View the Stunning Finalist Photos From the 2016 Smithsonian Readers' Choice Awards

Andrei Gorbatiuc

                                  

João Borges

                                   

Binh Duong

                                  

Tammy Swarek

                                  

Kerry Koepping

                                  

Mario Gustavo Fioru

                                  

Pedro Jarque Krebs

                                  

Lina Samoukova

                                  

Ben Hicks

                                  

Maxwell Harvey-Samps

                                  

Liam Wong

                                  

Duangmon C.

                                  

Pradeep Raja

                                  

Alina Rudya

                                  

Sofia Verzbolovskis

                                  

Kyaw Kyaw Winn

                                  

              

In 2003, the Smithsonian started an annual photo contest for photographers to submit their work in various categories. This year, the 14th Annual Smithsonian.com Photo Contest received over 48,000 submissions from photographers in 146 countries and territories. In what has become a great way to get the public involved, the Readers’ Choice Award is now open for voting — categories include: The American Experience, Natural World, Travel, Sustainable Travel, People, Altered Images and Mobile. With a variety of black and white, and color photos with a diverse pool of style, it’s anyone’s guess who will win.
Check out some selections above and vote for your favorites here.