The Astounds: Rewards

Time Lapse Photography Turns Rock Climbing

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16-10-2025, Time Lapse Photography Turns Rock Climbing Trails into Rainbow LED Light Shows — LOOK: These fascinating images are the result of a photographer using LED lights to track his climbing routes up sheer rock faces and mountain hikes. 27-year-old Luke Rasmussen takes to sky-high ridges across the USA under the cover of darkness so he can use the lights to turn his journeys into colorful patterns. He records the routes through a series of long-exposure images taken from the foot of each rock face. “I wanted to capture the passage of time as I moved up a rock face, flowing from one hold to the next,” says Rasmussen. “I wanted a way to visualize the line that exists in a climber’s mind as he pieces together the natural features of the wall. “I wanted to be able to illuminate the motion that I experience while climbing. And I think I’ve begun to do just that. Rasmussen, who is from Las Vegas, started rock climbing at the age of 11 before he even got his hands on his very first camera.

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“I certainly enjoyed taking photos and the process of photography, but I knew there was something more that I could get out of it. I knew there was a way that I could use photography as a tool to capture the ‘passage of time in a single moment’ that I was so fascinated by.

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“So, I started experimenting with longer exposures. This is where I truly found a passion for photography.”

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Rasmussen describes his photography as “showing the motion of the climb”, capturing his individual movements through colorful, intricate courses of light.

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On each climb, he shoots 17 separate 30-second RAW photos of himself—along with 78 separate 30-second exposures of the night sky to capture the star trails. The images are then stacked and edited in Photoshop.

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“My photography is an attempt to capture time frozen in a moment rather than a moment frozen in time,” says Rasmussen. “The photo is a snapshot of the moment. But, what it’s not is a snapshot of time. Time is that stacking up of moments, the aggregate of every moment past, present, and future.

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“Traditional photography does not allow us to capture that. My photography is an attempt to do so. It is an attempt, in some small way, to capture the passage of time and freeze it in a single moment.” Time Lapse Photography Turns Rock Climbing Trails into Rainbow LED Light Shows — LOOK

Comedy Pets Photography Awards .....

A Life-Changing Event, Beirut, Lebanon. © Michel Zoghzoghi/Comedy Pet Awards,

Comedy Pets Photography Awards Celebrates the Crazy Lives of Our Fur Babies– LOOK: Now in its fourth year, the Comedy Pet Awards, a photography contest looking to capture the playful, the bizarre, and the hilarious character we all know resides within our fur babies, just concluded in London.The winner this year was Michel Zoghzoghi, who travels the world shooting pictures of big and fearsome cats among other wildlife. He took first prize when he captured his playful rescues in action, with the rambunctious Max ambushing the timid Alex. As the winner of the top prize, Michel received £500 cash, a fantastic camera bag from ThinkTank, and a beautiful bespoke trophy. “This is still a very young competition in the whole scheme of things, but within a few short years we are already receiving some of the most uplifting, life-affirming hilarious images of pets in the world!” stated Tom Sullam, Co-founder of the Comedy Pet Awards. “I couldn’t be more excited to share these with you all. Pets have played a fundamental role during the COVID years, and to be able to laugh out loud with these loveable creatures is the reason this competition exists.”

Barkin! New York City, USA © Chris Porsz/Comedy Pet Awards.

“In March 2019 I was sitting in the Union Square New York dog run when I spotted a lady with a pink bag on her hand (to keep her hand clean) throwing a ball to her dog which was sat down facing her. The dog then launched itself and flipped in mid-air to face me and snap!”

Football free kick, Fukuoka, Japan.© Kenichi Morinaga/Comedy Pet Awards

The Three Greys. Landstuhlh, Germany. © Klaus-Peter Selzer/Comedy Pet Awards.

“Karin and her two dogs, don’t they look the same?

Zorro Reborn. Fahrdorf, Germany. © Karl Goldhamer/Comedy Pet Awards“The avenger of the poor is back, but this time as a dog and not on a horse, but in a car! The obligatory black mask is a must, of course.” Comedy Pets Photography Awards Celebrates the Crazy Lives of Our Fur Babies– LOOK

Winner of Weather Photographer of the Year

– credit, Shuchang Dong and Geshuang Chen, entitled “The Glorious Ring.”

