Martha Smith

08/05/2026

I Own 40+ Vanilla Perfumes, but I Get Compliments on These 7 Cozy Scents Every Single Time—From $24

A vanilla-obsessed shopping writer shares her most-treasured vanilla scents that get compliments every time she wears them. From woody vanillas to nostalgic, candy-like scents, shop compliment-magnets from Kayali, Phlur, and Maison Francis Kurkdjian, starting at just $24.

07/05/2024

A slow camera exposure blurs the crowds inside the Lincoln Memorial, which celebrated its centennial on May 30, 2022. Carved from 38,000 tons of marble, limestone, and granite, the edifice honoring the 16th president holds a massive statue of Abraham Lincoln by sculptor Daniel Chester French.

23/04/2024

In the Peruvian Andes, the ruins of the ancient Inca city of Choquequirao, a cousin to the more visited Machu Picchu, can only be reached by foot or mule. However, a proposed cable car could make the site more accessible to travelers.

10/04/2024

Spring-fed swimming hole in central Texas

28/03/2024

West Texas sunset, Marfa

15/03/2024

As I left Forestburg one evening and passed through Montague going south, the sun was setting behind a ranch museum, and I quickly snapped two shots with my wife's digital camera before the light changed. A Texas-ranch-country shot.

29/02/2024

A Temminck’s ground pangolin named Tamuda searches for a meal of ants or termites at a rehabilitation center in Zimbabwe. He was rescued from illegal wildlife traders, who likely would have smuggled his scales to Asia for use in traditional remedies.

15/02/2024

All clear? A rat peeks out from a stormwater catch basin.

03/02/2024

Leonardo’s “Mona Lisa” is believed to depict Lisa Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo, a Florentine silk merchant. Every year, millions of visitors jostle for a view at the Louvre Museum in Paris. The painting, protected by a thick layer of glass that must be cleaned regularly, has never been restored.

18/01/2024

In Palau's biodiverse waters, scientists find life is thriving under the seas. Here, a tiny goby camouflages with a branch of red coral.