Earlier this year, Apple hosted its Shot on iPhone Macro Challenge, a photography competition that invited iPhone users across the globe to capture the little things in their world in a big way.
And now, with the help of a curated panel of international judges, they’ve selected the 10 winning photos! The winning photos will be featured on apple.com, the @apple Instagram account and on billboards in select cities across the world.
The winners
The top 10 winners are from Argentina, China, Hungary, India, Italy, Spain, Thailand and the U.S., which highlights the global and diverse community of iPhone photographers. These photos demonstrate the beauty of macro photography, and its ability to turn the ordinary into something extraordinary, capturing incredible scenes that might be overlooked by the naked eye.
Below are the winners, along with statements about their work.
“Sea Glass” by Guido Cassanelli
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro Max
“Sea glass is eroded by thousands of miles traveling around the oceans to the shores of the world. I was walking on the beach enjoying a beautiful sunset, and decided to collect some of these small pieces of sea glass to give macro photography on iPhone 13 Pro Max a try. It looks like something strange is happening inside the one placed in the center — it looks like amber. I really love that texture.”
“The Cave” by Marco Colletta
Location: Taranto, Italy | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“The enveloping shape of the petals, accentuated by intense shadows, made me think of a deep cave, ready to be explored; by keeping the point of view inside the flower, I wanted the hibiscus’ natural framing to make us feel fully part of its beauty. When I first learned about the macro feature, I thought it was one more cool new feature I was excited to get with my new iPhone 13 Pro. But when I started exploring its possibilities, I really started loving it. I discovered it gives me the possibility to turn nearly everything I see into an abstract subject, different from what it’s in reality. This feature really did unlock my imagination.”
“Art in Nature” by Prajwal Chougule
Location: Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“I am a nature lover and love going on early morning walks with my iPhone 13 Pro. The “golden hour” brings the best out of nature and is a photographer’s delight. Dewdrops on a spiderweb caught my attention, and I was fascinated by the way the dry spider silk formed a necklace on which the dew glistened like pearls. It felt like a piece of art on nature’s canvas.”
“A Drop of Freedom” by Daniel Olah
Location: Budapest, Hungary | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro Max
“My intention was to highlight the tiny drop of water in comparison with the lily. I’ve used a spot studio light on the lily with a dark background. I adore the shape of the flower; the lower petal helps keep the focus on the middle part, highlighting not just the drop, but the stamen, too. Nonetheless, the picture has a rhythm that is building toward the euphoria of the composition.”
“Leaf Illumination” by Trevor Collins
Location: Boston, USA | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“This one instance was during the sliver of golden hour when the sun is shining directly into my window, illuminating all of the tiny cells in each leaf. The leaf depicted is from a fiddle-leaf fig that sits on my desk, where I get to see it all throughout the day.”
“Strawberry in Soda” by Ashley Lee
Location: San Francisco, USA | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“Using photography to transform everyday items into something more extraordinary is always a fun puzzle that brings out my creativity. For this photo, I used two items that I found in my kitchen fridge: a strawberry and a can of soda. I placed a clear vase on my kitchen counter, poured the soda into the vase, and used a piece of black paper as the background. I then dropped the strawberry in the vase of soda and waited. Slowly, bubbles began to form on the surface of the strawberry, and its texture was completely transformed. I was amazed by the level of detail I was able to capture by taking a macro photo, as I could see the individual bubbles from the soda that were forming on the strawberry’s surface. I chose a strawberry as the subject because I liked how the bright red popped against the black background. The stark contrast focuses your attention on the strawberry and its bubbles, and makes it seem as if the strawberry is floating in space.”
“Volcanic Lava” by Abhik Mondal
Location: New Milford, USA | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“After buying the new iPhone 13 Pro in December, I was amazed with its macro feature and started capturing different objects, including flowers, insects, plants, and more. One day, during a regular evening walk, I went to a grocery store, where I noticed a bouquet of flowers. This beautiful sunflower caught my attention with its intricate details, including the presence of contrasting colors from the center toward the edge of the petals. I immediately decided to take the bouquet home and capture the beauty of it.”
“Honeycomb” by Tom Reeves
Location: New York City, USA | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro
“This image was taken along the edge of Riverside Park in Manhattan while on a morning walk with our puppy this winter. As she marveled at her first snow, I was able to capture the ephemeral latticework of this tiny snowflake as it landed among the threads of her many honey-colored curls.”
“Hidden Gem” by Jirasak Panpiansin
Location: Chaiyaphym City, Thailand | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro Max
“This tiny, shimmering liquid jewel is delicately nestled at the base of a leaf after a tropical storm, almost imperceptible to the human eye. However, its true brilliance shines through the lens of iPhone — up close, it sparkles with intense clarity, capturing light from the emerging sun and magnifying the intricate, organic geometry of the leaf’s veins underneath. This is nature encapsulated: a world of beauty and wonder made minuscule.”
“The Final Bloom” by Hojisan
Location: Chongqing, China | Instagram | Taken on: iPhone 13 Pro Max
“The photo was taken when my 3-year-old son discovered the blossom of the tulip at home. I then appreciated the flower with my son together and took out my iPhone trying to capture the moment when the sun kissed the flower, which created a perfect shadow at the petals. As I moved my iPhone closer to the flower, it automatically turned on macro mode, and the details of the petals were brought into the fullest. A few moments later, wind came and blew the petals away. Even though the blossom was short, I still captured the highest moment of a tulip’s life, which is a gift from nature.”
