A quiet Himalayan mountain village springs to life for a colourful Buddhist festival designed to expel evil spirits and bring happiness. The annual Torgya Festival in Tawang, in north-eastern India, is full of colourful dancing, music and theatre. The three day festival is held in the courtyard of the Tawang monastery, which is nestled on top of the hill overlooking the town. The vibrant event was attended by Australian photographers Stephen Axford and Catherine Marciniak.
HUDDLED together on a branch, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls soak up the sun .
SITTING quietly at the edge of the lake, these two baby bears watch and learn as the adults hunt for fish .
Most people bend over backwards to keep children entertained, but this baboon show us how it’s done .
An Italian photographer travelled to northern India where he visited poverty stricken suburbs and captured ordinary people in a series of intimate and expressive portraits .
A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .
FINALLY catching a meal, a pair of great white egrets fight over their dinner .
Exploding out of the water, a great white shark performs a backflip during a hunt for seals .
THIS RING of fire in the sky is the annular solar eclipse that wowed our cousins down-under .
PUCKERING up and enjoying some quality time, these are the most lovable monkeys on the planet .
SAT with his arms folded and a cross look on his face, this Gorilla looks like he's had enough of the Christmas holidays already .
A BAMBI was dramatically caught in mid-air by a greedy Nile crocodile in a once-in-a-million flying pincer move .
HUNDREDS of colour coordinated yarns lie abandoned in this once thriving textile mill .