Urban

Photo © Simon Heather

1st classified

Rooftops of Kartoffelraekkerne Neighborhood
by Serhiy Vovk


Rooftops of Kartoffelraekkerne neighborhood, in Oesterbro. The neighborhood was built in the late 1800s for the working class families. Today, it is one of the most sought for in Copenhagen.

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Runner up

After Sand Storm
by Yura Borschev


In the picture, a basketball court after a sand storm in the United Arab Emirates: the sand is partially covering the field, letting the viewer get a glimpse of its original shapes and colors. It is one of the greatest finds in the author's sport courts collection shot in 2021.

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Highly commended

Kabushia Civilization
by Satti Mohammed


Capuchin is considered one of the most ancient and rooted cities in history. It hosts the pyramids of Bejrawiya (ancient Meroe), as well as the royal city that was known in the BC period and was called in the past Birmingham, Africa, for its early discovery of iron.

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Highly commended

Sunny and Rainy
by Donghui Chen


In the picture, dark clouds from the southeast and the sunset light in the northwest create a great contrast. The scene is very intense. As the drone had just landed on the ground, it started pouring rain.

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Highly commended

The Backbone of the Sahara
by Justin Jin


The world's longest train, with 3 kilometers of railroads, trundles through the Sahara desert bringing iron from an oasis to the coast. "The Backbone of the Sahara" is also the world's heaviest train load and provides the only free of charge long-distance mean of transport in one...

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Highly commended

Crisscrossed
by Shuai Wu


Four roads are crisscrossed with traffic flow and speeding vehicles. The moving lights create a spectacular enlightened yellow cross, which leads the viewer's eye throughout the picture. The photo was taken at Jiaozi Interchange, Chengdu, Sichuan.

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Commended

Duotian
by Ningtai Yu


Xinghua Qianduo Scenic Area is located in Qianduo Town, which is a globally important agricultural heritage and a four-star rural tourism spot in Jiangsu Province. The scenic spot is famous for its characteristic landscape. Every year, during the Qingming season, the "pallets" su...

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Commended

Beautiful life - Princess Taiping
by Jingkun Yang


After years of efforts, more than 2,000 mu of desertified land has been turned into forest resources. On a slope of the park, which covers an area of nearly 5 mu, the most representative and iconic landscape of the park: the "Princess Taiping", made up of plants of different colo...

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Commended

Icesolated
by Martin Sanchez


During one of the coldest winters in the United States, a small cabin survives in the middle of a frozen lake in New Hampshire. It is completely isolated from everything in a peaceful setting with nature.

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Commended

Mothership Conquering
by Jim Picôt


This diabolical storm cell formed so quickly, the author had to make an extremely quick exit from home for the 2 minute drive to capture this monster. He was very blessed that everything went perfectly. Got the drone in the air pronto, the shelf cloud came across, and he took the...

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Commended

Vessels of Eid Passengers
by Azim Khan Ronnie


Millions of people are going home to celebrate the festival of Eid al-Fitr. Bangladesh is a riverine country so lots of people return home during Eid vacation by boat. It's really difficult to get space inside, therefore many people just put bed sheets on the roof outside.

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Commended

The Vertical Forest
by Liang Dong


In the picture, a new residential building called vertical forest in Huanggang, designed by Stefano Boeri Architetti. This is a very interesting experiment of how nature could be integrated to our modern buildings and cities. It is super powerful to see the interesting mix of the...

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Commended

Perfect Chaos
by Sara Zanini


Aerial view of Gangi, a village immersed in the Sicilian countryside in the province of Palermo. The image was shot on an early summer morning. The orange houses' rooftops give movement to the image, while the mountain peaks rise in the background.

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Commended

Fading Faith
by Fabian Balint


Photo taken above the old village of Geamana, where the toxic waters and residues flooded the houses and other buildings. One can see the old church tower surrounded by the ”evil” waters.

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Commended

Red Zone
by Marcin Giba


The photographer took this picture a few days before the red zone was introduced in his hometown of Rybnik due to the coronavirus pandemic. From above, an oval swimming pool filled with people hanging out together and having fun.

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Commended

Five-leaf flower Hall
by Ying Zhang


Located on the beautiful South Island, the hotel faces water on all sides, and its shape is like a peach blossom blooming on the lake. 100,000 square meters of green space is integrated with the Island waterfall, water pavilions and other Soviet-style garden landscape, interpreti...

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Commended

A Love Tale in the Mist - The Taj Mahal
by Michele Falzone


This is the mausoleum of Taj Mahal over an incredible sea of clouds formations on river Yamuna. The eternal monument to love was built in 1632 to homage Mumtaz Mahal, the wife of Moghul Shāh Jahān who died while giving birth to their 14th child.

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Commended

Mud City
by Marwin Javier


In the picture, a 12th century old town. It was a settlement town for pilgrimage from Damascus to Makkah; the houses are attached to each other to make the walls stronger, as they are made only from mud bricks.

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Commended

Hull Fair from Above
by Christopher Fenton


Hull Fair is one of Europe's biggest traveling fun-fairs. From above, the colorful tents create various patterns and shapes. Captured with permission from the local Council and Fair Guild.

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Commended

The Visible Danger on the Sea Surface
by Umit Bektas


Sea-surface-cleaning vessels and barrier-laying boats of Istanbul Municipality clean up the sea snot, a thick slimy layer of the organic matter also known as marine mucilage, spreading through the Sea of Marmara and posing a threat to marine life and the fishing industry.

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