Winner of Weather Photographer of the Year Contest Shows There’s No End to a Rainbow (LOOK): (O4/11/2025) The Royal Meteorological Society has announced the winners of this year’s Weather Photographer of the Year Competition. Sponsored by the financial services and banking firm Standard Chartered, the competition is now in its 10th year. Chosen from over 4,000 images received from both amateur and professional photographers from 84 countries—the judges’ winners were chosen by an international panel of experts from the fields of weather and climate, photography, and journalism. “A huge congratulations to all our winners and runners-up—the standard of the photographs submitted this year were incredibly high,” stated Professor Liz Bentley, Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society. “The images showcase the weather and climate in its pure beauty and intensity extremely well.” The grand prize winner went to a pair of photographers from China, and their winner of a complete circular rainbow. “It was drizzling on Lugu Lake [In China’s Yunnan Province]. I flew my drone to a height of 500 meters, passed through the rain curtain, with my lens facing away from the Sun, and captured a complete circular rainbow,” says engineer and astronomy photographer Geshuang Chen. Rainbows are a familiar sight, but full-circle rainbows are much less common. From the ground, the lower half of the circle is usually hidden below the horizon. From high above with the Sun behind and rainfall ahead, it’s possible to see the entire circle. Rainbows form when sunlight enters raindrops and is bent (refracted), then reflected off the inside of the droplet, and bent again as it exits. The result is a spectrum of colors forming a circle around the antisolar point: the spot directly opposite the Sun from the viewer’s perspective. Since each observer’s position creates a slightly different angle of light, every rainbow is unique to the person seeing it. That makes this image particularly special: not just a rare view of a complete rainbow, but a moment of perfect alignment, with the small island framed precisely at its center.

– credit, Jadwiga Piasecka, entitled “Eunice III.”

The runner-up in the main category was won by Jadwiga Piasecka, who took this image from a sheltered place out of reach of Storm Eunice in Newhaven, on the south coast of the UK, where winds were gusting at over 80 miles per hour. “From my vantage point, I watched enormous waves battling against the sea wall, sending dramatic sprays of water high into the air… highlighting just how immense the storm’s fury truly was.” “I’ve loved big waves and storms since I was a kid—the power and energy of the sea have always fascinated me. So, when Storm Eunice rolled in, I knew I couldn’t miss the opportunity to witness it firsthand,” she wrote.

– credit, Lukas Gallo, entitled “Sky Surfing.”

While driving near Vodňany in South Bohemia, Czechia, photographer Lukáš Gallo saw a stunning set of Kelvin-Helmholtz wave clouds appear overhead. He quickly pulled over, grabbed his camera, and captured the momentary display from a roadside field that won third place and the public vote. “I didn’t plan this; it was all of a sudden. But I think that’s the best kind of photograph,” he says. These rare ‘wave,’ or fluctus, clouds are formed when there’s a sharp difference in wind speed or direction between two layers of air, similar to the way wind can whip up waves on the surface of the sea. The result is a spectacular series of cloud curls that look like breaking ocean waves, as well as a clear visual warning of turbulence. Set against a peaceful rural landscape with round hay bales dotting green fields, the dramatic waves seem even more extraordinary, like nature briefly showing off above an everyday scene.

– credit, Kyaw Zay Yar Lin, entitled “Fishing in Raining Season.”

The mobile category was won by a photographer traveling to Inle Lake in Myanmar. This photo captures the urgent feeling of being caught in a sudden downpour. Two fishermen work quickly: one paddling through the dark water, the other bailing it out of the boat. Their bright orange and blue clothes stand out vividly, just like the heavy raindrops streaking across the frame.The motion blur of both the fishermen and the rain make the viewer feel part of the action, caught in the sudden intensity of a tropical storm. Raindrops fall in sheets and splash against the murky lake below as water fills the boat’s base. Winner of Weather Photographer of the Year Contest Shows There’s No End to a Rainbow (LOOK)

