The winners of the Sixth Annual Wikimedia Commons Picture of the Year Contest were recently announced and the final round gallery is a sight to behold. Since 2006, the contest has featured the best photographs available on Wikimedia Commons.

To be eligible, a photograph must first have been featured on the site in 2011. There were a total of 600 pictures featured last year. There are multiple rounds with winners determined by voting by the community. Only eligible users may vote. You need more than 75 edits before Sun, 01 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000 [UTC] in a single Wikimedia account to qualify.

Below you will find a highlight from the most recent contest. You can click any image or the name of the photographer below the photo to be taken to the original page on Wikimedia Commons. To learn more about the annual contest, please visit: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Picture_of_the_Year/2011

 

 

 

 

 

From his vantage point high above the earth in the International Space Station, Astronaut Ed Lu captured this broad view of Hurricane Isabel. The image, ISS007-E-14750, was taken with a 50 mm lens on a digital camera. The date of the original photo was September 15, 2003. This picture finished in 23rd place with 14 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Two boys at the beach. One is buried in the sand and the other is bending forward while holding the other’s head. (Not a photo montage). This picture finished in 18th place with 19 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

A Snowy Ski lift on top of Åreskutan, in Sweden. The original photo was taken December 29, 2012. This picture finished in 16th place with 23 final round votes.

 

 

 

 

 

A hot air balloon being inflated before air trip over Cappadocia, central Turkey, as seen from inside. Original photo was taken June 18, 2010. This picture finished in 16th place with 23 final round votes.

 

 

 

 

 

A nearly full Moon sets as the space shuttle Discovery sits atop Launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, in the early morning hours of Wednesday, March 11, 2009. This picture finished in 13th place with 28 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

A LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel) from the U.S. Coast Guard-manned USS Samuel Chase disembarks troops of Company E, 16th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division (the Big Red One) wading onto the Fox Green section of Omaha Beach on the morning of June 6, 1944. American soldiers encountered the newly formed German 352nd Division when landing. During the initial landing two-thirds of the Company E became casualties. This picture finished in 13th place with 28 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

An Olive ridley turtle nesting on Escobilla Beach, Oaxaca, Mexico. This picture finished in 12th place with 29 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Castle Neuschwanstein, Bavaria, Germany. This photo was originally taken on June 16, 2011. The picture finished in 12th place with 29 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Saint Petersburg Mosque. Maiolica of portal, in the form of Muqarnas. The original photo was taken on August 4, 2011. This picture finished in 11th place with 31 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Si-o-se Pol, means 33 Bridges or the Bridge of 33 Arches, also called the Allah-Verdi Khan Bridge, is one of the eleven bridges of Isfahan, Iran. It is highly ranked as being one of the most famous examples of Safavid bridge design. The original photo was taken on August 14, 2011. This picture finished in 10th place with 32 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Animation of the act of unrolling a circle’s circumference, illustrating the ratio Pi. This was originally created on October 7, 2006. This animation finished in 9th place with 34 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Red deer (Cervus elaphus), in Freyr forest, near Han-sur-Lesse, Belgium. This photo was originally taken on September 17, 2011. This picture finished in 7th place with 37 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

CargoNet Di 12 “Euro 4000” (road number 312 006) plowing through snow drifts at about 100 km/h. The train is an intermodal freight train from Bodø towards Trondheim. The picture was taken on the Saltfjellet between Lønsdal and Bolna, Norway on March 17, 2011. This picture finished in 6th place with 39 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

A SNCF TGV Duplex trainset is crossing the Cize – Bolozon viaduct over the Ain river. The viaduct is part of the Haut-Bugey line, which was reopened in December 2010 for TGV services between Geneva and Paris. This photo was originally taken on April 22, 2011. The picture finished in 5th place with 46 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Grandidier’s Baobab, picture taken near Morondava, Madagascar. Original photo was taken on March 14, 2007. This picture finished in 5th place with 46 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Portrait of the common wasp Vespula vulgaris depicting the characteristic head markings. This photo was originally taken on October 7, 2007. The picture finished in fourth place with 54 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris), Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, Quebec, Canada. This photo was originally taken on June 19, 2011. The picture finished in 4th place with 54 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Cueva de los Verdes, Canary Islands, Spain. Reflection on water. This photo was originally taken on July 16, 2011. This picture finished in 3rd place with 57 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

Self portrait of Tracy Caldwell Dyson in the Cupola module of the International Space Station observing the Earth below during Expedition 24. This photo was originally taken on September 11, 2010. The picture finished in 2nd place with 118 votes in the final round.

 

 

 

 

 

A view of Lake Bondhus in Norway, and in the background of the Bondhus Glacier, part of the Folgefonna Glacier. This photo was originally taken on July 3, 2011. The picture finished in 1st place with 143 votes in the final round.