Guardian of the Mangroves – Overall Winner. Tanya Houppermans, Cuba. A curious American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) swims right up to Tanya, at Gardens of the Queen (Jardines De La Reina), an archipelago off the coast of Cuba. It has been strictly protected since 1996, and is one of the most untouched marine ecosystems in the world. ‍ “The healthy population of American crocodiles is down to the pristine condition of the mangroves and I wanted to capture close ups of this gentle giant in its natural habitat. I hope this image can illustrate that protecting areas like this is so critical”. (Photo by Tanya Griffin Houppermans/Mangrove Photographer of the Year)

Creative imagery bronze winner. Make-up by Chengbo Sun, China. (Photo by BPOTY/Cover Images)

Bouwe Brouwer: Postcards from Fryslân (series finalist). “People from Fryslân are looked upon by the rest of the Netherlands as stubborn people. Going back as far as the Spanish occupation, they have a history of resisting authority. Postcards from Fryslân is still an ongoing project – hopefully a lifelong one. When it started, it represented only a collection of places that seemed interesting. Currently, the hope is to cover most of the province, as you never know in advance where the best narratives are. But still, it is all candid, unposed and in the public realm”. (Photo by Bouwe Brouwer/Street Photographers Awards 2021)

AP photographer Anja Niedringhaus laughs as she attends a swimming event at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, August 21, 2004. Niedringhaus, a veteran Associated Press photographer who had covered wars around the world was shot dead and another reporter was wounded on April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire on them in eastern Afghanistan, the news agency said. (Photo by Reuters/Staff)

Gerald Herbert is a staff photographer for the AP based in New Orleans, Louisiana. Before that he was a staff photographer for the Washington Times, the New York Daily News and a freelancer for the AP in New Orleans, Boston and New York. Photo: A worker grooms away tracks after an alligator crossed through a sand trap on the 14th hole during the first round of the PGA Tour Zurich Classic golf tournament at TPC Louisiana in Avondale, La., Thursday, April 25, 2013. (Photo by Gerald Herbert/AP Photo)

Felipe Dana discovered photography at age 15 when he started working as an assistant for event and commercial photographers. At the close of 2009, he decided to focus his career solely on photojournalism. Dana has focused his work on documenting the consequences of social changes in slums due to upcoming major sports events scheduled for 2014 and 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, where he currently lives and works as a staff photographer for The Associated Press. Photo: A model wears a creation from the Triya summer collection during Fashion Rio in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, April 19, 2013. (Photo by Felipe Dana/AP Photo)

“Muhammed’s work has received many international awards, among others Breaking News Pulitzer Prize of 2005 for covering war in Iraq, POYI, Picture of the year 2007, of Saudi Arabia of the Annual Muslim pilgrimage, best Multimedia of the Annual Israeli photo contest of 2007, honorable mention Atlanta photojournalism seminar of 2008 and photo of the year of the Annual Israeli photo contest of 2008 with two first prizes and two second prizes in different categories, two prizes in the Atlanta photojournalism seminar of 2009, 6 prizes in the Annual Israeli photo contest of 2009”. – Associated Press