“If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it”. – Herodotus. “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation”. – Plato. Photo: Mandalay, Burma. (Photo by Steve McCurry)

A buffalo was on the verge of becoming dinner for a pride of lions… before his best friend stepped in. Usually, this kind of scene in South Africa ends with a tasty buffalo steak for the lions, but not this time. Just when an attacking lion thought he had the upper-hand, he got a bit of a (hilarious) surprise.

A mongoose growls at a startled lion on September 10, 2011 in Maasai Mara, Kenya. Four lions were left with their tails between their legs when a mongoose bravely took on the predators. Despite being under two feet tall, the aggressive mongoose growled at the felines and even bit one on the nose. The shocking fight, which was photographed in 2011 but has just been released, began in the Masaai Mara National Park, Kenya, when photographer Jerome Guillaumot came across four young lions surrounding the terrified marsh mongoose. The lions chased the mongoose into a hole in the ground but the small animal reemerged to fight the predators once again before running for cover. (Photo by Jerome Guillaumot/Barcroft Media)

To produce the images that convey his fatalistic and ironic approach to life, tinged with hope, he needed the environment and knowledge of Mother Russia, oiled with a bit of bribery to certain circus trainers. Enter the Great Russian Bear, the personification of Russia for the last several centuries, onto center stage and into his studio. The bear is recognized as both brutish and cute – Misha was the mascot for the 1980 Olympic Games – and has remained a symbol of Russia since Tsarist times. In 2009 it is the symbol of the United Russia Party.

Eli Hanneman of Hawaii surfs in Heat 2 of the Round of 64 at the Ballito Pro on July 3, 2023 at Ballito, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. (Photo by Pierre Tostee/World Surf League via Getty Images)

The fashion photographer made his name capturing big name models for Vogue. This month, 40 years’ worth of his work will go on show at Photo London and Atlas Gallery, in his first UK solo exhibition. Here: Kristen McMenamy and Linda Evangelista in Paris, for Vogue Germany, 1991. (Photo by Arthur Elgort/Courtesy Atlas Gallery)

The CBRE Urban Photographer of the Year competition – now in its ninth year – encourages professional and amateur photographers to capture cities at work. Here: Dog Walker – 15:00. The competition allows photographers to enter up to 24 images, one representing each hour of the day. (Photo by Johanna Siegmann)