To truly appreciate these photos, you must go visit The Big Picture and see the higher resolution photos with captions. Here are just some of the entries for National Geographic's 2010 Photo Contest or you can check out the winners from previous years.

This is a wonderful shot of a lady bug covered in morning dew by Jens Kolk. This photo is just a reminder of the awesomeness that you can find in the world if you just look around.

Here are some pretty nice landscape photos by Garry Schlatter. They are all considered his "Most Interesting" photos on Flickr. Many of them have a serene and contemplative feel to them. He definitely has a way of capturing the perfect light for his shots.

My favorite, is the moon shot which beautifully captures the moon and clouds even if it is slightly altered. It just has a wonderful feel to it, and I love the way the lights in the bottom right corner balance out the strong presence of the moon.

These night photography shots by Justin Carrasquillo are absolutely amazing. Each one captures the  wonder and beauty of nature. I especially love the colors in the sky and the abundance of stars illuminating the night.