part of its Olympic bid, Rio promised to clean up 80 percent of the bay for the games. But local government officials have already admitted that a cleanup by 2016 is not achievable. Despite millions of dollars of investment over the years, the bay still stinks of sewage. Sailors who visited the city for test events complained of a floating sofa and a dead dog in the water. (Photo by Ricardo Moraes/Reuters)

Iranians flash the victory sign from their car while celebrating on a street in northern Tehran, Iran, Thursday, April 2, 2015, after Iran's nuclear agreement with world powers in Lausanne, Switzerland. The United States, Iran and five other world powers on Thursday announced an understanding outlining limits on Iran's nuclear program so it cannot lead to atomic weapons, directing negotiators toward achieving a comprehensive agreement within three months. (Photo by Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo)

Usually, we can only expect mischief from a group of overactive students. However, three talented students from Germany have amazed us with their dedication for beautifying their hometown. The electrical towers were always considered to be big ugly things. Most of the time, the electrical towers look awkward and completely ruin the beautiful landscape behind them. Nevertheless, the young minds have thought of a way to turn these towers into multicolored lighthouses, which immediately draw the attention of all the passersby and look as if they were brought here from a different world. All that was needed to achieve this was a little bit of imagination, colored plastic, and some spare time. Let us hope that this is only the beginning of the journey of these young artists. (Photo by Günter Pilger)

A worker at the Jabal Saraj cement factory poses for a photograph in Jabal Saraj, north of Kabul, Afghanistan April 19, 2016. In an area desperately short of industry and jobs, local workers hope that the relaunch of the plant in Jabal Saraj, built by Czech engineers in 1957 and closed down by the Taliban in 1995, can show that Afghanistan's shattered industry can climb back to its feet after decades of war and destruction. But the outdated state-owned plant some 75 kilometres outside Kabul also shows how far it has to go before that promise can be achieved and there are serious questions over whether it has a viable future unless a new, modern facility is built to replace it. (Photo by Ahmad Masood/Reuters)

Festival goer practice yoga during the O.Z.O.R.A. festival on August 4, 2016 in Tolna, Hungary. Ozora is a village in Tolna County. In recent times it has become famous for the O.Z.O.R.A. psychedelic trance festival which has been held on an estate in Ozora near small village Dadpuszta every year since 2004. The first party was called Solipse and took place during the Solar eclipse of August 11, 1999. (Photo by Mohai Balázs/MTI/MTVA)

Bollywood actor and animal rights activist Dia Mirza interacts with school children during the launch of 'Ellie', a life-size animatronic elephant part of a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) nonprofit organization campaign, in Mumbai on May 5, 2023. (Photo by Indranil Mukherjee/AFP Photo)

With its huge eyes, comical name and diminutive size, Mark R. Smith’s image of a baby Hawaiian bobtail squid can’t help but raise a smile. A curiously endearing creature, the cephalopod is just 1.5cm across, its mantle cavity bearing more than a passing resemblance to a rather natty shower cap. But it is also a beautiful example of symbiosis – nature’s version of “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine” – for on the underside of the squid is a light organ which houses bioluminescent bacteria. The squid offers the bacteria protection and food, while the bacteria emit a glow – a handy trait that the squid uses to offset its silhouette, helping it to evade predators in the depths below. Mark R. Smith’s entry combines several images of a Hawaiian bobtail squid with different focus lengths to create a final picture with greater depth of field than normal. (Photo by Mark R. Smith/Wellcome Images/Macroscopic Solutions)