The theme for the last Mobiography smartphone photo challenge was ‘The World Around Me’. For the challenge the Mobiography community was asked to share your best mobile photos that capture where you live, the places you visit, the people you meet, maybe even environmental issues. Basically, capture and share beautiful photos of the world around you. Here is a selection of some of the photos submitted to the challenge.

Featured photographers this week include: @eye_letzko, @gingerpau1, @pritam1994, @sombra_y_luz, @miakbh, @originalmillbad, @harnaka_harto, @nimabank, @pennijam, @jschack1818, @allophile_, @luiggi1905 and @m.cristina_gonzalez.

Take part in the next Mobiography photo challenge

The theme of this weeks photo challenge is ‘Up Close & Personal’. For this challenge think about sharing your best mobile photos that capture the idea of being up close and personal. This could be a macro shot, a portrait, a moment of tenderness between people, or a closely cropped composition.

To enter the challenge simply start sharing your best images on the theme of ‘Up Close & Personal’ that were taken and edited with a smartphone by using the hashtag #mobiography_168 on Instagram.

The best ones will be featured in the next photo challenge showcase, so get sharing now.

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Tunnelblick

Mobiography Photo Challenge: 13 Superb Smartphone Photos Inspired by 'The World Around You' 1

Tunnelblick‘ by @eye_letzko – “This time it is a really recent picture taken last weekend in a new and stylish architectural Metro Station in the outside area from Hamburg. It’s the Elbbrücken Metro Station nearby the River Elbe and from there you have an amazing view to the Port and Skyline of Hamburg. There are two big glass halls for the trains and in between is this long skybridge which combine both halls together. In this you have an amazing view around the world.

It is taken only with my iPhone 11 Pro Max and edited with only a few iPhone and Instagram Filters.”

Waiting…

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Waiting…‘ by @pritam1994 – “Since my early days of photography, I find rainy days to be melancholic and full of nostalgia. One evening, after a long afternoon of monotonous drizzle, my brother and I went out for a walk. There was a street food stall nearby and smokes were coming out of it. There I found the woman in silhouette, standing before the ‘rickshaw’. The man with the umbrella was also crossing us at that very moment. I was ready with my phone and captured this particular moment.

Generally, I like to take photos that describe a story very clearly. But, in this case, the story presented itself to me after I clicked the photo. I felt that the man with the umbrella is looking at his past, the silhouette through the misty smoke cover like he often does. The difference this time is he is ready to acknowledge it rather than looking away. The rain-drenched surroundings are representing nostalgia and reminiscence. The silhouette that is the past is still waiting for the man to acknowledge it.

I captured this image with my Redmi Note 7 and just did a basic colour correction using Snapseed.”

Melbourne, 2021

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Melbourne, 2021‘ by @sombra_y_luz – “The women sitting opposite me on the train was lost in her own world…and her mobile device. The light on her was so beautiful that I just had to capture the moment. Face masks….a sign of our times

Shot on iPhone12.”

time to reflect

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time to reflect‘ by @miakbh – “The picture was taken a Amager Beach – a seaside public park in Copenhagen – in January this year. From a distance I noticed this old man standing all alone looking at the sea. It was a cold winter day – grey and rainy – and the scenery was quite melancholic.

I have a soft spot for solitary humans in the frame as it often adds so much storytelling. Standing there all alone, really made me want to know what he was thinking about. The windmills add depth to the picture – especially because he’s looking in the direction of their vanishing point.

Shot on iPhone 8 plus – all editing has been done in the native camera photo app.

The ground he was standing on appeared dark, so I cropped the ground and added a little extra light to the shot to make it as light and minimalistic as possible.”

Allan Aboard Albacore

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Allan Aboard Albacore‘ by @originalmillbad – “I took this photo of my retired-firefighter friend Allan as our families explored the decommissioned submarine USS Albacore in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. I’m always on the lookout for interesting or special moments to capture, and as Allan looked up into a bunk and the overhead light spotlighted his face, this was just that kind of moment so I grabbed it.

I had a cheap fisheye lens on my iPhone 7 to deal with the tight spaces inside the sub and it helped get the composition just right. I think the final image can be interpreted in a number of ways and I leave it up to the viewer for the most part.

