Antsirabe, Madagascar, 1967

Photograph by Albert Moldvay

Drivers stand ready amid a fleet of rickshaws in Antsirabe, Madagascar. Rickshaws are known here by the French pousse-pousse, which translates to "push-push," though "pull-pull" would seem to be more appropriate.

Antsirabe's streets teem with these colorfully painted buggies, and even somewhat long trips earn pullers only pennies. So competition for patrons is fierce, and visitors here are frequently swarmed by solicitous drivers.


(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Madagascar: Island at the End of the Earth, " October 1967, National Geographic magazine)

Novyy Urengoy, Russia, 1988

Photograph by Steve Raymer

Stolid apartment buildings rise from the snow-covered permafrost in Novyy Urengoy, Russia. The buildings house workers at what was once the world's highest-producing natural gas field. After more than 30 years of operation, it's still one of the largest.

Novyy Urengoy is one of hundreds of industrial towns built, seemingly overnight, during the Soviet era to support workers who tap Siberia's many natural resources. Such development on the tundra has presented challenges for Russia, including buildings that crack or collapse under sagging permafrost and the displacement of indigenous cultures.


(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Siberia: In from the Cold," April 1990, National Geographic magazine)

Seoul, South Korea, 1995

Photograph by Michael Nichols

Hungry tigers stand on display atop an SUV in Seoul, South Korea's Everland Resort amusement park. The park's tigers are fed chunks of meat dangled from a tour bus so sightseers can view the staged carnage up close.

Of the eight known tiger subspecies only five remain. Three—the Caspian, Bali, and Javan—became extinct during the 20th century. The extant species—Bengal, South China, Indochinese, Sumatran, and Siberian—number only about 5,000 to 7,000 individuals combined, and all are endangered.


(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Making Room for Wild Tigers," December 1990, National Geographic magazine)

Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, South Africa, 1995

Photograph by Chris Johns

The seemingly empty landscape of the Kalahari Desert is full of clues to the whereabouts of potential prey for these San Bushmen hunters. Bushmen can read the desert like a book, studying droppings, tree markings, and hoof prints to determine an animal's species, gender, and age. They can estimate when an animal has passed through a certain area by the time it takes termites to rebuild a nest that’s been trampled, or a blade of grass to spring back upright, or a spider to repair its cobweb.


(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "A Place for Parks in the New South Africa," July 1996, National Geographic magazine)

Rimini, Italy, 1999
Photograph by O. Louis Mazzatenta
This park of scaled down replicas of Italy’s famous monuments represents a compromise between tourism and conservation. The Italy in Miniature Park allows visitors to experience historic churches and famous art without harming the real thing.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Italy's Endangered Art," August 1999, National Geographic magazine)

San Diego, California, 1997
Photograph by Phil Schermeister
Nighttime is the right time to dine at the San Diego Pier Café, where first-rate seafood complements a breathtaking view of San Diego Bay and the illuminated San Diego-Coronado Bridge.

San Diego, a sprawling city that spreads across 320 square miles (829 square kilometers) of hill, canyons, and shoreline, has a venerable history. Europeans first set foot here around 1542, 78 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "San Diego Serenade," January/February 1998, National Geographic Traveler magazine)

Near Yap Islands, Micronesia, 1995
Photograph by David Doubilet
A multi-colored scallop sits open-mouthed on a reef off the Yap Islands in Micronesia. Unlike most mollusks, which tend to anchor themselves in colonies and stay put, scallops have the gift of locomotion. They move in short spurts by closing their mantle quickly, ejecting water and jet-propelling themselves backwards.

Scallops also have the distinction of eyesight. Their eyes, sometimes numbering more than a hundred, are quite sophisticated, each with a lens, retina, and optic nerve. These tiny peepers line the upper part of the mantle (seen as orange dots on this specimen) and work together to detect shadows and movements.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Manta!," December 1995, National Geographic magazine)

Jerusalem, Israel, 1984
Photograph by James L. Stanfield
A view from Mount Scopus shows whitewashed above-ground tombs of the Muslim Cemetery outside the walls around Jerusalem's Old City. The Dome of the Rock Mosque (right) and the silver-domed Al-Aqsa Mosque (left) rise from inside the city walls.

Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish state of Israel, is home to religious sites that are profoundly important in Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, a source of constant tension in the ancient city.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Searching for the Center: Israel," July 1985, National Geographic magazine)

Maderas del Carmen, Mexico, 1993
Photograph by Bruce Dale
Wiry bloom stalks from two sotol plants lean toward sunlight that streams through a break in the clouds in the Maderas del Carmen Protected Area. The mountainous park in Mexico's Coahuila State joins with Big Bend National Park on the U.S. side of the Rio Grande.

Sotol is a favorite snack of black bears, and its blooms attract swarms of flying insects including flies, bees, and butterflies. Juice from the stem is somewhat sweet and can be pressed and fermented to make the fiery liquor mescal de sotol.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "TexMex," February 1996, National Geographic magazine)

Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Beltsville, Maryland, 1976
Photograph by Bianca Lavies
A baby snapping turtle and baby bullfrog take advantage of unusual circumstances to get a good look at each other at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center. Once full-grown snapping turtles are at the top of the pond food chain, but until then they are lunch to adult bullfrogs and other predators.

(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Life Around a Lily Pad," January 1980, National Geographic magazine)

Hawaii Island, Hawaii, 1983

Photograph by Steve Raymer

Roads on Hawaii’s Big Island are often flanked with miles of "Island graffiti," like this love note. Instead of spray paint though, bits of white coral harvested from local beaches are arranged into messages, which seem to glow against the island's black lava expanses.

But tourists beware: Removing the coral from beaches is illegal. And disturbing an already-posted message is considered rude and supposedly brings bad luck.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Kamehameha: Hawaii's Warrior King" November 1983, National Geographic magazine)

Honshu Island, Japan , 1982
Photograph by George F. Mobley
Skiers dot the slopes in this night view of the Happo-One Ski Resort in the Japan Alps' Hida Range near Tokyo, Japan.

Skiing was brought to Japan in 1911 when the imperial general staff asked the Austrian Army for help training ski troops. The officer dispatched by Vienna brought his own skis, equipped with modern bindings. Within four weeks, Japan's imperial armory in Tokyo had produced 30 perfect replicas of the bindings and delivered them to the country's first ski-infantry division.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "The Japan Alps," August 1984, National Geographic magazine)

Death Valley National Monument, California, 1998
Photograph by Len Jenshel
Abandoned charcoal kilns sit in Wildrose Canyon in Death Valley National Monument. The 25-feet-tall (7.6-meter-tall) beehive-shaped kilns were built in 1877 by the Modock Consolidated Mining Company to produce charcoal for a nearby silver-lead smelting plant. The furnaces were closed after only about a year when deteriorating ore quality forced the silver mines to shut down.

According to the National Park Service, the kilns, which still smell of smoke, held up to 42 cords of pinyon pine logs and could produce 2,000 bushels of charcoal per week. Due to their short usage time and quality construction, they are considered among the best surviving examples of such kilns in the western United States.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Dual Track in a Dry Place," September/October 1998, National Geographic Traveler magazine)

New Delhi, India, 1996
Photograph by Cary Wolinsky
A woman applies a delicate grid of henna paste to a celebrant’s hand already painted with lacy paisleys. Henna comes from the leaves of a shrub, Lawsonia inermis, that have been dried, ground to a powder, and mixed with water. The dye, which fades from the skin after a few days or weeks, is as popular today with Western trend-setters as it was centuries ago in ancient Egypt.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “The Quest for Color,” July 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Crystal Lake, Vermont, 1997
Photograph by Michael S. Yamashita
A row of red lawn chairs lines the shore of Crystal Lake, a 778-acre (315-hectare) glacial lake in northeastern Vermont popular for swimming, boating, and fishing.

