Photos from the winners of the sixth annual iPhone Photography Awards have been posted on the IPPA website, displaying some of the best pictures taken with an iPhone over the course of the past year.

The photo subjects range from portraits of animals and people to landscapes, with the first place photo depicting a close-up shot of a horse. The second and third place photos were taken during a Holi festival of colors and a snowstorm, respectively.

ippawinner
In addition to the top three photos of the year, the website also displays the winners from a number of categories, including architecture, nature, seasons, and food.

ippanaturefirstplace
According to the rules of the contest, all photos were taken with an iPhone. No external manipulation was permitted, though photo editing apps such as Instagram and Snapseed were allowed to be used.

snowstorm
Apple's iPhone remains the most popular camera choice on photo sharing website Flickr, a title that it has held since 2009. As the iPhone has grown in popularity as a point-and-shoot camera replacement, Apple has worked hard to improve its photo taking capabilities. The iPhone 5 introduced an impressive 8-megapixel camera with enhanced HDR and low-light capabilities and the iPhone 5S, coming in September, is expected to offer further camera improvements.

Top Rated Comments

iMikeT Avatar
161 months ago
The "pro photographers" are getting scared.


Having experience as a professional commercial photographer, I will come out and say that it is reasonable to have some amount of fear with the growing trend of iPhone/camera phone photos becoming accepted in the world of photography. In fact, I have friends who work for ad agencies that have sought out photography in the style of those taken with iPhones.

Despite the growing trend of amateurs using their phones for creativity and dare I say "art", it takes more than just luck for quality work. With the further democratization of creativity, access to creative tools, and forums where anyone can post their work, we as a society may suffer from the lack of quality for a few generations.

Personally, I've never entered a photography contest. The reason is the fact that we have a close-up for a horse winning picture of the year while there are other photos that were far more compelling that it. Every time I've been encouraged to enter my work in one of these contests, I always look at the prior year's winners and they're always some sort of nature/landscape shot. It makes no difference how creative a person is, if a person can point a camera and knows how to open a shutter at the luckiest moment, they can win in these contests.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
blue22 Avatar
161 months ago
iPhoneography...

Camera phones are certainly getting better, but won't be replacing dSLR's anytime soon.

What matters most IMHO is your creativity and passion for the field of photography, not what tools you utilize to make captivating photos from.

That said, it's great to see mobile photography getting the kudos it deserves.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
justperry Avatar
161 months ago
Photos from the winners of the sixth annual iPhone Photography Awards (http://www.ippawards.com/?project=2013-winners) have been posted on the IPPA website (http://www.ippawards.com/), displaying some of the best pictures taken with an iPhone over the course of the past year.

Site seems to be offline!
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jsameds Avatar
161 months ago
I wish they could be a filter-free showcase. You can take any old picture and filter it to death until it ticks all the boxes for an arty and moody photograph which then goes on to win awards. It just de-values the whole thing IMO.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iLilana Avatar
161 months ago
First

First let me start with "there are iPhone photo awards?" That's crazy. second There are iPhone photography awards?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nStyle Avatar
161 months ago
These are certainly good but its irrelevant what camera these came from. Obviously, from a technical standpoint, they aren't the clearest, sharpest, most accurate photos. They are filtered up "meh".
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found. Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Apple to Make More Foldable iPhones Than Expected

Tuesday December 9, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports. In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
Johny Srouji

Apple's Chipmaking Chief Johny Srouji Responds to Report About Him Potentially Leaving

Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future. "I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
google pixel 10

Switching Between iPhone and Android Will Get Easier With New Apple and Google Collaboration

Monday December 8, 2025 11:10 am PST by
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta. Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple Fitness Plus expansion hero

Apple Fitness+ Coming to 28 New Regions With Digital Voice Dubbing

Monday December 8, 2025 6:19 am PST by
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre. Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....