Vendor Yegor Dyachkovsky, 45, poses for a picture at an open-air market on a frosty day in Yakutsk, Russia, January 15, 2023. Yakutsk, one of the Russia's north-most cities, is hit by an extreme cold snap as the air temperature on Sunday (January 15) plunged as low as minus 51 degrees Celsius (minus 59.8 degrees Fahrenheit). (Photo by Roman Kutukov/Reuters)

Flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires consume a home in unincorporated Napa County, Calif., on Wednesday, August 19, 2020. Fire crews across the region scrambled to contain dozens of wildfires sparked by lightning strikes. (Photo by Noah Berger/AP Photo)

A woman wades throug a flooded Main Street as she makes her way to work in Carrigaline, Co. Cork, Ireland on October 18, 2023. (Photo by David Creedon/The Irish Times)

Young Muslim worshippers stand in the rain at the shrine of the 12th-century Sunni cleric Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (Gilani) in Baghdad as people gather to perform the prayers for Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, as observed locally on March 31, 2025. (Photo by Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP Photo)

Front end detail of the Hyundai Santa Cruz crossover concept truck as it is displayed during the first press preview day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan January 12, 2015. (Photo by Rebecca Cook/Reuters)

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)

A students with her face smeared in coloured powder, celebrates Holi at a university campus in Chandigarh, India March 23, 2016. (Photo by Ajay Verma/Reuters)

A girl shoots a gun armed with blanks at an weapon exhibition during a military show in St.Petersburg, Russia, Saturday, October 14, 2017. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)