The lake area is known as the place where Robert Rogers retreated with his legendary Rogers' Rangers regiment in 1759 following an infamous raid on an Indian enclave in St. Francis, Quebec, during the French and Indian War.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Vermont: Suite of Seasons,” September 1998, National Geographic magazine)

Fabregas, France, 1973
Photograph by George F. Mobley
"Bound for mountain pastures, sheep branded with red dye graze in the foothills of the French Alps on a misty June day."

(Text from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, the National Geographic book The Alps, 1973)

Reykjahlid, Iceland, 2000
Photograph by Sisse Brimberg
Overcast skies portend a rough day for boats on Iceland’s Lake Myvatn.

The lake, named after the swarms of gnats that breed around it, is surrounded by wetlands and volcanic landforms, including lava fields, lava pillars, volcanic cones, and boiling mud flats. Iceland lies on the convergence of two tectonic plates and is one of the most volcanically active areas in the world.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “In Search of Vikings,” May 2000, National Geographic magazine)

Hong Kong, China, 1999
Photograph by Steve McCurry
A plate-glass-wrapped Hong Kong high-rise glimmers in the afternoon light.

Hong Kong’s tall buildings are linked through a system of escalators and moving sidewalks, including the Central Mid-Levels Escalator, the longest outdoor, covered escalator system in the world. The 2,600-foot (800-meter) structure, consisting of 20 escalators and 3 moving sidewalks, allows commuters and tourists to high-rise-hop without ever descending to the ground.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Hong Kong: The World’s Greatest Chinatown,” January/February 2000, National Geographic Traveler magazine)

India, 2003
Photograph by William Albert Allard
Festive lights bring a bit of sparkle to a slum in an Indian city.

Although India’s constitution forbids caste discrimination, Hinduism’s rigid social codes continue to govern daily life for 80 percent of the population. One out of six Indians is born to the achuta, or Untouchable caste, which governs where they live, what work they perform, and with whom they may socialize.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Untouchable, " June 2003, National Geographic magazine)

New Orleans, Louisiana, 2000
Photograph by Bob Sacha
An infrared view of a New Orleans street gives this cemetery scene a psychedelic air.

Burials in New Orleans demand creative solutions due to the city’s high water table. In the past, New Orleanians weighed coffins with stones or even bored holes in them to keep them from floating to the surface. Today, caskets are usually placed in above-ground-vaults, like the ones pictured here.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Spirits of New Orleans,” October 2000, National Geographic Traveler magazine)

Sydney, Australia, 2000
Photograph by Annie Griffiths Belt
Storm clouds paint the sky over Circular Quay, the heart of Sydney Harbor and the gateway for many of the city’s waterside attractions, including the Sydney Opera House, at right. A sequence of nested concrete shells forms the roof of this iconic structure, which opened in 1973 after almost three decades of planning and construction.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Sydney,” August 2000, National Geographic magazine)

Armenia, 2004
Photograph by Alexandra Avakian
An Armenian tightrope walker steadies himself with his balance pole as he prepared to perform a trick.

Throughout its history Armenia has walked a sort of geopolitical tightrope of its own, situated as it is on one of the region's most venerable trade routes—the land bridge between Europe and Asia. Centuries of invasion and foreign rule have shaped and reshaped this tiny republic's borders and hammered an ethic of resilience into its people.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "The Rebirth of Armenia, " March 2004, National Geographic magazine)

Vallejo, California, 1995
Photograph by Michael Nichols
Water flies as a young white tiger shakes itself dry in a pool at California’s Marine World Africa USA. (Now called Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.)

White tigers are extremely rare in nature, and many seen in zoos today are produced through controversial inbreeding. White tigers can be born to normal-colored tigers if both parents carry the recessive gene for white coloring.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Making Room for Tigers,” December 1997, National Geographic magazine)

Chiyoda, Japan, 1977
Photograph by H. Edward Kim
During a rice planting festival in Japan, the women of Chiyoda stoop and plant in unison while drummers and bamboo-clacking musicians set the tempo for the accompanying pipers. As the dance master leads the troupe, he calls out, "What flower blooms in the front field? Rice flowers, money flowers, flowers of perfect virtue."

