SkyPixel, one of the world’s most popular aerial photography communities, has announced the winners of the Skypixel 7th Anniversary Aerial Photo & Video Contest.
Co-organised with drone maker DJI, this year’s contest attracted nearly 30,000 submissions from professional photographers, videographers, aerial enthusiasts and content creators from 124 different countries and regions.
Grand Prize Photo
The Grand Prize winner in the Photo Category was shot by Zhu Jianxin on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro.
The image, titled Orchid, shows an otherworldly sight of a frozen lake after a heavy snow fell in the Taklamakan Desert, China. With a simple change in perspective, several cracks on a frozen lake magically came together to form something akin to a portrait of an elegant orchid.
Orchid, taken on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro in Xinjiang, China. 1/240sec at f/6, ISO 100. Image: Zhu Jianxin/Skypixel
Jianxin explained, ‘Photography as an art form always comes from life. It is born from nature. I am amazed by how a drone changes my perspective and helps me capture the beauty of our world.’
All submissions to the contest were assessed by a judging panel that included Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Alex Mellis, Pieter de Vries, Stefan Foster, Karim Iliya and Yunshan Yu.
Judge Stefan Foster commented on the work, ‘The real art in photography is to capture a photograph people have to analyse longer than a few seconds to see what the picture really shows.’
DJI Mavic 3 Limited Award
The DJI Mavic 3 Limited Award (only open to users of the DJI Mavic 3 drone) went to an image called China Animation Museum in the Mist by a Chinese photographer who goes by the name Tension Vision. The building is in Zhejiang, China.
You can read our DJI Mavic 3 review.
China Animation Museum in the Mist shot on a DJI Mavic 3 in Zhejiang, China. 1/600sec at f/3, ISO 100. Image: Tension Vision/Skypixel
Other Photo First Prizes
The other first prizes in the photography awards went to Scream by Nizhny Novgorod (Russia), Perfect Chaos by Sara Zanini (location unknown), Collecting Bang Grass by binhd7 (Vietnam) and Shadow Basketball II by Ekaterina Polischuk (Ukraine).
Scream, shot on a DJI Mavic Pro. 1/1000sec at f/2.3, ISO 100. Image: Nizhny Novgorod/Skypixel
Perfect Chaos, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. Image: Sara Zanini/Skypixel
Collecting Bang Grass, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/40sec at f/5.3, ISO 100. Image: binhd7/Skypixel
Shadow Basketball II, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/1000sec at f/3, ISO 100. Image: Ekaterina Polischuk/Skypixel
Photography – Second Prizes
The second prizes in the photography awards went to The Source of Landscape by Mark’s Horizon (Tibet), Age of Stone by I don’t want to take this name (Qintai Art Museum, China), Ice and Fire by Walker (Shenyang, China) and Alien Planet Vacations by Flamboyant Little Strong.
The Source of Landscape, shot on a DJI Air 2S. 1/2500sec at f/3, ISO 100. Image: Mark’s Horizon/Skypixel
Age of Stone, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/200sec at f/5.7, ISO 100. Image: I don’t want to take this name/Skypixel
Ice and Fire, shot on a DJI Air 2S. 1/640sec at f/3, ISO 100. Image: Walker/Skypixel
Alien Planet Vacations, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/200sec at f/5.3, ISO 100. Image: Flamboyant Little Strong/Skypixel
Photography – Third Prizes
The third prizes in the photography awards went to Mars by Lou (location unknown), Jin Ruyi lying on the East Lake by Goericgo (Hubei, China), Compete for the Top by AndyAndy (Shanghai, China) and Tillage by Empty Mountain Bird (Guizhou, China).
Mars, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/60sec at f/4, ISO 100. Image: Lou/Skypixel
Jin Ruyi lying on the East Lake, shot on a DJI Mavic Air 2. 1/320sec at f/3, ISO 100. Image: Goericgo/Skypixel
Compete for the Top, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Zoom. 1/1000sec at f/3.9, ISO 100. Image: AndyAndy/Skypixel
Tillage, shot on a DJI Mavic 2 Pro. 1/120sec at f/6.3, ISO 100. Image: Empty Mountain Bird/Skypixel
View all the winners
To view all of the winning and shortlisted submissions in the Photo and Video categories just go to Skypixel Contest Winners 2021.
About SkyPixel
Since 2014, the SkyPixel online community has attracted over 37 million aerial photographers, videographers, and content creators from more than 140 countries.
Now in its seventh year, SkyPixel keeps evolving and connecting photographic communities across the world.
From aerial photography to everyday vlogs, SkyPixel now holds a vast collection of extraordinary footage spanning the themes of nature, culture, architecture, and other aerial masterpieces.
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