Best Travel Pictures of 2011 Named

Runner-Up, "One Shot Wild Moments"
Photograph courtesy Thomas Kokta, www.tpoty.com
An illuminated tent sits beneath the glow of the northern lights in Hudson Bay, Canada.
Photographer Thomas Kokta was a runner-up in the "One Shot Wild Moments" category of the 2011 Travel Photographer of the Year (www.tpoy.com) competition, which is run by an independent group of travel photographers in the U.K.
"I like this one because it's a little bit more than just a landscape," said Krista Rossow, associate photo editor for National Geographic Traveler, who did not judge the competition.
The contest was judged by an international panel of 14 professional photographers and editors.
"The aurora borealis is impressive enough, but I think including the illuminated tent brings in the human element. You can envision yourself in that warmly lit tent after a long hike," Rossow said.
The winning pictures will be displayed at the U.K.'s Royal Geographical Society next summer, leading up to and during the 2012 London Olympic Games. The winning photographer will also receive 1,000 British pounds ($1,500 U.S. dollars) and other prizes.
(Also see "Best Travel Pictures of 2011 Named.")
—Ker Than
Published December 23, 2011
Runner-Up, ''Exotic''
Photograph courtesy Timothy Allen, www.tpoty.com
A couple in the central highlands of Papua New Guinea share an intimate moment during a courtship ritual. Photographer Timothy Allen was named a runner-up in the "Exotic" category.
"The photographer was able to focus in on this beautiful, intimate moment and compose it really well," Rossow said.
"I love the texture of what they're wearing with the beads and the color. It makes your eye circle around the edges and hone in on their faces."
(See pictures: "National Geographic Traveler's 2010 World in Focus Contest Winners.")
Published December 23, 2011
Runner-Up, "Spirit of Adventure"
Photograph courtesy Martn Hartley, www.tpoty.com
A scientist on scouts the landscape atop a small iceberg in Cornwallis Island, Canada, in a picture taken by photographer Martin Hartley, a runner-up in the "Spirit of Adventure" category.
"I like this because it's very graphic," Rossow said.
"I can imagine it being an opener to a [magazine] story because it clearly has space for type. And I think it was absolutely necessary to have a figure in this to give it a sense of scale. It also doesn't hurt that he's wearing red."
(See "Best Pictures: Nat Geo Photo Contest Winners, 2011.")
Published December 23, 2011
Overall Winner
Photograph courtesy Louis Montrose, www.tpoty.com
An adult and a child look out from the front of their home in Tiebele, the painted village of the Gurunsi people in southern Burkina Faso. Photographer Louis Montrose is the overall winner for this picture and another taken in Oaxaca, Mexico.
"I love that their clothing is similar," Rossow said of the Burkina Faso shot.
"And that there's so many layers. You have the two people, and what I assume is their house, and the depth going back into this village that is so amazingly painted that it keeps your eye very busy looking at all the details ... You could look at this photo a long time."
(Listen to music from Burkina Faso.)
Published December 23, 2011
Runner-Up, "New Talent"
Photograph courtesy Jonathan Munshi, www.tpoty.com
Photographer Jonathan Munshi, a runner-up in the "New Talent" category, captured a woman diving for clean water in Dhaka City, Bangladesh.
"I like the symmetry in this," Rossow said.
"The woman's body almost echoes the vessels of water. She has this beautiful bright color on, and then there's the purple on top of the other vessel. And then you have this wall that's been [covered in] graffiti and aged with time that has these subtle variations of color that add to the composition."
(See more Bangladesh pictures.)
Published December 23, 2011
Winner, "Spirit of Adventure"
Photograph courtesy Franco Banfi, www.tpoty.com
A beluga whale swims near a scuba diver under an ice field in the White Sea in northern Russia in this photograph taken by Franco Banfi, winner of the "Spirit of Adventure" category.
Rossow said she liked the unexpected nature of this picture.
"I feel like I've seen a lot of shots with hammerhead sharks and things underneath the water, but I haven't seen a beluga like this.
"I also think the lighting is eerie, and the way the ice is chunked up into little bubbles is another interesting element."
(See a picture of a beluga blowing a bubble.)
Published December 23, 2011
Winner, "Best Single Image"
Photograph courtesy Yeow Kang Yeo, www.tpoty.com
Residents along the northern border of Dhaka, Bangladesh, climb atop a train and squeeze into every available space during a Muslim congregation event. Photographer Yeow Kwang Yeo is the winner in the "Best Single Image" category.
"I look at this photo and I'm terrified, but then you look at the people's faces and they're all happy and enjoying themselves," Rossow said. "It's just an amazing moment."
(See ten unique train trips.)
Published December 23, 2011
Commended, "One Shot Wild Moments"
Photograph courtesy Evan McBride, www.tpoty.com
Photographer Evan McBride, commended for the "One Shot Wild Moments" category, captured two wolves playing chase in Norway.
"I like the almost monotone color palate here," Rossow said.
"It's very cool and gray, but you get the nice pink of both their mouths. And your eye almost undulates down their bodies because they're very sinuous."
(See a National Geographic magazine interactive: Return of the Wolf.)
Published December 23, 2011
Special Mention, "Spirit of Adventure"
Photograph courtesy Johnny Haglund, www.tpoty.com
Fishers struggle to check their traps in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Tshopo Province in this photograph taken by Johnny Haglund, who got a special mention in the "Spirit of Adventure" category.
"I love the bright color of the sky and the rumbling, roiling river, and then how the two men in the back are clearly straining so hard against these nets that are straining in the other direction," Rossow said.
"I just feel for them. It looks so difficult."
(See pictures: "Goliath Tiger Fish: 'Evolution on Steroids' in Congo.")
Published December 23, 2011
Commended, "Natural Elements"
Photograph courtesy Philip Lee Harvey, www.tpoty.com
Morning fog obscures Venezuela's Angel Falls—the world's highest single drop waterfall—in this photograph taken by Philip Lee Harvey, who was commended in the "Natural Elements" category.
"I think this is gorgeous. I'd put it on my wall," Rossow said.
"Fog always makes a more interesting photograph. I also love the way the dark forest in the foreground anchors it ... It's just a very well-composed, beautiful landscape, and it was the perfect time to take this picture."
(See more pictures from Venezuela.)
Published December 23, 2011
Winner, Cultures & Traditions
Photograph courtesy Sergey Anisimov, www.tpoty.com
Photographer Sergey Anisimov captures a family of nomadic deer herders—and their dog—in Yamal, Russia. Anisimov won the "Cultures & Traditions" category.
"To me it's just kind of a funny family portrait," Rossow said. "And I like that they're not all looking at the camera. It's a window into their real lives."
(See more Russia pictures.)
Published December 23, 2011
Commended, "Natural Elements"
Photograph courtesy Johnny Haglund, www.tpoty.com
A Sudanese woman braces herself against an approaching sandstorm in this photograph taken by Johnny Haglund, who was commended for the "Natural Elements" category.
"I love the clouds and the way her dress is blowing in the wind. And you get a hint of the sand coming in. It's just kind of a foreboding shot," Rossow said.
"I wonder what she's holding onto, and what she's doing with the pole and the rope. And I wonder when she's going to run for cover, and when the photographer covered his camera."
(More winning pictures from the Travel Photographer of the Year contest can be seen at www.tpoy.com.)
Published December 23, 2011
Next: National Geographic Traveler Magazine's 2011 Photo Contest Winners
Photograph by Ben Canales
Published December 23, 2011