I have a confession to make. Aside from photographing my nine-year-old daughter, which I do often, I hardly ever take pictures. The one exception is when I travel—when new surroundings present patterns, colors, light, and lines that inspire me to pick up my camera (or iPhone, as the case may be) and create my own interpretations. Every year, the Traveler Photo Contest invites aspiring and professional photographers alike to share images of the people, places, and things that have inspired them (like the underwater shot of a Hawaiian petrel above). And then I get to take a virtual trip when editing Photo of the Day, which is the next best thing.

“Today in Istanbul, Sultan Ahmet Mosque