A glacial remnant boulder is surrounded by grassland in Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Park in South Dakota. A growing number of tribes across the United States are making moves to bring back land crushed over generations of human use.
Photograph by Jack Dykinga
Radiant at sunrise, the Matterhorn towers over Riffel Lake near Zermatt, Switzerland.
It rains almost every afternoon in the sunshine state. I work in a strip mall and left work to threatening, but beautiful, skies. I put on a long lens, intending to shoot only these treetops and sky. It immediately poured rain, forcing me into the car. What a blessing. I used the long lens and focused on the rain-covered windshield. It lessened the depth of field, adding to image distortion, eliminating strip mall clutter, and creating an image with the feel of a Florida afternoon thunderstorm.
This fragile poppy looked rather strong against the wind in a large wheat field just outside the city center of Geneva, Switzerland.
Pockets of eroded earth create leaf shapes in the landscape in Madagascar. Erosion is one of the long-term consequences of forests plundered for the illicit rosewood trade.
On the remote Hermit’s Trail off the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, a rare occurrence of rain brings joy to a cold November day.
Photograph by Akshay Sateesh
Half a million sandhill cranes pause on the Platte River in Nebraska to fatten up on corn waste, worms, and other food in nearby fields. The break occurs on their spring flight from Mexico and the southern U.S. to breeding grounds in the far north.
While hiking at Jasmund National Park in northwest Germany, a rainstorm passed by and created a stunning scene! The sea was completely flat and the only thing out there was the tiny sailing boat.
This photo of a cowboy in Cabo San Lucas was taken at the most amazing sunset; the air was extremely heavy, and the contrast of the lighting was unbelievable. I saw this cowboy coming straight at me and I knew at that point in time how to describe the beauty of Cabo San Lucas. It was not about the magnificent ocean, the calving whales, or the seals that swam from Lovers Cove to Divorce Beach. Cabo was about the beauty of the people that made this place simply remarkable.
On this day the sun rose directly behind the active Merapi, ”Fire Mountain,” highlighting the volcanic smoke which steadily streamed across the horizon from its uppermost region. Facing the mountain in the image is a sacred and latticed stupa of Borobudur Monument’s first upper terrace and an endearing statue of Buddha. Thick fog filled the forest and villages below, adding interesting artistic elements to the image.
Posting the National Geographic Photo of the Day here. I do not claim any ownership of these photos.
