The tech on our phones is pretty incredible—and the cameras available to everyone with an iPhone are a good example. Some people have gone so far as to film documentaries using just their phone’s camera. And over the years, the ability of iPhone and Android cameras has gotten better and better, and there’s a plethora of tips online to help turn what could just be another Instagram post into something really special.
For the 16th year in a row, the iPhone Photography Awards has chosen a handful of especially beautiful shots from thousands of iPhone-taken submissions from around the world. Here are some of the winners, and some PopSci favorites.
Grand Prize Winner “Heroe” taken by Ivan Silva in Arandas, Jalisco, Mexico. Shot on iPhone 12 Pro. First place Photographer of the Year goes to Germany’s Thea Mihu. This shot, called “Soy Sauce Village,” was taken on an iPhone 12 Pro Max in Hung Yen Province, HaNoi, Vietnam.Second place Photographer of the Year goes to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Sasa Borozan, who photographed this photograph titled “Taming Waves” on an iPhone 13 Pro.This stunning shot of pink flamingos in San Diego came in first place for the animals category. “Once en Rosa” by Skye Snyder on an iPhone 12 Pro Max.“The Great Synagogue” by Australia’s Edwin Cabingan won first place in the architecture category. This was shot on an iPhone 11 Pro Max.Jinsong Hu’s “Life in Tube-shaped Building” won first place in the cityscape category. This photo was shot on a iPhone 12 Pro Max in Chongqing, China.This eerie shot, called “Early Morning Farm,” was shot on an iPhone 12 Pro by Ton Ensing in the Netherlands. It came in first place in the landscape category.The striking “Wonder Wheel” came in first place in the nature category. This photo was shot on a iPhone 12 Pro Max by Scott Galloway.
