Revellers get into the spirit of the 40th annual Zomercarnaval – summer carnival – in Rotterdam on July 28, 2024. The two-day event is such in integral part of Netherlands tradition it was added to Unesco’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list last year. (Phoot by James Petermeier/ZUMA Press Wire)

An American flag is visible in the windows of the cupola aboard the International Space Station. Thanks to a bill passed by Texas legislators in 1997 that put in place technical voting procedure for astronauts – nearly all of whom live in Texas – they have the ability to vote from space through specially designed absentee ballots. To preserve the integrity of the secret vote, the ballot is encrypted and only accessible by the astronaut and the county clerk responsible for casting the ballot. (Photo by NASA)

A boy sits on the back of a crocodile on May 19, 2018 at a pond in Bazoule in Burkina Faso, a village which happily shares its local pond with “sacred” crocodiles. Crocodiles may be one of the deadliest hunters in the animal kingdom, but in a small village in Burkina Faso it is not unusual to see someone sitting atop one of the fearsome reptiles. According to local legend, the startling relationship with the predators dates back to at least the 15 th century. The village was in the grip of an agonising drought until the crocodiles led women to a hidden pond where the population could slake their thirst. (Photo by Olympia de Maismont/AFP Photo)

A tattoo of Captain America drawn by artist Sean Karon on the leg of client Ron Raucci at the Hampton Roads Tattoo Festival in Virginia, on March 2, 2012. The tattoo was completed from start to finish in one five-and-a-half hour session and won the prestigious “tattoo of the day” contest. (Photo by Jason Reed/Reuters)

A woman takes pictures as Britain driver Lewis Hamilton steers his Mercedes during the third free practice at the Monaco racetrack, in Monaco, Saturday, May 26, 2018. The Formula one race will be held on Sunday. (Photo by Luca Bruno/AP Photo)

The sculpture “It Takes Two to Tango” by Scottish sculptor David Mach is seen in front of the headquarters of the CMA-CGM shipping company office tower in the port of Marseille, France, March 15, 2016. (Photo by Jean-Paul Pelissier/Reuters)

“Eye of a toad”. Animal Portraits, Łukasz Bożycki, Poland. Early spring sees a pond near Łukasz’s home city of Warsaw, Poland, full of mating frogs and a few toads. On this March day, Łukasz shared the pond with them for an evening, sitting in the icy water in his chest-high waders, keeping as still as possible, despite the numbing cold, so that the amphibians could get used to him. “I wanted to find a fresh way of portraying the amphibians”, he says, “at water level”. Using a telephoto lens, he focused on one lone toad and waited for the sun to dip almost below the horizon before pressing the shutter, using flash to bring out the details in the shadow. His prize was “the glorious pool of sunset colour” and fiery glow of the toad’s eye. Nikon D80 + 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 lens + extension tube; 1/125 sec at f9 (-2.3 e/v); ISO 100; built-in flash. (Photo by Łukasz Bożycki)