Why Evolution is True is a blog written by Jerry Coyne, centered on evolution and biology but also dealing with diverse topics like politics, culture, and cats.
Smithsonian Magazine is having its 11th annual photo contest, and you can see the finalists here, as well as vote for the winners (every 24 hours until May 6) in the categories Natural, Travel, People, Americana, Mobile, and “Altered.” I gather that last category includes manipulated photos, so I assume that the others weren’t touched much.
To browse the photos in large format, go through the sequence at the top of the page. I’ve put some of my favorites below, along with information about the picture, the equipment, and the photographer.
Photograph by Seyms Brugger (Johannesburg, South Africa). FINALIST: Natural World After having finished off a springbok, these two cheetah cubs were chasing each other, each wanting to hold on to the ‘prize,’ a piece of skin left over from a kill. Knowing the cubs would follow their mother, Brugger moved his car and was shocked that, “the cubs not only walked straight towards my vehicle, but decided that they would chase each while playing with a piece of Springbok skin.” (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa, June 15, 2013, Canon EOS-1D X)
Photograph by Karen Lunney (Brisbane, Australia). FINALIST: Natural World During their annual migration, wildebeests are forced to find new river crossings in the Serengeti-Mara region. “The animals were being taken by the unfamiliar currents of deep water and had to struggle to get close to the far bank. There were few rocks on which to land and the initial orderly progression soon became a desperate struggle of clambering,” says Lunney. (Mara River, Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya, September 2013, Leica M240typ)
Photograph by Porus Khareghat (Mumbai, India). FINALIST: Travel . Sun painting a monastery and the surrounding Ladakh landscape. (Ladakh, India, July 2013, Canon 5D Mark II)
Photograph by Stefano Coltelli (San Miniato, Italy). FINALIST: Travel. Neist Point Lighthouse at dusk. (Isle of Skye, United Kingdom, August 2013, Nikon D600),
Photograph by Caine Delacy (Boulder, Colorado). FINALIST: People. Delacy photographed Mr. Tadi, who has been spear fishing his entire life. “Each day he paddles his canoe out to the coral reefs to spear fish to feed his family and to generate a small income,” says Delacy. (Wakatobi, Indonesia, August 6, 2012, Nikon D300)
Photograph by Nguyễn Bảo Sơn (Phan Rang-Thap Cham, Ninh Thuận, Vietnam). FINALIST: People. Photograph by Nguyễn Bảo Sơn (Phan Rang-Thap Cham, Ninh Thuận, Vietnam). FINALIST: People
Cowboys! (Note the boots.)
Photograph by Nguyễn Bảo Sơn (Phan Rang-Thap Cham, Ninh Thuận, Vietnam). FINALIST: People. A champion bronco bucks a champion rider at the Helmville Rodeo. (Helmville, Montana, September 2013, Canon 5D Mark III
Photograph by John Gamble (San Francisco, California). FINALIST: Mobile. Meeting face to face with a snow monkey, Gamble says he was able to get within a foot of this Japanese macaque at the Jigokudani Monkey Park. (Nagano, Japan, December 2012, iPhone 5)
11 thoughts on “Smithsonian photo contest finalists”
Just great stuff all around. The Vietnamese women photo is sublime, almost surreal.
What’s the purpose of those nets they are wearing? Any idea? The caption doesn’t have much info.
Used for catching small fish in shallow water (which are then washed in the colanders?). You also see bigger versions of the same net design mounted on big poles and operated from boats or riverbanks; I think one would normally chuck some kind of bait on the surface after pushing the net under, and wait till the fish congregate before pulling it up. Those women are a lot more dressed up than most of the folks I’ve been fishing with, though.
Thanks! They looked like they were in a desert, so I wasn’t thinking fishing nets. I appreciate the explanation.
The cowboy and horse. Are they doing synchronised cartwheels? If so, that’s one hell of a trick. How do you even start teaching a horse such a thing?
Hunting fish in Indonesia. That is something I could actually make a living doing. The Vietnamese women: powerful, determined.
The photo of the Japanese macaque was taken with an iPhone. I guess this means I have a chance of winning a photography competition some day.
But why isn’t it in the ‘People’ category? That’s speciesist.
I want to know how the nails naturally achieve a manicured look.
In the nature category, the owl and the wasp photos were just astonishing!
Just great stuff all around. The Vietnamese women photo is sublime, almost surreal.
What’s the purpose of those nets they are wearing? Any idea? The caption doesn’t have much info.
Used for catching small fish in shallow water (which are then washed in the colanders?). You also see bigger versions of the same net design mounted on big poles and operated from boats or riverbanks; I think one would normally chuck some kind of bait on the surface after pushing the net under, and wait till the fish congregate before pulling it up. Those women are a lot more dressed up than most of the folks I’ve been fishing with, though.
Thanks! They looked like they were in a desert, so I wasn’t thinking fishing nets. I appreciate the explanation.
The cowboy and horse. Are they doing synchronised cartwheels? If so, that’s one hell of a trick. How do you even start teaching a horse such a thing?
Hunting fish in Indonesia. That is something I could actually make a living doing. The Vietnamese women: powerful, determined.
The photo of the Japanese macaque was taken with an iPhone. I guess this means I have a chance of winning a photography competition some day.
But why isn’t it in the ‘People’ category? That’s speciesist.
I want to know how the nails naturally achieve a manicured look.
In the nature category, the owl and the wasp photos were just astonishing!
Reblogged this on Environment: Biodiversity, Evolution, Climate.