The Washington, DC-based Indian photographer, Tarun Sinha, captured the contrasting hues of crocodiles and sand on the banks of the Tárcoles River along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, and took a third prize in the 2017 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest.

“This image was captured in Costa Rica when I was traveling from Monteverde to Playa Hermosa [in Puntarenas province]. As you cross over this river, you can stop and peer over the edge of the bridge. Below, reside over 35 gigantic crocodiles, relaxing on the muddy banks of the river. I wanted to capture the stark difference between the crocodiles on land and in the water. In the murky waters, the body contours of these beasts remain hidden, and one can only truly see their girth as they emerge from the river.”

His photo, “Crocodiles at Rio Tarcoles,” won third place in the NatGeo contest’s nature category.

The contest jury described the photo as follows, “Sinha’s frame is neatly divided, with black sand on the left and muddy waters on the right. Both sides are dotted with crocodiles.”

The photographer described the tour of the well-known tourist spot as follows:

“When our guide told us there would be 30 to 40 crocodiles in the river, we thought he was exaggerating,” said Sinha. “We walked along a narrow bridge and peered over the waist-high railing, where several crocodiles were moving in and out of the water. I wanted to capture the stark contrast between their partially covered bodies in the river versus their enormous size while on full display.”