National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest

[Jazzy]

Mexican Anuar Patjane Floriuk’s beautiful underwater shot of divers swimming with a humpback whale has beaten nearly 18,000 entries in this year’s National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest.

Called ‘Whale Whisperer’ the photo wasn’t even planned. ‘I was taking photos near the head of the whale, and all of a sudden she began to swim toward the rest of the diving team. The divers gave the whale and her calf space, and I just clicked at the moment when the flow and composition seemed right,’ said Floriuk.

The stunning snap was taken near Roca Partida, an island off the western coast of Mexico and scooped Floriuk top prize -an eight-day National Geographic Photo Expedition to Costa Rica and the Panama Canal for two.

Photographers entered pictures into four categories: Travel Portraits, Outdoor Scenes, Sense of Place, and Spontaneous Moments. Here’s the three prize winners, along with the judges’ top pic(k)s across all categories.

Beautiful pictures.