Check Out Underwater Photography Contest

15-10-2025, Check Out These Stunning Pictures Named Winners of Underwater Photography Contest: From a close-up toothy croc encounter to bird attacking a ball of fish under the ocean, some of the best underwater pictures in the world have been revealed in this photography competition. More than 4,000 pictures were entered for the Underwater Photography contest across 17 categories. “Winning here, or even just being placed, is [our] most coveted accolade because it says you succeeded in the most competitive environment there is, against the top talent of the moment,” said website owner and competition organizer Tal Mor. “The panel of judges is comprised of industry professionals. They are unpaid, non-affiliated, and, of course, cannot enter themselves. “Many other internationally acclaimed photographers have launched their photo careers here over the years … and we are so proud to be having a constant flow of new talent coming in. Our goal is – and always has been – to promote young talent and give them a stage to show off their photos and launch a career as underwater photographers. “One of our medals is the reward for all the hard work they have put in chasing those great shots in far-flung destinations.” 59-year-old Leena Roy scooped a gold medal in the “Wide-Angle Divers” category with her shot of a diver swimming through a cluster of silverfish in the Cayman Islands.

Leena Roy – SWNS

Daniel Flormann, who is from Germany, bagged himself a gold medal in the “Wide-Angle Marine Life” category with a beautiful mirror image of a crocodile in Jardin de la Reina in Cuba.

Daniel Flormann – SWNS

Another closer-up shot of a croc in which you can count its teeth won US photographer Susan Meldonian a bronze in the “Over/Under” category.

Susan Meldonian – SWNS

A black and white shot of gannets diving down to attack a bait ball in the famous South African sardine run bagged Allen Walker a bronze medal in the “Wide-Angle Natural Light” category. “This is one of my favorite sardine run images taken offshore of the wild coast, Transkei, Port St Johns,” said the South African photographer. “The Cape Gannet is truly an amazing bird and has adapted to its ocean life like no other.”

Allen Walker – SWNS

Australian Nick Polanzsky was lucky to avoid being bitten as he captured this picture of a playful juvenile California sea lion coming in to try and chew his camera in Mexico, a shot that got him a silver medal in the “Wide-Angle Close Focus” section.

Nick Polanzsky – SWNS

Not all the prize winners were obviously dramatic shots – some of the ocean’s more delicate creatures were also caught on camera. Away from the frenetic action, this calming shot of a diver next to the Pinar 1 wreck in Bodrum, Turkey won Mehmet Oztabak a gold medal in the “Wide-Angle Wreck” section.

Mehmet Oztabak – SWNS

Equally serene is this picture of a baby eel in the Phillipines, taken by Masa Biru from Aruba.

Masa Biru – SWNS

In the “Macro Not-Swimming” category, American John Roach picked up the silver for a yellowhead jawfish with its mouth full of eggs in the Dutch Antilles.

John Roach – SWNS

The bronze award in the “Macro Swimming” section was taken by Rudy Jannsen from Belgium for this dragon-like yellow ribbon eel in Indonesia.

Rudy Janssen – SWNS

If you want to see more contest winners, you can check out the contest website. Check Out These Stunning Pictures Named Winners of Underwater Photography Contest

Check Out Some of the Gorgeous Pictures

Check Out Some of the Gorgeous Winning Pictures From This ‘Kindness Photography’ Contest: Research has shown that viewing images of peace, kindness, and compassion has a dramatic impact on a person’s happiness and wellbeing. That’s why photographers from all over the world were asked to share their kindest photos—and the winners have finally been announced.

Envision Kindness, a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading media positivity, recently concluded their third annual The World is Kind photography contest for images that embody kindness.

For this year’s contest, there were more than 1,800 submissions from 750 photographers in over 85 countries. The Envision Kindness team selected 20 of their favorite photographs while another 20 pictures were chosen by members of the public—and all of them are breathtaking.

“Every day, people are exposed to negative images, stories, and experiences,” says David Fryburg, founder of Envision Kindness. “We know that this exposure is stressful to the viewer—it causes anger, anxiety, depression, and can affect behavior, disconnecting people from one another.”

“To help counterbalance the negative, we want to share diverse, positive images like those submitted to the contest on a regular basis. We know that these images have great power to bring out joy, gratitude, optimism, love, and compassion,” he added.

If you would like to check out the rest of this year’s winners, you can visit the Envision Kindness website—or you can check out more of last year’s winners here on GNN.

