These eye-catching iPhone photos win top contest honors

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IPPA 2018
Rohingya children watching an awareness film about health and sanitation near Tangkhali refugee camp in Ukhiya. Shot with iPhone 7.
Photo: Jashim Salam

Behold the possibilities of what could happen when you take your iPhone out of your pocket to make a picture.

Below is the ultimate camera roll, the first place award-winning pictures from the 11th iPhone Photography Awards, announced today in New York City.

Thousands of entries were whittled down to first, second and third place winners in 18 categories.

The Grand Prize Winner and Photographer of the Year went to Jashim Salam of Bangladesh, whose picture, “Displaced,” shows Rohingya children watching a film in a refugee camp. Salam made the picture with an iPhone 7.

But the camera – in this case, the model – doesn’t matter. The vision of each photograph does.

Still, it’s worth noting that many winning pictures were produced with older models, including two with the iPhone 5s.

Here are the first place pictures in each category. With many, the captions are personal accounts from the photographers. To view all of the winning pictures visit the IPPA website.

Photographer of the Year

iPhone photos
Baiana in yellow and blue: The picture was taken in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, spontaneously, after a truck drove by. The woman with traditional clothes of a “baiana”, was looking after the truck, during her work break. Shot on iPhone 6s
Photo: Alexandre Weber/Switzerland

Abstract

IPPA 2018
Corrugations
: was looking to take some photos in a rather cluttered, messy industrial space. As I became more frustrated at the lack
of interesting images, my eye honed in
on smaller details. A simple and striking black and white image of cardboard scraps resulted. Shot on iPhone X
Photo: Glenn Homann/Austrailia

Animals

IPPA 2018
Django Old man baby dog
: Django is a Shaolin Temple Terrier, born and raised in a Buddhist monastery in the northern province of Hunan China. Django likes long walks on the beach and listening to Miles Davis. Shot on iPhone 7 Plus
Photo: Robin Robertis/United States

Architecture

IPPA 2018
Rampage: A stair ramp from Rome in Via Allegri.Shot on iPhone 7 Plus
Photo: Massimo Graziani/Italy

Children

IPPA 2018
Spray Fury: My daughter was wearing her ballet leotard and she was spraying her siblings and herself. Shot on iPhone 5s
Photo: Melisa Barrilli/Canada

Floral

IPPA 2018
Light
: I was parking to do my weekly grocery shopping and saw the amazing light on the wall and flowers. Shot on iPhone 7
Photo: Alison Helena/United States

Landscape

IPPA 2018
Human vs. Nature
: I’ve always been fascinated with the view out of an airplane window. On this afternoon, I was lucky enough to get a window seat on a return trip from Las Vegas. I watched the landscape slowly transform from cityscape to rows of identical suburban houses, to surreal desert- scape. Shot on iPhone 8 Plus
Photo: Charles Thomas/United States

Lifestyle

IPPA 2018
Mrs. Sancheski
: This day I opened my second exhibition, there was a lot of atmosphere and good friends. Mrs. Sancheski is the mother of three children, unique, urban and stylish. Shot on iPhone 7
Photo: Natalia Garcés/Spain

Nature

IPPA 2018
Morning fog. Shot on iPhone 6s
Photo: Sukru Mehmet Omur/France

News/Events

IPPA 2018
Iftar Amongst the Ruins: During a lull in the bombings, Syrians gather, seated on a long 1200-meter row of tables set up amongst the ruins of Douma, for a public Iftar, the evening meal at the end of the daily Ramadan fast. Shot on iPhone 7
Photo: Mohammed Badra/Syria

Other

IPPA 2018
Sky Portal: I took this photo at the 39th Annual Wright Kite Festival in Kill Devil Hills, NC, where 30-100 foot kites were on display amidst clouds and drizzle. Shot on iPhone SE
Photo: Amy Nelson/United States

Panorama

IPPA 2018
Icebergs
: In summer the sun is above the horizon nearly all day where Vatnajökull glacier meets the Atlantic Ocean. Shot on iPhone 6 Plus
Photo: Mateusz Piesiak/Poland

People

IPPA 2018
Posers
: Brazilian tourist pose in front of a small Catholic chapel taking a tourists photo. Shot on iPhone 7 Plus
Photo: Jonas Wyssen/Switzerland

Portrait

IPPA 2018
Salamah: Moken village elder, Salamah, wearing his hand- carved wooden dive goggles on the beach at Au Bon Yai, a tiny island community of about 300 sea gypsies off the coast of Phang Nga, Thailand. Shot on iPhone 6s
Photo: Scott Woodward/Singapore

Still Life

IPPA 2018
Diner. Shot on iPhone 7
Photo: Fiona Bailey/United Kingdom

Sunset

IPPA 2018
Dandelion sunset
: In central Finland, where summer days are long and sunsets beautiful. I was out walking by a lake one evening, and saw dandelions floating in the breeze. Feeling inspired, I picked one, held it up and used it as a filter through which to capture the last rays of the day’s sun. Shot on iPhone 5s
Photo: Sara Ronkainen/Finland

Travel

IPPA 2018
Silk Road: This photo was taken on the first day of my departure for the desert of Gobi, on the Silk Road. On the road I got lost with my two Mongolian men, driver and guide, and we found ourselves in this area known for the very first traces of dinosaurs. Shot on iPhone 6s
Photo: Anna Aiko/France

Trees

IPPA 2018
Road of Tuscany. Shot on iPhone 7
Photo: Lidia Muntean/Romania

U.S. photographer Cocu Liu won first place for Series with pictures entirely Urban Impressionism but pictures were not available from IPPA.

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