A woman rolls a marijuana cigarette during the first “Expo Cannabis” fair in Montevideo December 14, 2014. Expo Cannabis offers conferences about different topics such as the medicinal use of cannabis and cultivation techniques as well as displaying hemp goods, cannabis cultivation items and seeds. (Photo by Andres Stapff/Reuters)

It is simply staggering how complicated some items really are. We never think about it, but some items that we use every day consist of hundreds of parts meticulously put together and working perfectly. Todd McLellan is a photographer who based his newest book “Things Come Apart” on the complexity of various old and new tech. By carefully taking apart various items and arranging all of the parts in perfect order, Todd has allowed us not only to look inside various appliances, but also to appreciate the astounding complexity of these items. Just like the human mind, we are so used to seeing and talking with people that we forget just how complicated their minds really are. It would be great if we could “take apart” the human mind in order to gain some insight into the person’s thoughts and desires. However, very few people are capable of doing it, while the rest will remain blind to the obvious. (Photo by Todd McLellan)

A girl carries a bag of recyclable items she collected from a landfill on the outskirts of Sanaa, Yemen November 16, 2016. (Photo by Mohamed al-Sayaghi/Reuters)

A 9 year old girl receives digital lessons from the primary school teacher in Rotterdam, Netherlands on April 20, 2020, because the schools are closed due to the corona crisis staying at home. Many schools are putting together a homework package or using digital teaching methods, now that education has been closed for several weeks due to the corona virus. (Photo byRobin Utrecht/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Born in 1958 in Kiev, Ukraine, artist Mark Khaisman studied Art and Architecture at the Moscow Architectural Institute in Russia. Now living in Philadelphia, USA, Khaisman uses rolls of brown packaging tape to create incredible works of art. Mark characterizes his work as ‘pictorial illusions formed by light and shadow’. The three key elements are: translucent packing tape, clear acrylic or film panels, and light. By superimposing layers of packaging tape Mark can ‘play on degrees of opacity that produces transparencies highlighted by the color, shading, and embossment’.

U.S. Capitol Police remove protesters after they began shouting in a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing as Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought begins to testify on the rescissions package, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (Photo by J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

An artist has created series of wacky images turning everyday items into hilarious and all but impossible to use objects. Giuseppe Colarusso, 49, fashioned the unique work to make people question the functionality of the likes of cutlery, garden tools and office equipment. The set of playful pictures, entitled “Improbabilita”, makes some items impossible to use, others improbable and some given a completely new function altogether. From a dice with no spots, to a ping pong paddle with a hole in it, the items have all been given a quirky twist. Photo: Cuttlery with rope handles. (Photo by Giuseppe Colarusso/Caters News)

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)