Apple Reveals Winning 'Shot on iPhone' Macro Challenge Photos

Apple today unveiled the 10 winning photos from the Shot on iPhone Macro Challenge that the company launched earlier this year.

Apple Shot on iPhone macro Ashley Lee"Strawberry in Soda" by Ashley Lee, from San Francisco, U.S.A.

Entrants were able to submit unedited macro photos shot on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max straight from the camera, but photos edited through Apple's Photos app or third-party software were also accepted.

An international panel of expert judges, including Anand Varma, Apeksha Maker, Peter McKinnon, Paddy Chao, Yik Keat Lee, Arem Duplessis, Billy Sorrentino, Della Huff, Kaiann Drance, and Pamela Chen, reviewed the photos from around the world and selected 10 winning entries from China, Hungary, India, Italy, Spain, Thailand, and the United States.

The winning photos will be celebrated on Apple's website, Instagram account, and more. Apple has also said that winning photos may appear in the company's digital campaigns, such as in Apple Stores or on advertising billboards.

Apple Shot on iPhone macro Daniel Olah"A Drop of Freedom" by Daniel Olah, Budapest, Hungary

Apple Shot on iPhone macro Jirasak Panpiansin"Hidden Gem" by Jirasak Panpiansin, from Chaiyaphum City, Thailand

Apple Shot on iPhone macro Marco Colletta"The Cave" by Marco Colletta, Taranto, Italy

We've highlighted a few of the winning photos here and the full gallery can be viewed in Apple's full press release, including comments on each image from the photographer and judges.

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Top Rated Comments

szw-mapple fan Avatar
43 months ago
This speaks more to the people who were judged in the contest than the quality of the camera itself (which is also very good). A good photographer can make masterpieces with just adequate tools while a bad one won’t be able to do the same no matter how nice the camera is.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
44267547 Avatar
43 months ago
If anyone’s interested, you can see the ‘macro mode’ photography in the iPhone User forum here:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/share-your-best-macro-photography-shots.2313341/
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
43 months ago
Wow! Congratulations. They are stunning. One of the best features of the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max. Hands down! ??
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TonyC28 Avatar
43 months ago
That strawberry picture is cool.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
44267547 Avatar
43 months ago

This speaks more to the people who were judged in the contest than the quality of the camera itself (which is also very good). A good photographer can make masterpieces with just adequate tools while a bad one won’t be able to do the same no matter how nice the camera is.
Very true. And the best camera that you have, is the one that you have in your pocket. You can create the image you want your audience to see, based off your own creativity.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Tagbert Avatar
43 months ago

It is enough. If you feel youre missing out, get a basic dslr and dedicated macro lens. Your pics will exceed the quality of these by leaps and bounds.

The iphone 13 pro macro has (imo) pretty severe distortion along the edges and must be positioned so close to the subject that it casting a shadow with the phone and light problems are inevitable. A dedicated macro will be more uniform with no distortion, will likely allow for better magnification with some tweaks, will focus from farther away therefor avoiding light problems, and will overall be sharper and resolve better.

The iPhone 13 pro’s macro lens is very nifty, but it is just not a pro camera tool.

But it *is* very nifty!
It's a phone camera in your pocket. Of course it is not a pro camera tool. We recognize that but very few of us are pro photographers and still enjoy taking some amazing photos with a non-pro tool.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)