It's been an eventful year, and we've seen many striking photos from all over the world. They spark a range of emotions, from sorrow to joy, outrage to hope.
But we often never learn the full story behind a photo, all the factors at work that put a brave photographer in the middle of the action to get the shot.
A number of noted Reuters photographers have come together to do just that: Tell the story of how they got some of 2014's most amazing photographs. Their stories will surprise you.
Pro-European integration protesters take cover from water sprayed from a fire engine at the site of clashes with riot police in Kiev, January 23, 2014.
"Everyday protestors moved up to the barricades, made from burnt buses and cars, to clash with the police. It was winter, cold, and police used water hoses to turn the streets in front of the barricades to ice. The protestors kept moving up to the police positions to throw Molotov cocktails and the police kept driving them back with rubber bullets and water hoses.
This was happening for many days. Molotov cocktails were everywhere - in the air, being thrown at the police and behind barricades ready to be used. The flag of Ukraine was seen everywhere, and one song was sang many times a day - the Ukraine anthem. To shoot pictures every day in a bulletproof vest and helmet, while walking among the piles of burnt tires and avoiding rubber bullets was a challenge. I was surprised by the strong desire of the protestors to change something in their life, how they helped each other - many people, including the very old, brought warm clothes and hot food to them." - Vasily Fedosenko
Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters
People hang out in a Publix grocery store after being stranded due to a snow storm in Atlanta, Georgia, January 29, 2014.
"Atlanta is usually known for its mild winters but when an ice storm began hitting the Metro area directly, traffic reached nightmarish proportions and vehicles became stranded for long hours. I began my day on another assignment 100 miles north of Atlanta but immediately headed back when I saw the snowfall. Having grown up there, I know the back roads well, which helped as I hit traffic in the northern suburbs. I began taking pictures and transmitting what I could on the drive, arriving into the city at sunrise.
My sister said a friend of hers was stuck at a Publix grocery store that stayed opened all night to shelter and feed people. Ironically, I had slid into a bush nearby so after extracting my car, I went to the store to take pictures. The scene was surreal; scattered people slept soundly on the floor or tried to stay awake. Several of the pictures were widely published and friends called me from all over to ask about them. In total I spent over 30 hours in my car before I made it home." - Tami Chappell
Men rest after salvaging metal on the 30th floor of the "Tower of David" skyscraper in Caracas in this photo taken on February 3, 2014.
"The building was intended to be a shining new financial center but was abandoned around 1994 after the death of its developer and the collapse of the financial sector. Squatters invaded the huge concrete skeleton in 2007 and now about 3,000 people call the tower their home. The first time I tried to get access to the tower wasn't really a success. I was told, not in the friendliest of terms, that I should leave while I still could. The residents of the tower, and particularly those in charge of managing it, were (and still are) very sensitive to media. Publications frequently feature headlines such as: 'Tower of terror,' 'The shanty skyscraper,' it has even been featured in an episode of the TV series 'Homeland' as a kidnappers' den.
My intention wasn't to follow on from these headlines. I wanted above all to create a portrait of the lives of the thousands of people who call this place home, and who face struggles and risks every day. I wanted to document without judging. That is what I told the squatters' board of administrators, who made me explain my intentions in producing this story. I felt the strong sense of community here from the first time I ascended the tower." - Jorge Silva
See the rest of the story at Business Insider