<p>A man fixes his nets at the port of Barcelona, <a href="http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/spain-guide/">Spain</a>, on December 13.</p><p>Fishers and conservationists encountered murky waters in December. A <a href="http://bigstory.ap.org/article/eu-committee-backs-reforms-salvage-fish-stocks">parliamentary committee of the European Union voted to reform fishing quotas</a> for European commercial fishing fleets, which have <a href="http://blogs.nature.com/news/2012/12/science-advice-seldom-followed-in-setting-fishing-quotas.html">historically been set well above scientific recommendations</a>, on December 18.</p><p>But just two days later, EU fisheries ministers settled on catch quotas for 2013, about half of which environmental groups said exceeded sustainable levels as determined by the latest research.</p><p><strong>Why We Love It</strong></p><p>"The composition reminds me of paintings in art galleries. The dark foreground is rich in textures and has strong, energetic colors. In contrast to this, there are much softer, brighter colors in the background. Dark and bright areas are almost evenly split, which makes this scenic view a nicely balanced image."—<em>Amina El Banayosy, photo intern</em></p>