Check Out Some of the Gorgeous Winning Pictures From This ‘Kindness Photography’ Contest

White Tufted Sea Creatures in Winners

White Tufted Sea Creatures Among the Winners in This Underwater Photography Contest, From a crocodile’s toothy grin to a pouting fish the size of pea, some of the world’s best underwater pictures have been revealed in a top competition. More than 1,200 pictures were entered for the 2021 underwaterphotography.com contest across 10 categories, from Macro Photography to Sharks. The winner of the gold medal in the Over/Under category is this smiling crocodile in Cuba by Italian Massimo Giorgetta, taken in Garden of the Queen, a protected area on an archipelago on the south of the island.

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Fellow Italian Raffaele Livornese won the Wide Angle/Marine Life category with this beautifully composed shot of two sea lions playing whilst hunting on a school of sardines in La Paz, Mexico.

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This tiny juvenile pouting trunkfish was only the size of a pea but snapper Leslie Howell from the US bagged a bronze in the Macro-Swimming category.

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She said, “This juvenile trunkfish was about the size of a pea. It was pretty active, darting in and out of the coral head, but it finally settled down enough for me to get this shot head on.” No underwater photo competition would be complete without a good shark and a Great Hammerhead at Tiger Bay, Bahamas by German Reinhard Arndt was enough to bag him a gold medal. But there was still beauty to be had in the tiny as these delicate white tufted worms billowing in the current got a bronze in the macro not swimming category for Czech Republic snapper Michal Štros.

White tufted worms by Michal Štros, SWNS

Website owner Tal Mor, who runs the competition, said, “It has been a difficult couple of years for dive and travel, yet the competition has still received a total of 1,283 entries. “This photography contest is the longest running and one of the most prestigious online. A panel of judges select the best images entered in an online photo contest from the previous year. “Gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded for the top three from each category in order of merit.

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“Many other internationally acclaimed photographers have launched their photo careers here over the years. The judges comprise of industry professionals. They are unpaid, non-affiliated, and, of course, cannot enter themselves.”White Tufted Sea Creatures Among the Winners in This Underwater Photography Contest

Comedy Pets Photography Awards

Comedy Pets Photography Awards Celebrates the Crazy Lives of Our Fur Babies– LOOK: Now in its fourth year, the Comedy Pet Awards, a photography contest looking to capture the playful, the bizarre, and the hilarious character we all know resides within our fur babies, just concluded in London. The winner this year was Michel Zoghzoghi, who travels the world shooting pictures of big and fearsome cats among other wildlife. He took first prize when he captured his playful rescues in action, with the rambunctious Max ambushing the timid Alex. As the winner of the top prize, Michel received £500 cash, a fantastic camera bag from ThinkTank, and a beautiful bespoke trophy. “This is still a very young competition in the whole scheme of things, but within a few short years we are already receiving some of the most uplifting, life-affirming hilarious images of pets in the world!” stated Tom Sullam, Co-founder of the Comedy Pet Awards. “I couldn’t be more excited to share these with you all. Pets have played a fundamental role during the COVID years, and to be able to laugh out loud with these loveable creatures is the reason this competition exists.”

“Karin and her two dogs, don’t they look the same?

The avenger of the poor is back, but this time as a dog and not on a horse, but in a car! The obligatory black mask is a must, of course.” Comedy Pets Photography Awards Celebrates the Crazy Lives of Our Fur Babies– LOOK

Winners of Best Underwater Photography

Winners of Best Underwater Photography Awards Will Take Your Breath Away – LOOK: An astounding photo of five whale sharks, feeding together at night in the waters of the Maldives has won the 2022 Underwater Photographer of the Year contest. Rafael Fernandez Caballero from Spain triumphed over 4200 underwater pictures entered by photographers from 71 countries. The photo captures a unique ocean event, taken in demanding photographic conditions. “Giants Of The Night” features five whale sharks, the biggest fish in the world, feeding together on nocturnal plankton that have been concentrated in the lights of a boat. “It was already incredible when one whale shark came to our boat,” explains Fernandez. “But more and more kept arriving. I was diving with Gador Muntaner, a shark researcher, who couldn’t believe it, as their numbers grew.” “He counted 11 sharks that night – a once in a lifetime encounter that nobody thought was possible.” Competition judge, Peter Rowlands, commented, “this image took my breath away from the first viewing and I never tired coming back to it.” Judge Alex Mustard said, “photography needs light— and simply recording these giants in a dark ocean is a massive achievement.” Founded in 1965 by Rowlands, a British photographer, the Underwater Photographer of the Year contest has 13 categories, testing photographers with themes such as Macro, Wide Angle, Behavior—as well as categories for photos taken specifically in British waters.

