Reuters' Best Photos of the Year collection captures the joy and devastation of the events that defined 2012

From the Syria conflict to the London Olympics and Hurricane Sandy, 2012 has been an eventful year when it comes to news.

And at every turn, some of the world's best photojournalists were there to capture the moment in time, often placing themselves in great danger to get the shot.

Steve Nesius captured the spectacular image of a roller coaster in the ocean at Seaside Heights in New Jersey after Superstorm Sandy's devastation.

'It's a very surreal image to me, and not one I'll soon forget,' he said of the image, which he took from a helicopter.

Describing the moments before he captured the heart-wrenching image of two U.S. soldiers embracing, photographer Shamil Zhumatov said: 'They were shot at again, and then it became really scary – one shot, then another, then bursts of machinegun fire and then it all turned into a deafening, unending roar.
'All of a sudden, an explosion roared. I can recognize explosions, and that one meant nothing good.'
Whether joyful or devastating, the powerful images, taken from Reuter's Best Photos of the Year showcase, provide a snapshot of the war, natural disasters, sport, culture and politics that defined 2012, as the year draws to a close.

A man walks down Shore Front Parkway surrounded by debris pushed onto the streets by hurricane Sandy in the Queens borough region of the Rockaways in New York, November 6, 2012 (Lucas Jackson, United States)

Gabrielle Douglas of the U.S. competes in the balance beam during the women's individual all-around gymnastics final during the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 2, 2012 (Dylan Martinez, Britain)

A bench engraved with the name of the grounded Costa Concordia cruise ship (seen at rear) is seen washed up on the shore of Giglio island, January 20, 2012 (Paul Hanna, Italy)

A Free Syrian Army fighter fires his sniper rifle from a house in Aleppo on August 14, 2012 (Goran Tomasevic, Syria)

Confetti obscures the stage as U.S. President Barack Obama celebrates after winning the U.S. presidential election in Chicago, Illinois, November 7, 2012 (Philip Scott- Andrews, United States)

Marietta Perkins prays during a vigil for victims behind the theater where a gunman opened fire on moviegoers in Aurora, Colorado on July 20, 2012 (Shannon Stapleton, United States)

The remnants of a roller coaster sits in the surf three days after Hurricane Sandy came ashore in Seaside Heights, New Jersey November 1, 2012 (Steve Nesius, United States)

Jamaica's Usain Bolt runs to win the men's 200m final at the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium August 9, 2012 (Stefano Rellandini, England)

Women, wear nylon masks, invented to block the sun's rays, rest on the shore during their visit to a beach in Qingdao, Shandong province on July 6, 2012 (Aly Song, China)

Students use a bridge, collapsed during flooding, to cross a river to get to school at Sanghiang Tanjung village in Indonesia on January 19, 2012 (Beawiharta, Indonesia)

U.S. soldier Nicholas Dickhut from 5-20 infantry Regiment points his rifle at a doorway after coming under fire by the Taliban in Kandahar province, southern Afghanistan on April 26, 2012(Baz Ratner, Afghanistan)

A protester reacts as the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi is seen in flames during a protest by an armed group said to have been protesting a film being produced in the United States September 11, 2012 (Esam Al-Fetori, Libya)

Devotees try to form a human pyramid to break a clay pot containing curd during the celebrations to mark the Hindu festival of Janmashtami in Mumbai August 10, 2012 (Danish Siddiqui, India)

Actor Tom Cruise carries his daughter Suri past a group of photographers as they make their way from a hotel in New York on July 17, 2012 (Keith Bedford, United States)

Staff members reflected off the window of the room where Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney works before a campaign rally in North Canton, Ohio on October 26, 2012 (Brian Snyder, United States)

A naked protester runs past the parliament in Syntagma Square in Athens during a violent protest against the visit of Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel on October 9, 2012 (John Kolesidis, Greece)

An ethnic Rakhine man holds homemade weapons as he walks in front of houses that were burnt during fighting between Buddhist Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya communities in Sittwe on June 10, 2012 (Staff photographer, Myanmar)

Cyrus Fakroddin and his pet goat Cocoa take a taxi ride in New York on April 7, 2012 (Allison Joyce, United States)

The skyline of lower Manhattan, as seen from Exchange Place, is mostly in darkness except for the Goldman Sachs building after a power outage caused by giant storm Sandy on October 30, 2012 (Eduardo Munoz, United States)

 

U.S. Army soldiers react after their comrade was wounded at patrol by an improvised explosive device on June 12, 2012 (Shamil Zhumatov, Afghanistan)

Protesters destroy an American flag pulled down from the U.S. embassy in Cairo September 11, 2012 (Mohamed Abd El Ghany, Egypt)

Delegates sit at the stage before the opening ceremony of 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, November 8, 2012 (Jason Lee, China)

A man takes a photo as Space Shuttle Endeavour travels to the California Science Center in Inglewood, Los Angeles on October 13, 2012 (Rick Loomis, United States)

Bavarian farmers transport their cows on a boat over the picturesque Lake Koenigssee at dusk on October 3, 2012 (Michael Dalder, Germany)

The sun reflects off the club as Tiger Woods hits off on the seventh tee during the final round of the AT&T National golf tournament at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland July 1, 2012 (Kevin Lamarque, United States)

 

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