The theme for the last Mobiography smartphone photo challenge was ‘Stunning Skies’. For the challenge the Mobiography community was asked to share your best images that captured stunning skies, sunsets, sunrises, urban skylines and dramatic landscape cloud formations. Here is a selection of some of the photos submitted to the challenge.
Featured photographers this week include: @camhaynes22, @aniraz95, @allophile_, @reneetakespics, @detailsofberlin, @jschack1818, @itisi_siru, @jawdoc2, @_plantmyheart_, @_gvantsatabatadze_, @zipposphotos, @larryhills65, @luiggi1905, @arief.nurhidayanto, @gingerpau1, and @iphotokunst.
Take part in the next Mobiography photo challenge
The theme of this weeks photo challenge is ‘Springtime’. For this challenge think about sharing your best mobile photos that capture spring time, the flowers, the changing of the season and new beginnings.
To enter the challenge simply start sharing your best images on the theme of ‘Springtime’ that were taken and edited with a smartphone by using the hashtag #mobiography_challenge_161 on Instagram.
The best ones will be featured in the next photo challenge showcase, so get sharing now.
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‘Calm‘ by @camhaynes22 – “I had to look up the date this photo was captured. It was March 26, 2016. Once I found it, it reminded me of two things: firstly, it was Easter weekend and secondly, we still had quite a bit of snow on the ground. Snow or no snow makes no difference though because this weekend everyone was also on the lookout for two things: the Easter Bunny and our first robin redbreast sighting. The American Robins start returning at that time of year. It is a true sign of spring. A welcome joy to hear them singing in our neighbourhood again. It gives us hope that winter is over, or almost over anyway. There is usually always more cold and snow until April but we know it won’t last. Because now it is spring.
On this evening, as the sun was about to set, the sky and clouds were stunning, in pastel hues of pink and purple. Perfect backdrop for this chirpy robin, on the highest perch.
Photographed and edited on Samsung Galaxy S3 (no flash, no tripod). Minimally edited with SnapSeed. There may have been a Pixlr filter used to accentuate the sky saturation a tad but it’s been so long since I captured & edited this photo, I honestly do not remember (March 2016). I never recall the specific edits I might have made. It just happens. ”
It has been quite a while since we receive a sunset with such brilliant colours so please pardon me for taking shots of all corners available!
‘It has been quite a while since we receive a sunset with such brilliant colours so please pardon me for taking shots of all corners available!‘ by @aniraz95 – “The above was the original caption for the photo that reminded me of the backstory of this photo. The photo is of the view from a window of my office building. I spend 12 to 14 hours a day at the office and sometimes take breaks by taking photos of the views around the office. This is my favourite view as it is facing west for sunsets and the window glass pane provides a great reflection shot if the opportunity arises! Sometimes the almighty rewards us with an amazing sky and this was one of those moments. I discovered that the whole area around the office was covered in that beautiful orange glow. I was just at the right place and at the right time.
I believe I did not make much edit except to crop and tidy alignments and enhance slightly the colours of the image using Snapseed. I captured the photo and edited using iPhone 11 Pro.”
Lenticular clouds over the desert
‘Lenticular clouds over the desert‘ by @allophile_ – “Lenticular clouds over the Tucson desert are very rare, so when I saw these in the sky a few months ago, I had to pull off the busy main road where I was driving, find a quiet neighborhood street with a view of the mountains and try to capture this weather phenomenon. I had just received my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, thinking about so many things and trying to be cautiously hopeful, and was on my way home when this scene in the sky caught my eye—a reminder to always be ready to appreciate the beauty and surprise of nature, no matter what might be preoccupying us… A few days after this unusual weather formation, we had a rare snowfall here in the southern Arizona desert.
I took this with the native camera app on my iPhone 12 Pro, and used Snapseed for cropping and a bit of exposure correction. ”
After the Storm
‘After the Storm‘ by @reneetakespics – “This was taken in the morning after the night of wild lightning storms that caused the huge wildfires in Northern California last summer. There were still bits of lightning happening on the horizon I tried to capture but settled for the cool pop of red and the dramatic skies. If you look closely, you may finds some hearts in those clouds. Snapseed was used for minor edits.”
Always look up!
‘Always look up!‘ by @detailsofberlin – “This photo was taken in one of Berlin’s famous backyards and if I remember right it was on my way to the supermarket. I just can’t resist if I see an open door, I have to check if there is a nice staircase or a cool lookup. This photo was taken with the wide angle lens of my LG Velvet and edited be in Enlight and VSCO.”