(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Day of the Rice God," January 1982, National Geographic magazine)

Siberia, Russia, 2002
Photograph by Mark Thiessen
A Russian smokejumper leaps from an Antonov An-2 biplane to battle wildfires in a Siberian forest.

Every summer 4,000 smokejumpers from Avialesookhrana, Russia’s aerial forest protection service, patrol two billion acres (809 million hectares) of the largest coniferous forest in the world extinguishing thousands of the region’s 20,000 to 35,000 annual wildfires.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Russian Smokejumpers, " August 2002, National Geographic magazine)

Madagascar, 2000
Photograph by Lynn Johnson
Like the pillars at the entrance of an ancient Roman ruin, a stand of baobab trees frames a dirt road in Madagascar.

Found in the savannas of Africa and India, the baobab is a godsend to locals who use nearly every part of the tree for food, medicine, and even shelter.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Nature’s RX,” April 2000, National Geographic magazine)

Denmark, 1998

Photograph by Sisse Brimberg
Graffiti covers the side of a ship in one of Denmark's many harbors. Vandalism is rare in this exceptionally peaceful, orderly society where a mere 2 percent of the national budget is spent on police, prisons, and courts. A common saying in the patriotic nation holds that "Denmark is a land where few have too much and even fewer have too little," a fact that they attribute to keeping the crime levels low.

(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Civilized Denmark," July 1998, National Geographic magazine)

@++

Paris, France, 1989

Photograph by James L. Stanfield

A man sits in Paris's Tuileries Garden flanked by colorful model sailboats, which are rented out and sailed in the park's picturesque fountains.

Located in downtown Paris along the banks of the Seine, the gardens are built on the site of an old quarry where clay for tiles, or tuileries in French, was once mined.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “The Great Revolution,” July 1989, National Geographic magazine)

Kabul, Afghanistan, 2002

Photograph by Steve McCurry

A watch vendor works within the confines of his hand-painted pushcart on a street in Kabul, Afghanistan.

The Afghan capital, which had been calm in the years following the 2001 ouster of the Taliban government, has been rocked lately by resurgent Taliban forces. Authorities have passed laws aimed at ridding the city of handcarts and donkey carts, which are often used by insurgents to hide explosive devices.


(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "A New Day in Kabul," December 2002, National Geographic magazine)

Death Valley National Monument, California, 1998
Photograph by Len Jenshel
Band members unload equipment before a show in the somewhat unlikely venue of Death Valley National Monument. The 5,210-square-mile (13,494-square-kilometer) park is the lowest, hottest, driest spot in the United States, and daytime temperatures there frequently reach 120°F (48.9°C) in the summer.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Dual Track in a Dry Place," September/October 1998, National Geographic Traveler magazine)

St. Clair River, Michigan or Ontario, 2002
Photograph by Jay Dickman
Falling water levels expose a sandbar in the Great Lakes’ St. Clair River.

The five Great Lakes, and the rivers, channels, and lesser lakes that connect to them, hold a fifth of the world’s surface fresh water. But below-average precipitation, increased evaporation due to above-average temperatures, and mounting water consumption is driving water levels here to record lows.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Down the Drain: The Incredible Shrinking Great Lakes, " September 2002, National Geographic magazine)

Alvord Desert, Oregon, 1997
Photograph by Sarah Leen
A buck mule deer contrasts against the rye grasses of the Alvord Desert in southeastern Oregon. Few inhabit this bleak expanse; in fact, early settlers found it so inhospitable they called it "Malheur," or misfortune.

Today's residents enjoy the desert's challenges. Few and far apart, they appreciate how its environment denies most features, such as congestion, of modern life.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "A Special Place: Oregon's Outback," August 1997, National Geographic magazine)

Très jolie photo comme d'habitude

High Springs, Florida, 1999

Photograph by Wes C. Skiles

Brown and blue blend as water from Ginnie Spring mixes with river water tinted by plant tannins. While this natural dye is harmless, man-made pollution clouds the future of these fountains—a fact Floridians must now confront.