Matty Smith, an Englishman now living in Australia, was named as British Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022 for a portrait of a great white shark taken in the Neptune Islands, South Australia. To produce “Great White Split” Smith build a special supersize dome port for his camera, as well as a carbon pole and remote trigger to allow him to get this revealing perspective. “I had wanted to shoot a charismatic over/under portrait for years,” explained Smith. “Some techniques I had previously tried failed terribly, so this time I designed and constructed my own equipment to get the camera exactly where I wanted. Surprisingly, the sharks were instantly attracted to the camera, in fact it was a battle to stop them biting it!”

The competition also aims to promote new photographic talent. Quico Abadal, from Spain, was named as Up & Coming Underwater Photographer of the Year for a creative image “Supernova In Paradise”. Adabal’s photo was taken at sunset off Sairee Beach, Koh Tao, Thailand and is purposely shown upside down.“This photo features Jeniya, who moves so poetically in the water,” explained Abadal. “What I like about this photograph is the imperfection of backscatter in the dark water, creating the feeling of outer space and making it perfect to me.”

The winner of the My Backyard category was Pekka Tuuri of Finland. He spent four days and four nights in April in a local pond—wearing a drysuit with argon, and lots of undergarments—to capture a photo of frogs mating, and called it: All you need is love! “I floated and stayed put among the frogs and quite soon they accepted me and my camera as a part of the scenery. The frogs climb on top of my camera, make grunting sounds in my ears and squeeze between my face and the backplate of the camera. The active spawning time lasts about two days and nights. What an experience!”

Taking third place in the category of Wide Angle, Hannah Le Leu of Australia captured a green sea turtle hatchling at Heron Island and captioned the photo: Against All Odds. “It cautiously surfaces for air to a sky full of hungry birds. Against all odds, this hatchling must battle through the conditions of a raging storm whilst evading a myriad of predators,” says Hannah. “Not only has the tropical storm brought out thousands of circling birds, but there are also patrolling sharks and large schools of fish on the hunt for baby turtles. Only one in 1000 of these hatchlings will survive.”

A runner up in the category of Behavior, Javier Murcia, also from Spain, submitted ‘The Circle of Life’. “A diseased species is usually easy prey for a predator. In this case, a Mediterranean predatory fish has hunted a green fish (Labrus viridis), abundant in the Mediterranean. The moment was unique, the green wrasse swam slowly and roughly, it was probably sick, and a few meters away I could see the sawing hiding among the dense posidonia meadow to hunt it down. It was a matter of being patient and in the blink of an eye I caught it. It was so interested in swallowing it that I was able to get within a few inches without flinching.”

The winner of the category, British Waters Macro, was Dan Bolt, from the UK with his image, Best Buddies. “2021 was the 10 year anniversary of my first trip to the beautiful Loch Carron. I’m not very good at finding Yarrels blennies, (but) we were diving on an area of reef, and after an excited squeal and waving of a torch in my direction I dropped down to see that my buddy had found not one, but two beautiful little blennies holed up in a crack in the rock. Having my long macro lens on was an advantage as I could stand-off from the reef enough to get some light into their home so we could all see their some-what bemused little faces. Best buddies for sure!”

UK photographer Lewis Michael Jefferies won the category called Living Together with his image entitled, A Peaceful Coexistence. “In the summer months Jelly fish frequent the British isles in larger numbers, thought to be attracted by the warmer waters. In 2021, there were huge numbers of these Compass jellyfish in Falmouth Bay. It was a perfect summers evening – clear and calm with hardly a breath of wind. We grabbed the paddle board and camera and headed to the beach in search of jellyfish. I had a sunset shot like this in mind and fortunately all the elements lined up to create something quite memorable.“I hope my image can inspire others to explore and appreciate the wonders that are found right in our backyard, in British waters,” says Jefferies. Winners of Best Underwater Photography Awards Will Take Your Breath Away – LOOK