Faces of the world: Nat Geo photographer's amazing portraits

Malagan ceremonial mask, Lissengung Island, Papua New Guinea, 2010

Award-winning photojournalist Alison Wright shares details from her latest book, "Face to Face: Portraits of the Human Spirit." "This mask was carved by Fabian Pano, a master carver of Malagan ceremonial masks. Fabian learned the craft from his father who learned from the generations before him. These masks used to be burned after a ceremony, but there are so few carvers left, the masks are now preserved and collected."  

  

Tibet girl, Manigango, Kham, Tibet, 2005

"I was driving in the remote eastern region of the Tibetan Plateau when I saw this young girl, who was part of a crowd returning from a horse festival. It was pouring rain, so I brought her to a nearby school to take her photograph. She was so small that the light from the window barely reached her; I had to stand her on a desk."  

 

Man from Drokpa tribe wearing flowers, Dahanu Valley, Ladakh, India, 2006

"For generations this small group of men and women have traditionally worn elaborate flowers in their hair. The first time I went to photograph in this area, the locals were working in the fields, singing and plucking apples from the trees. Women stopped to pass me flowers from their headdresses. When I returned years later, very few people were wearing their flowered hats. In a desire to be dressed in more modern Western clothing many villagers have taken to wearing baseball caps." 

Goite from the Hamer Tribe, Omo Valley, Ethiopia, 2006

"I was photographing this woman's husband as he was piercing their cow in the neck with an arrow and bleeding him to mix with milk, a high source of protein in their diet. I turned and she was staring from the dark of her hut." 

 

Man in infinity pool with Grand Pitons, Jade Mountain Resort, St. Lucia, 2009

"On a shoot for Islands magazine at Jade Mountain Resort my room not only had an infinity pool, but the lack of walls offered a magnificent view of the Grand Pitons. Oh, and a good looking guy to boot." 

 

Sisters, Bhaktapur, Nepal, 1990

"With babies strapped to their backs, and an average of seven children per family, the older girls in Bhaktapur seem to skip childhood right into womanhood. This is one of the many photos I took during my five years of living and working in Nepal." 

 

Komomo, a maiko with umbrella, Kyoto, Japan, 2005

"Komomo is an apprentice maiko [“dance child” or “half-jewel”] and as part of her training to become a geisha spends 24 hours a day, seven days a week for about five years studying the formal arts such as dance, music, poetry. I was invited to enter the mysterious world of these artisans and access some private time with the girls as they prepared for their evening functions."

  

Kazakh hunter and his eagle, Olgii, western Mongolia, 2006

"Every year dozens of Kazakh hunters gather for the Golden Eagle festival amid the craggy far western Altai Mountain range. They play traditional games: archery, horse and camel racing and Khukh-bar, a tug-of-war played on horseback with a sheepskin. The most anticipated event that these proud men come for is to show off the skills of their hunting birds. Only one bird is declared a winner, but at the end of the day each man rides out just as regally as he rode in, covering the long distance back to his village on horseback with the weight of his huge eagle balanced on the crook of his arm." 

   

Cowboy at the charreada rodeo, Guadalajara, Mexico, 2009

"This proud young cowboy evoked a romantic and timeless image as he prepared to head out to ride in the rodeo. He performed exceptionally well that night, tirelessly roping cattle as the crowds cheered him on."  

 

Boy awaits prosthetics at Red Cross Center for Rehabilitation after losing his legs to a land mine, Kabul, Afghanistan, 2007

"Every 22 minutes someone somewhere in the world is maimed or killed by a land mine. Children are frequently the victims. The Red Cross Center for Rehabilitation has six centers across Afghanistan, and they have treated 39,000 cases in Kabul alone. There is a staff of about 500 and everyone that works there has been affected by war. Many have lost appendages themselves, mostly from land mines." 

 

Babies in a bucket, in a tent city after the earthquake, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 2010

"When the quake hit on January 12, 2010, I had been staying in a decadent US$10,000 a night villa while photographing the stunning Amanyara on Turks and Caicos Island. One 30-minute flight later I couldn’t have been farther from that reality. I met Cecile who offered to let me to sleep outside of her home with her extended family, who had nowhere else to go. It always seems to be the people who have the least who give the most." 

  

Monks resting at Bayon Temple, Angkor, Cambodia, 2006

"On my first day returning to Angkor Wat in Cambodia after 12 years I was initially dismayed to find the ancient ruins literally sinking under the weight of tourists. I discovered it was best to walk the ruins in the opposite direction of the tourists, when the monks come out to enjoy the quiet of the day."  

  

The Dalai Lama blessing his guard, Dharamsala, India, 1998

"I first met His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1988 and have had the great fortune to photograph him a number of times over the years. I’ve always enjoyed our conversations but it’s his gestures that hold the most meaning. One day we were walking through the lovely bamboo shaded lane from his home to his office as we passed one of his ever-present guards. Suddenly the Dalai Lama stopped. Placing one hand on the soldier’s hand holding the rifle, he chanted a prayer and moved on. The guard simply beamed."