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“For decades, our coverage was racist” says National Geographic

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Now, more than ever, racism is a touchy subject. National Geographic’s April issue is being devoted entirely to the subject of race. Naturally, this is going to upset a lot of people. No matter what one’s thoughts on the subject, somebody’s going to be upset by those thoughts and opinions. But National Geographic is holding their hand up and taking responsibility for their own actions.

They challenged John Edwin Mason, a professor of African history and the history of photography at the University of Virginia to investigate the history of their own coverage of “people of color” in the USA and around the world. Now, National Geographic editor in chief, Susan Goldberg, admits “our coverage was racist“, and that needs to be acknowledged before they can move forward.

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These are the winners of 2017 National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year contest

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The winners of 2017 National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year contest have been officially announced. This year, the judges had a task of selecting the winners among more than 11,000 entries from all over the world. The grand prize winner is Jayaprakash Joghee Bojan from Singapore, who captured an orangutan crossing a river in Indonesia’s Tanjung Puting National Park. We’re presenting you with the winning photo, along with the gorgeous winning images in all the categories of this prestigious contest.

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Heartbreaking video of starving polar bear shows the devastating impact of global warming

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National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen has recently filmed a video which shows how terrifying global warming really is. The video shows a weak, starving polar bear in a desperate search for food. It’s heart-wrenching, but more than that – it’s a warning of the planet Earth that an entire species may disappear if we don’t make a change.

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Rent a DJI Mavic Pro for free courtesy of National Geographic

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Wouldn’t you love to be able to go and rent a Mavic Pro for free? Well, apparently now, you can. At least, you can if you live in the USA or Canada. DJI have teamed up with National Geographic for their My Mavic contest. The prize, somewhat obviously, is a Mavic Pro.

Oddly, it says that rental is “world-wide” at the top of the page. The terms, though, state it is only open to residents of the USA and Canada. Given Canadians would be unable to actually fly the Mavic without risking breaking the law, including them is a bit redundant. Recent drone-related events aren’t going to help, either. Still, if you’re in the USA, you’re all set.

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These are the winners of 2017 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year

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National Geographic has announced the winners of their annual Travel Photographer of the Year photo contest. From over 15,000 entries from photographers in more than 30 countries, the grand prize went into hands of Sergio Tapiro Velasco from Mexico.

The winning photo displays a magnificent sight of an erupting volcano hit by a bolt of lightning. And even though this is the winning image, the rest of them aren’t anything less stunning. Take a look at the gallery of the winning images of the NatGeo’s prestigious photography competition.

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Nat Geo uses iPhone flash and a 10 years old DSLR for this photo

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We often argue if gear matters or not, and we probably always will. But photographer Alessandro Barteletti shows us why being a problem solver and having an idea is more important than having fancy gear.

He was photographing a 60-years-old European astronaut Paolo Nespoli for National Geographic Italia. Equipped with only a ten-years-old Nikon D3, a wide angle lens a smartphone LED light, he managed to take the cover photo for the magazine. And he only had 60 seconds to do it, so he had to think fast. Really fast.

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An incredible adventure of photographing Nepalese honey hunters for NatGeo

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The job of a photographer or a filmmaker is full of challenges. But imagine the challenges one would face while hanging from a rope above the cliff and being stung by the largest bees in the world – all at the same time. Well, that’s what adventure filmmaker Renan Ozturk experienced while photographing the last honey hunter in Nepal.

Although he generally does films, this time he teamed up with National Geographic to make some stills of honey hunting in Nepal. The last honey hunter, Mauli Dhan, is retiring. So this hunt for honey of Himalayan honey bees could be the last one. With all that cliff hanging and being stung by bees, this brings another dimension to the challenge and pressure. And still, Renan and the crew did a phenomenal job and shared the “behind the scenes” in a truly awe-inspiring video.

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Lighting tips: How to give your photos the famous National Geographic style

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National Geographic photos are a synonym for exceptional photography. In this video from Advancing Your Photography channel, you will learn how to achieve this kind of shots. Award-winning photographer Robert (Bob) Holmes teaches you how to master the techniques that will give your photos the National Geographic style. He shares some secrets of recognizing and catching the perfect moment and light, and these can help you make your travel shots NatGeo worthy.

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Anticipating the moment and seeing the shot before it happens

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To really understand light and see the shot before it happens is a skill one can only gain through experience. Most of us can see good light when it’s staring us in the face, but predicting the future isn’t easy. It’s something we should all try to learn, though, especially if we plan to shoot any kind of documentary.

This video from The Great Courses, is an excerpt from a course which includes twelve National Geographic photographers. Featuring professional adventure & Alpine photographer, Cory Richards, this particular short video breaks down one of his photographs. He talks about the various light sources, how they all come together, and how to see it in advance and be ready for the shot.

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