Florida's 320 natural springs gush out over eight billion gallons of drinkable water every day. How these springs work, where the water comes from, and the ways in which they are all connected remain mysterious, but scientists and underwater explorers are working to change that.



(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Unlocking the Labyrinth of North Florida Springs," March 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Jaipur, India, 1996
Photograph by Cary Wolinsky
A pair of gaily painted domesticated elephants regard one another in a Jaipur park in India.

Asian elephants have been domesticated for thousands of years. Used primarily for ornament and entertainment today, domesticated elephants have been used for moving cargo, felling trees, transporting caravans, and even waging war in centuries past.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “The Quest for Color,” July 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Big Sur, California, 2000

Photograph by Frans Lanting
Firemen with lighted helmets use controlled fires to clear brush during a wildfire in California’s Santa Lucia Range. Forest fires—man-made and natural—are so common here that Big Sur naturalist John Smiley calls them “another type of weather.”


(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Big Sur: California’s Elemental Coast, " August 2000, National Geographic magazine)

Kostroma, Russia, 1992
Photograph by James P. Blair
A young woman in Kostroma, Russia, reclines in a car while listening to music.

This city, located on the Volga River about 211 miles (340 kilometers) northeast of Moscow, is the center of Russia's textile industry. As such, residents here were quick to adopt Western styles, like the tight blue jeans and fashionable high heels worn by this woman, during the years following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "A Russian Voyage: From the White to the Black Sea," June 1994, National Geographic magazine)

Khara Khoto, China, 1999
Photograph by George Steinmetz
Miles of shifting sands surround the 30-foot-high (10-meter-high) ramparts of the fortress of Khara Khoto, or Black City, in northern China’s Alashan Plateau.

In the 14th century, China’s Ming armies laid siege to the Mongol city and diverted the Black River, which flowed just outside the fortress.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “China’s Unknown Gobi: Alashan,” January 2002, National Geographic magazine)

Kish Island, Iran, 1999
Photograph by Alexandra Avakian
Young people enjoy an evening show on Iran's Kish Island. This small island resort in the Persian Gulf is an official "Free Zone," attracting many foreign and domestic tourists as well as business investors with its socially and economically relaxed environment. Free Zones like this are one way that Iran is trying to harmonize its traditional Islamic value system with the contemporary desires of its people and the nation's potential as a part of the global marketplace.

(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Iran: Testing the Waters of Reform," July 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Svalbard Archipelago, Norway, 1996
Photograph by Flip Nicklin
Researchers motor through glassy Arctic waters off Norway's Svalbard Archipelago. This team is in search of elusive bearded seals, an affectionate and playful seal species that spends nearly all its life either in the water or drifting on Artic ice floes.

At the time of this photo, little was known about bearded seals, due to their forbiddingly frigid habitat and aquatic lifestyle. This and subsequent research missions shed light on this wide-ranging seal's life, include birthing sites, growth rates, diving behavior, and diet.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Bearded Seals: Going With the Floe," March 1990, National Geographic magazine)

Australia, 2002

Photograph by Medford Taylor

Two fishermen navigate the fog-fringed Clarence River near the town of Grafton in New South Wales, Australia. Settlement along the 245-mile-long (394-kilometer-long) Clarence, began near Grafton in 1832 after a convict who had escaped into the area won his freedom by leading timber barons to copious cedar stands along the river's banks.



(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Australia by Bike,” December 1997, National Geographic magazine)

Tucson, Arizona, 1997
Photograph by William Albert Allard
A horse and rider complete an introductory lap before a rodeo show in a muddy Tucson, Arizona, arena.

Rodeo evolved from the often dangerous tactics cowboys used to break horses and to catch and brand cattle. In most professional rodeo shows, riders compete in seven events: saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, bull riding, calf roping, steer roping, team roping, and steer wresting.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Rodeo: Behind the Chutes,” September 1999, National Geographic magazine)

Venice, Italy, 1994

Photograph by Sam Abell


Members of the Querini boat club row alla veneta, or gondola-style, through the waters of Venice Lagoon during the city’s 20th annual Vogalonga, a spirited rowing marathon that covers an 18-mile (30-kilometer) loop from Venice to Burano and back.

