Festival goers plays in mud during the 15th Annual Boryeong Mud Festival at Daecheon beach in Boryeong, about 190 km (118 miles) southwest of Seoul, July 15, 2012. About 2 to 3 million domestic and international tourists visit the beach during the annual mud festival, according to the festival organisation. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun)

Yogis and street performers have been simulating levitation with nifty contraptions forever. They appear to be held aloft via nothing but their preternatural mental prowess. But are really enjoying the benefits of basic physics just like the rest of us when we use a chair. However, just because it’s perfectly explainable doesn’t mean it isn’t nifty. I’m especially impressed by this 2-person version and am still trying to work out how exactly the chair they’re using is shaped at the base.

Most probably wouldnt think of snakes, spiders and lizards as beautiful animals – but these photographs could change some minds. The images show the reptiles seemingly playful sides, from a gleeful looking Budgetts frog, a cheeky leopard sticking out its tongue at the camera and a stack of four colourful iguanas. Contrasted against a white background and shot with a Canon EOS 5D Mark 2 and macro lens, photographer Mickael Leger really made sure they could be seen in all their glory. Here: Gecko. (Photo by Mickael Leger/Caters News)

A young man, who says he is part of a local criminal gang, poses for a picture holding a gun in the neighbourhood of Korogcho in Nairobi, Kenya, March 19, 2015. Around 2 million people live in the shantytowns packed in around Kenya's capital. Crime is high amid chronic unemployment levels, while basic services and sanitation are scarce. Residents try to make the best of things, eking out a living and picking up work where they can. (Photo by Siegfried Modola/Reuters)

Participants learn how to survive in the wild, including tips on how to make it through a zombie invastion at a “Zombie First Responder” course March 11, 2012 in Sandy, Oregon. In an intensive 2-day curriculum participants train in everything from wilderness and urban survival, nerf or nerd weaponry, stealth and evasion, and proper zombie “disposal”. (Photo by Natalie Behring/Getty Images)

Two brave contestants take part in the World Gravy Wrestling Championships at the Rose 'n Bowl in Stacksteads, Lancashire, England on August 27 2018. Contestants must wrestle in the gravy for 2 minutes, points are scored for fancy dress, comedy effect, entertainment and wrestling ability. The event is held to raise funds for the East Lancashire Hospice and competitors nominated charities. (Photo by The Mercury Press)

Second Place Winner: “Thunderstorm at False Kiva”. I hiked out to these ruins at night hoping to photograph them with the Milky Way, but instead a thunderstorm rolled through, creating this dramatic image. – Max Seigal. National Geographic Traveler Director of Photography Dan Westergren, one of this year's judges, shares his thoughts on the second place winner: “This photo combines two different scenes into one: the small kiva in a cliff dwelling and the grand vista of Canyonlands National Park across the valley. I really like the two different color palettes – warm inside and purple outside. This two-for-one scene was caused by the lightning storm outside the dwelling, which lit up the landscape like it was a huge electronic flash. Looking at this picture I can imagine what a wonderful sight it must have been for the ancient people who lived here. It doesn't seem too amazing now in our modern world, but might have been mind-blowing for the prehistoric residents”. Location: Utah. (Photo and caption by Max Seigal/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

Over the past three years, Los Angeles-based photographer Dotan Saguy has spent hundreds of hours documenting the diverse culture, people and pageantry of the iconic Venice Beach boardwalk. He was irresistibly drawn to the free-spirited, anti-materialistic and inclusive nature of the world-famous location, which he found to be a breath of fresh air in contrast to Los Angeles’s sometimes homogenized, celebrity-obsessed culture. (Photo by Dotan Saguy)