Celebrate the Your Shot community with these striking photos

“Before I was a National Geographic photographer, I was a member of the Your Shot community,” shares Robbie Shone. “My photos caught the eye of the Your Shot editors and, to my joy, one was featured as National Geographic’s Photo of the Day. I remember how I felt when this happened. I was so excited and so happy. Finally, my photographs of caves had been recognized by the right people. It gave me that extra bit of hope and determination to push ahead.”

Your Shot started as a single email inbox receiving photo submissions. Fourteen years later, Your Shot has evolved into a digital experience where a community of aspiring and professional photographers from around the world connect with each other and with National Geographic photo editors and photographers. In May 2019, Your Shot celebrated 10 million uploaded photos with our Photos of the Week feature curated by Susan Goldberg, editorial director of National Geographic Partners and editor in chief of National Geographic magazine.

"Becoming a photographer is not an easy path, but it is possible—and Your Shot is one of the biggest supporters to make this dream happen. For me, as for many photographers, National Geographic was always the ultimate goal. It was my dream. Many friends tell me that I can and should relax now after reaching my dreams of going on assignment for National Geographic,” writes Esther Horvath. “However, I feel that I have to work even harder, with more focus, to prove that I deserve this recognition. And while I feel truly grateful for the assignments with National Geographic, I also feel that I haven’t arrived anywhere—that this is just the beginning of a very long journey where I have to keep moving forward."

Over the years Your Shot has offered our global community of aspiring and professional photographers the chance to be discovered. Two Your Shot photographers were published on the cover of National Geographic Traveler magazine. Over 50 Your Shot photographers were published in National Geographic magazine. Thousands more were featured across National Geographic’s digital and social media platforms and published in our 197 Your Shot stories.

“Your Shot gave me the confidence to begin a professional career in photography. When I started submitting, I was a hobbyist who only took pictures on my travels. After several of my photos were chosen as Editors’ Favorites for Your Shot assignments, I realized that I might possibly have some talent. A client at Microsoft even hired me for an assignment because he saw how recognized my work was on Your Shot,” writes Amy Sacka, who received a National Geographic Explorer grant in 2017 and was published this past February. “I have to say that my most thrilling moment was walking into the National Geographic offices and meeting with the Your Shot team. I will never forget the moment I was able to say thank you for the incredible opportunities.”

The Your Shot team would like to thank our global community for sharing your visual stories with us. Together we have shared the humanity, animals, and landscapes of our planet. Join us on Instagram at @natgeoyourshot as we continue to share stories together.

Sincerely,
The Your Shot team