The Smithsonian Magazine selected the finalists from their 6th Annual Photo Contest. There are ten for each of the five categories; People, Americana, Altered Imnages, Natural World and Travel. From these 50, five category winners and a grand prize winner will be chosen.
Viewers can determine the winners by voting for their choice. The winning entries, including the chosen winner, will be published in the print edition of Smithsonian magazine during summer 2009.
My choice is the above photograph by Wahid Adnan of Chittagong in Bangladesh. Not to take away anything from Wahid, but G M B Akash won first place in the 2007 Gordon Parks International Photo Competition with a similar photograph of a young girl riding a train in Bangaldesh.