One visible sign of China's recent economic growth is the rise in prominence of inventors and entrepreneurs. For years now, Chinese farmers, engineers, and businessmen have taken on ambitious do-it-yourself projects, constructing homemade submarines, helicopters, robots, safety equipment, weapons and much more. Some of the inventions are built out of passion, some with an eye toward profit, (some certainly safer than others), and a few have already led to sales for the inventors. Gathered here are recent photos of this DIY movement across China. [39 photos total]

HDR Photography, you either love it or hate it. I have read comments reflecting both sentiments and honestly I can understand both sides. A lot of HDR photography I have found really seems blown-out and way way to saturated and for the most part just plain ugly. This flavor of HDR photos I can do without. Then there is the well executed HDR image. Here we find beautiful dreamlike colors and tones, almost a magical quality to it. Below I have examples of just that type of HDR photo. Enjoy. [35 photos total]

There are now over one billion automobiles on the road worldwide. An explosion in the auto markets in China and India ensures that number will increase, with China supplanting the United States as the world's largest car market. It's fair to say humanity has a love affair with the car, but it's a love-hate relationship. Cars are at once convenience, art, and menace. People write songs about their vehicles, put them in museums, race them, and wrap their identities up in them. About 15% of carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of fossil fuels comes from cars. Traffic fatality estimates vary from half a million per year to more than double that. Gathered here are images of the automobile in many forms, and our relationship to and dependence on our cars. This is the second in an occasional Pixtale series on transportation, following Pedal power earlier this year. [40 photos total]

Time once more for one of my favorite holiday traditions: the 2012 Hubble Space Telescope Advent Calendar. Every day until Tuesday, December 25, this page will present one new image of our universe from NASA's Hubble telescope. Be sure to bookmark this calendar and come back every day until the 25th, or follow on Twitter (@in_focus), Google+, Facebook, or Tumblr for daily updates. I hope you enjoy these amazing and awe-inspiring images and the efforts of the science teams who have brought them to Earth. I also must say how fortunate I feel to have been able to share photo stories with you all year, and I wish a Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it, and peace on Earth to all. [25 photos total]

The deadline to enter this year's National Geographic photo contest is coming up -- this Friday, November 30. Back in September, the society started gathering and presenting galleries of submissions, encouraging readers to vote for them as well. Winners will be chosen on or around December 15, 2012. National Geographic was once more kind enough to let me choose some of its entries for 2012 to feature here on In Focus. Gathered below are 50 images from the three categories of People, Places, and Nature, with captions written by the individual photographers. Be sure to also see Part I on Pixtale, from September. [50 photos total]

The growth of China's massive population has slowed in recent years, but migration to urban areas has increased, with almost half of China's 1.3 billion people living in or near cities. A booming economy, government housing initiatives, infrastructure programs, and private real estate speculation have all driven construction to record levels. New apartment, office, and government buildings regularly rise up over older neighborhoods, and thousands have relocated to modern housing complexes. The blend of old and new Chinese architecture is ever-present in cities and villages, as older buildings are torn down and newer ones built at ever faster rates. The images below show glimpses of Chinese architecture, both traditional and modern, as it appears today. [51 photos total]

Pyongyang’s Ryugyong Hotel resembles a giant ballistic missile. As the so-called “Hotel of Doom” prepares to open in 2013, Pixtale looks at 15 buildings that don’t look like buildings [15 photos total]

Take a little peek in the Kernel microbrewery in South London. One of many new kids on the British beer block who are bucking the downward national trend in beer drinking. Where once the big, multi-national beer corporations accounted for the lion’s share of brewery growth, now small, independent brewers with names like Beavertown Neck Oil, East London Jamboree and Hackney Hopster that are leading the way. [24 photos total]

It's that time again…the 2012 National Geographic Photo Contest is in full swing. The contest has reached his midpoint but there is plenty of time to enter before the November 30, 2012 deadline. Photographers of all skill levels - from professional to amateur - across the globe, submitted more than 20,000 entries from 130 countries in last year's competition. The photographs are judged on creativity and photographic quality by a panel of experts in the field. There is a first place winner in each of three categories: People, Places and Nature, and a grand prizewinner as well. The following images are a sampling of the competition thus far twelve images in each category. The caption information is provided and written by the individual photographer. [36 photos total]

Around the world, people are using light to paint, perform, honor, work, and play. In villages and cities alike, lanterns and candles are used to celebrate and commemorate events. In Berlin, famous landmarks are currently being illuminated for the annual Festival of Lights. In Florida, a private spacecraft climbed into orbit atop a pillar of fire, and around the globe, dozens of buildings were bathed in pink for breast cancer awareness month. Gathered here is a handful of recent images of humans pushing back the dark and lighting up the night. [31 photos total]