The National Museum of Natural History -- a favorite of school kids and tourists alike -- isn't exactly known as a hip place to spend your weekend. But until April 27th, a special exhibition is worth a visit for us locals.

Large-scale photos of animals and natural landscapes line the walls of the Nature's Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards exhibition. The photographs represent the best of more than 17,000 images submitted to Nature's Best Photography magazine's annual contest. "Our mission is to celebrate nature and bring awareness to conservation issues," said magazine and contest founder Stephen B. Freligh. Professional and amateur photographers are invited to submit works for consideration, but only the top-notch photos make the magazine's annual awards issue and the Smithsonian exhibition.

The works certainly are stunning. A stroll through the room reveals shots of cuddling sea lions, penguins marching across the Antarctic, a bee pestering a bear in a zoo and a human swimming with minnows and a Goliath grouper. Large-format photographs of the natural landscape -- pristine, raw and untouched -- seem almost unreal. We couldn't resist the simple beauty of these images so we're showcasing them in the online photo gallery (linked at right). It's worth a look, but trust me on this one: your small screen won't do these photos justice. Go see the exhibit in person.

--Julia Beizer (GoG Blog, January 15, 2008)