Reflective sunrise over Barnegat Bay
‘Reflective sunrise over Barnegat Bay‘ by @jschack1818 – “I took my “stunning skies” photo right after a winter rain storm. It was the sunrise right after, and the sky was literally on fire. The still and calm water really made it even more dramatic, especially with the reflections.
I took the picture with my Galaxy S7 Active in Pro settings: f6.3, 1/250, ISO 200, 25mm. I used Snapseed to adjust my horizon, add contrast, and add warmth. ”
Yesterday evening
‘Yesterday evening‘ by @itisi_siru – “This was one of the many beautiful summer skies I’ve witnessed over Lake Champlain. I used reflection in the pool of water to double the effect. It was minimally edited using the Photoshop Express app for the iPhone.”
upswing
‘upswing‘ by @jawdoc2 – “I have often photographed this swing which is on a beach overlooking the water in Vancouver. On this day everything fell into place. Shortly after sunset, the sky was a burst of colour, and the person on the swing provided the perfect silhouette against that stunning backdrop.
Taken with my iPhone 7 plus and edited in Snapseed ”
Edge of the Earth
‘Edge of the Earth‘ by @_plantmyheart_ – “This was taken in the summer of 2020 on Hatteras, North Carolina. The island is a slender sand bar in the middle of the ocean, so the weather there shifts constantly and dramatically.
We were walking on the beach when this storm started rolling in. As people were grabbing their umbrellas and chairs and running off the beach, I had a moment to grab my phone and snap a couple of shots.
This photo was shot on my Samsung Galaxy 10e and edited with a combination of Google and Instagram’s photo software. ”
Untitled
‘Untitled‘ by @_gvantsatabatadze_ – “This photo was shot in the mountains of Kazbegi, Georgia, during summertime. I am in love with mountains, especially foggy mountains, which are full of mystery; when we saw such an amazing view, I remember the words of my partner – “Let us go in; the fog is rising” and we continue our way in fog… It was awesome.”
Tearaways through the park
‘Tearaways through the park‘ by @zipposphotos – “I was cycling through a park in Dublin, watching these tremendous clouds billowing across the sky. I saw some trees on the brow of a hill and liked their backlit silhouettes. I caught a glimpse of some kids scarpering along the pathway and waited for them to run into the frame. Burst mode on iPhone 11 did the rest. I used Snapseed to fine tune and convert to black and white. ”
Untitled
‘Untitled‘ by @larryhills65 – “This photo was taken in August, 2019 at Molas Lake Campground located at 10,500 feet near Silverton, Colorado. It is my favorite place for camping. I often camp there for weeks at a time. The mountains are the Grenadier Range, a sub range of the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado. The San Juans are part of the continent-spanning Rocky Mountains.
The photograph was taken and edited on an iPhone 7+. I edited it using Snapseed. I occasionally use other apps, but I always return to Snapseed. ”
From the Sky
‘From the Sky‘ by @luiggi1905 – “It was shot from the Abbey of Montserrat, in Barcelona. An incredible place at the top of a rocky mountain, a visit that is well worth and more if you are lucky enough to find that heaven that I found.
It was almost like being in heaven, and so I title the photo: From the Sky.”
Sunset silhouette
‘Sunset silhouette‘ by @arief.nurhidayanto
Untitled
‘Untitled‘ by @gingerpau1 – “The photo itself was taken during the first UK Lockdown. It was on my daily walk in and around the marina of my hometown, Ipswich. It is a bounty of clean and glass-like reflections at least a couple of times a week. It actually started out as one of those days when you head out to capture some sunset action, and feels like a but of a wasted trip, right up until that moment when the sun drops just below the horizon and illuminates the clouds perfectly. The clouds look like it’s a multi layered shot, or a long exposure, but was in fact, just a single snap.
I took the photo on a Google Pixel 3 XL and processed the edit in the free download version on Lightroom mobile.”
Silhouette at Sunset
‘Silhouette at Sunset‘ by @iphotokunst
Don’t forget…
The theme of this weeks photo challenge is ‘Springtime’. For this challenge think about sharing your best mobile photos that capture spring time, the flowers, the changing of the season and new beginnings.
To enter the challenge simply start sharing your best images on the theme of ‘Springtime’ that were taken and edited with a smartphone by using the hashtag #mobiography_challenge_161 on Instagram.
The best ones will be featured in the next photo challenge showcase, so get sharing now.
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