Photos: Stunning first shots from National Geographic’s 2015 Traveler Photo Contest

For photography amateurs everywhere, it’s that time of year again: the National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest, now in its 27th year.

An open call for single images, the annual competition will accept submissions from now until June 30. But the bar has already been set high—a few captions from early submissions reveal obsessive perfectionism: “We tried all day to get a good photo of the endangered white rhino,” writes one contender. Another photographer waited hours for a cloudy sky to clear, while still others travelled to Iceland, hiked the heights of Yosemite, or woke at the break of dawn, all for a chance at the perfect shot.

For those who prefer to just look, the photos below are a first taste of the competition. Judge for yourself.