Vinte milhões de seguidores, mil milhões de corações. É isto que valem as imagens que a National Geographic publica no Instagram desde que criou a sua página, em março de 2012.

São sete mil fotografias capturadas por cem fotojornalistas que gerem o Instagram da revista científica, de acordo com o El País. Estas são as mais populares:

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Look into these eyes! Stop the demand and the killing can too. There are only 3200 tigers left in the wild! We need to fight for the right of tigers to live – peacefully and without being killed. @stevewinterphoto This image was from my @natgeo story “The Cry of the Tiger" Check out my NG Book “Tigers Forever” – this is the cub on the front cover photographed 10 months later! Join National Geographic's Big Cat Initiative, www.causeanuproar.org #bigcatsforever Check out WildAid – “When the buying stops, the killing can too” #wildaid – Watch the Nat Geo / WildAid PSA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81MKjmsnEgM #bigcatsforever @natgeo @wildaid @thephotosociety @natgeocreative @stevewinterphoto #photooftheday #photography#conservationphotography #love #tigers #cats #beautiful #me #follow #canon #wildaid #ivoryfree #eiainvestigator

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Photograph by @JohnStanmeyer Mount Bromo (foreground) and Mount Semeru, simultaneously erupting as the earliest touches of dawn mix with the light from a setting full moon during the sacred #Kasada ceremony in the spectacular #Tengger Caldera located in #EastJava #Indonesia. Pleased to announce that beginning today I’ve joined @NatGeoCreative for representation in commercial assignments and image licensing. In addition, I’m bringing my entire archive — 14 stories from more than a decade with @NatGeo magazine — over to NatGeo Creative, expanding my collaboration with the Society, sharing more loudly the passions for education, awareness on the issues facing all of us today and into the future. Looking forward to dancing with the talented team lead by Maura Mulvihill and the likes of @alicebrkeating, @ginamartindc and more. Above is a photograph from my 4th story with the magazine, published in the January 2008 edition, titled #VolcanoGods. A story I proposed to the magazine, the approach was rather unorthodox — not how one volcano is interacted with #spiritually, rather how an entire nation located along the #RingofFire interacts with what many Indonesian’s believe are the bellybuttons of the earth. Will never forget the story proposal conference call. It went somewhat like this: Mid-morning in a bar in Iquitos, Peru. On the phone was editor and chief, Chris Johns, then director of photography @dlgriffin, creative director @billmarr, members of the editorial and art departments, maps and more. After explaining the story approach for 10 or so minutes, Chris said, “I like this idea, let’s do it.” Then I thought, great — now I have to prove my theories on a topic never widely studied. Had the privilege to be partner with Senior Photo Editor, @sadiequarrier. Sadie and I worked through the process of creating the final narrative that appeared in the magazine. Often complex, I’ve always feel that each National Geographic story I do is like preparing — then defending — your doctoral thesis. In this case, it nearly was, standing in a room over a year later, presenting the final story that originated with a "let’s do it" back in South America.

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Os critérios são livres: podemos dar por nós a olhar diretamente para um tigre ou dentro dos bastidores das produções National Geographic. Só há uma regra: não podem ser publicadas novas fotografias no espaço de uma hora.

PUB • CONTINUE A LER A SEGUIR

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Photo @coryrichards on assignment with @intotheokavango for @natgeo A woman who lost her leg to a land mine working her crops nine months ago makes her way down a dusty road in Angola. In 2002, Angola emerged from decades of civil war. Since then, the country has made massive strides in making a name for themselves in global markets. @halotrust has been working tirelessly in the years following the ceasefire to clear the rural areas of land mines. In an odd twist, the de-mining taking place is opening up land that was once de facto 'off limits'. As areas are opened, people move in, and ecosystems are interrupted and altered. It's a catch 22. Our #okavango15 expedition is traveling by Mekoro from the spring that is the source of the Cuito River in the Angolan highlands, southward over 1,000 miles to do a scientific survey of one of the most pivotal tributaries of the Okavango River Delta. Follow @coryrichards and @intotheokavango for more images and stories from the next ten weeks in Africa. @thephotosociety @natgeocreative @eddiebauer www.intotheokavango.org posted from the field.

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Photo by @amivitale. Rangers from @lewa_wildlife move a sleepy black rhino from its transport caravan to its new home at @nrt_kenya’s Sera Community Conservancy. It’s a habitat the rhino has not seen in nearly 30 years. Populations of the Eastern black rhino plummeted by 98% between 1960 and 1995 primarily as a result of poaching and hunting, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Conservation efforts have stabilized and increased numbers in most of the black rhino’s former ranges since then. Kenya’s population is projected to rise significantly in the near future, especially with growing partnerships between government, communities and conservation organizations. It is hoped that the new rhino sanctuary will benefit Kenya’s black rhino population. #savetherhinos #natureisspeaking #rhinos #nature #wild #wildlife #conservation #animals #endangered #endangeredspecies #naturelovers #lewa #lewawildlifeconservancy #Kenya #magicalkenya #Africa #NikonNoFilter #nikon #nikonambassador #amivitale #photojournalism #onassignment @nature_africa @natgeocreative @thephotosociety @nikonusa

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The time for Mt. Lion research is now. From projects pictured here in the south led by researchers like Mark Elbroch and Panthera to projects in the northern range of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem led by Dan Stahler, researchers use winter months as the prime time for tracking and locating one of North Americas most elusive predators. In this case researchers are excited to find newborn kittens at the site of a suspected den. Once checked to determine sex, weight and overall health the kittens are returned to their den, researchers armed with knowledge that will help establish population estimates in a given area. To see the flip side of that cute cuddly face, go to @drewtrush To learn more about ongoing projects in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem that hope to learn more about these amazing animals follow the @yellowstone_cougar_project and visit panthera.org #mtlionsrule #kittens #cats #wildlife #greateryellowstoneecosystem #gye

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O sucesso da estratégia de redes sociais implementada pela National Geographic mereceu uma celebração: a revista decidiu juntar num álbum só as publicações mais populares na conta de Instagram. De vídeos a fotografias, passando por animais selvagens e jornalistas aventureiros, as imagens que ilustram este artigo foram aquelas que mais corações roubaram aos utilizadores.

O Instagram transformou-se numa ferramenta eficiente para o sucesso da National Geographic. O número de revistas vendidas não se alterou significativamente, mas a Ciência começou a interessar mais aos jovens. Além disso, permite mostrar ao mundo as fotografias que não chegam às páginas da revista, mas que também elas contam histórias. De resto, há um arquivo de 125 anos que voltou a ser explorado… e publicado.