SEEING animals in their natural habitat is always an honour – and these photos showcase the very best in nature photography.
The National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest is in full swing, with some of the best entries across the nature category being shared with the public.
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A whale is seen nursing its calf in this photo by Dalida Innes. She said: 'At the time, I had no words to express what I was seeing, it was so emotional, I kept my distance. I didn't want to disturb that moment.'Credit: Dalida Innes
The competition has three categories – nature, people and cities.
One winner out of the three will win the grand prize of $10,000 (£7,200) as well as seeing their photo on the National Geographic Instagram account.
The other two winners will be awarded $2,500 (£1,700) each. You can enter the competition .
In the entries you’ll see stunning photos of animals including a leopard leaping up to catch its dinner and a mother whale nursing her calf deep in the ocean.
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Photographer Karen Larsen said: 'We spotted this mama and her two cubs swimming along the ice sheets in search of food.'Credit: Karen larson
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Limin Zhu photographed this lizard peeking over the top of a leafCredit: Limin Zhu
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Photographer Paul Rifkin said: 'I watched the stork and as soon as it flapped it's wings I shot one shot.'Credit: Paul Rifkin
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Photographer Leinani Yosaitis said of this shot: 'I had always heard that giraffe don't sit, so this photo debunks that myth.'Credit: Leinani Shak
Photographer Mohamed Shareef said: 'A baby black-tip reef shark swims through a swarm of silver sprats at lunch time in the lagoon of Mirihi Island in Maldives.'Credit: Mohamed Shareef
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Malin Hanning, the photographer behind this picture, said: 'This was an incredible morning at Gold Harbour, South Georgia. These two penguins was so full of love. They stood there in front of me showing their love to each other for a long time. I felt I needed to capture this beautiful moment.'Credit: Malin Hanning
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A photo taken during a road trip across Victoria, Australia, last autumn by Amir SezavarCredit: Amir Sezavar
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The views flying down to the Aleutian chain of Alaska by Toby Harriman with the peaks of Mount Pavlof and Pavlof Sister in the distanceCredit: Toby Harriman