A group of oarsmen started the race in 1974 to revive traditional Venetian lagoon rowing. Today, the competition attracts some 5,200 rowers in more than 1,400 boats.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Venice: More Than a Dream,” February 1995, National Geographic magazine)

Celle d'aujourd'hui :



Minnesota, 2000

Photograph by Richard Olsenius
Firemen bring relief to spectators at Bowlus Fun Days, a central Minnesota Fourth of July celebration that pits teams of firefighters against each other in a series of ''water wars''.


(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, ''In Search of Lake Wobegon,'' December 2000, National Geographic magazine)

Elle m'inspire l'entraide des gens face à un accident ou une catastrophe

( Je rappel que la description du sujet c'est ''Ce qu'elle vous inspire...'' , donc vous avez le droit de vous exprimer et de dire qu'est-ce que vous penser de cette image )

Myanmar, 2005

Photograph by Nicolas Reynard

The space between the rumpled sail and the boom on a hand-built kabang boat reveals a slice of sea and sky—and other members of the flotilla—in Myanmar's Mergui Archipelago in the Andaman Sea.

Some of the archipelago’s 800 islands are home to the Moken, a nomadic Austronesian people that live aboard their boats nine months of the year, surviving off the waters surrounding Myanmar and Thailand.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Sea Gypsies of Myanmar," April 2005, National Geographic magazine)

Rodanthe, North Carolina, 1985

Photograph by David Alan Harvey

A man watches as hurricane-roiled surf pounds Rodanthe Pier in North Carolina's Outer Banks.

Tropical storms, nor'easters, and hurricanes frequently pound the Outer Banks, driving the Atlantic Ocean inland and constantly eroding and reshaping this fragile strip of barrier islands.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Awash in Change: North Carolina's Outer Banks," October 1987, National Geographic magazine)

Chachawuate, Honduras, 2001
Photograph by Susie Post Rust
A Garífuna woman scrubs clothes on a washboard in the Honduran coastal village of Chachawuate.

The Garífuna culture was born when a slave ship wrecked off St. Vincent in 1635, throwing together West Africans aboard the vessel with St. Vincent’s Carib Indians, originally immigrants from South America. Today some 60 Garífuna fishing villages dot the Central American coast.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “The Garífuna: Weaving a Future From a Tangled Past,â€� September 2001, National Geographic magazine)

Madagascar, 1967

Photograph by Luis Marden

Two men gaze into the azure waters of Lake Tritiva near Antisirabe, Madagascar. The volcanic lake's waters are said to mysteriously rise during the dry season and fall during rainy season.

According to legend, two intertwined trees on a ridge above the lake contain the spirits of a young couple who leapt from a cliff to their deaths when they were refused permission to marry.


(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Madagascar: Island at the End of the Earth, " October 1967, National Geographic magazine)

Laeso, Denmark, 2003

Photograph by Darlyne A. Murawski

A mounded seaweed roof creeps down the walls of the main building in Laeso, Denmark's Museumsgården.

Parts of this building date to the 1600s. Like many older structures on Laeso, it is constructed in part using timber salvaged from ships stranded in the island's shallow waters. Laeso residents turned to seaweed to thatch their roofs after most of the island's trees and reeds were harvested and burned by the salt industry.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Killer Caterpillars," June 2003, National Geographic magazine)

Bhubaneswar, India, 1996

Photograph by Cary Wolinsky

A woman in Bhubaneswar, India, grinds brilliant red mineral pigments to powder on a stone pestle for Holi, the Indian festival of color.
During Holi celebrants toss clouds of powdered pigments in shades of indigo, magenta, and saffron to celebrate the passion of Hindu god Krishna for his lover, Radha.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “The Quest for Color,” July 1999, National Geographic magazine)