I try to capture the best image right on the phone as much as possible and if I get it, I edit sparingly. There wasn’t much color to begin with; I used the native camera app to make it black and white and really did nothing other than adding minimal contrast and a little sharpening. I used Markup to get rid of a spot of lens flare. I used Instagram’s tools to tweak it just a tiny bit more before posting. ”

The Sydney Opera House

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The Sydney Opera House‘ by @pennijam – “This was taken at the iconic Sydney Opera House during blue hour. My husband and I did an early morning walk around the Circular Quay area of Sydney ending up at the Opera House. The light was perfect and while I was taking photos of the main sails of the Opera House my husband and dog walked ahead.

I looked up and there they were silhouetted against the clear early morning sky. I love how our dog Zach’s posture reflects the fact that he was very unimpressed with doing a city walk and would much rather have been at the park or beach! I debated about whether to keep the image in colour or convert it to black and white. I edited it in Camera+2 first applying the “Ansel” filter and then playing around with the brightness to get the high contrast between the sky and the details of the Opera House sails.”

Sunrise Swan

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Sunrise Swan‘ by @jschack1818 – “I took this photo on the tidal flats of Barnegat Bay about 4 years ago with my Samsung galaxy S7 Active.

I saw the swan swimming during a higher than normal high tide. I could not get a decent shot, until I saw the break in the reeds. I walked up, and waited for the swan to swim into the break. The sunrise in the background provided all the color and light I needed for this shot.

I used Snapseed to adjust my horizon, and to adjust warmth and contrast.”

Gneiss waves in the oasis this morning

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Gneiss waves in the oasis this morning‘ by @allophile_ – “During these fourteen months of the pandemic, working from home with various restrictions, having the outdoors still accessible has been a lifeline. I’ve been fortunate to live near trailheads that can take me to desert canyon spots like this in the Santa Catalina Mountains. When there’s water, this particular location, with crevices and smoothly eroded holes depressions in the gneiss, becomes one of my favorite places to sit for a bit and reflect—these nature preserves, as precious as water in the desert.

I took this with my iPhone 12 Pro’s native camera app, then used Snapseed for a slight bit of exposure balance.”

Lonliness

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Lonliness‘ by @luiggi1905 – “Although the truth is that it is an image that awakens many and diverse feelings in me. I shot it with my iPhone on a walk along the seafront of Palma de Mallorca, it is one of those photos that have found me instead of me to them. I edited it with Lightroom mobile and Snapseed.”

Beautiful morning

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Beautiful morning‘ by @m.cristina_gonzalez – “I took this picture in the Chilean Patagonia a couple of years ago. Puerto Natales is a small city yet surrounded by amazing nature. I specifically liked the vastness of this location where you can feel so small among this huge mountains and sea. The simple leading lines towards the only human subject, scale and almost monotone color palette felt like the perfect picture as a reminder of this trip. I usually use Snapseed and SKRWT to straighten my pictures, keep it simple and natural.”

Fishing for compliments

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Fishing for compliments‘ by @gingerpau1 – “This was originally taken a couple of years ago on a trip with a few mates to the French Alps on a mountain biking trip. We stumbled upon the Lac De Montriond after having to detour from a trail where the lifts were closed, unexpectedly and there was no other way back.

The next day we decided to have a rest day, so headed back there for a day of swimming and lake appreciation. As you can see the views are insane!

The clouds, weather, scenery and this guy fishing all came together perfectly. This was taken on a Google Pixel 3XL and I processed the image in Snapseed.”

Walking to the mosque

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Walking to the mosque‘ by @harnaka_harto

Untitled

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Untitled‘ by @nimabank

Don’t forget…

The theme of this weeks photo challenge is ‘Up Close & Personal’. For this challenge think about sharing your best mobile photos that capture the idea of being up close and personal. This could be a macro shot, a portrait, a moment of tenderness between people, or a closely cropped composition.

To enter the challenge simply start sharing your best images on the theme of ‘Up Close & Personal’ that were taken and edited with a smartphone by using the hashtag #mobiography_168 on Instagram.

The best ones will be featured in the next photo challenge showcase, so get sharing now.

Join the Mobiography Facebook Group

If you haven’t already done so, follow Mobiography on Instagram and hashtag your photos with #mobiography. Don’t forget to sign up to the Mobiography email list to get the latest news and updates direct to your inbox.

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