The week’s best photos
A new year dawns, a volcano yawns, and more
Lightning strikes overhead as members of the SOS Mediterranee rescue ship "Ocean Viking" conduct an exercise in the Mediterranean Sea
(Image credit: Sameer Al-Doumy / AFP / Getty Images)
A boy kicks a ball down an alley near the Balata camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank
(Image credit: Zain Jaafar / AFP / Getty Images)
Fireworks light up the Opera House and Harbour Bridge during New Year's Eve celebrations in Sydney, Australia
(Image credit: Saeed Khan / AFP / Getty Images)
Buddhist devotees pray inside coffins during the New Year's resurrection ceremony at Wat Takien temple in Bangkok, Thailand
(Image credit: Rungroj Yongrit / EPA / Shutterstock)
A volcanic eruption lights up the north-east crater of Mount Etna in Sicily, Italy
(Image credit: Salvatore Allegra / AP Photo)
Galejadors dressed in traditional Catalan costume fire their muskets during the Pine Festival in Centelles, Spain
(Image credit: Jordi Boixareu / ZUMA Press Wire / Shutterstock)
A pelican is silhouetted against the sky above Panama City, Panama
(Image credit: Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty Images)
A street musician breathes fire during a heavy snowfall in St. Petersburg, Russia
(Image credit: Dmitri Lovetsky / AP Photo)
A performer with his face painted black poses for a portrait during the Day of Holy Innocents celebrations in Caucagua, Venezuela
(Image credit: Federico Parra / AFP / Getty Images)
Pigeons flock above a throng of tourists visiting Amer Fort in Jaipur, India
(Image credit: Vishal Bhatnagar / NurPhoto / Shutterstock)
German ski jumper Pius Paschke competes during the second stage of the Four Hills Tournament in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany
(Image credit: Matthias Schrader / AP Photo)
Children interact with a lion dancer at a kindergarten in Wenling City, China
(Image credit: Xinhua / Shutterstock)
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Stephen Kelly is a photo editor and illustrator for The Week Digital, creating original artwork to accompany articles and social media, as well as curating photography and cartoons. Before joining the team in 2023, Stephen managed the photographic archive for multimedia publisher Future, working on everything from picture editing and content licensing to directing photo shoots. He has also been a freelance illustrator, contributing editorial artwork to magazines and websites including T3, Rock Sound, Tom’s Guide, Property Week and Cycling Plus, while also writing about music for Total Guitar and MusicRadar. Stephen studied illustration at the University of Dundee and Ontario College of Art and Design, specialising in narrative art (he once self-published his own comic, it was weird), and loves to incorporate storytelling and humour into his work.