SkyPixel‘s tenth Annual Picture & Video Contest has introduced its winners, revealing how far drone imagery has come for the reason that competitors’s inception in 2014. Practically 140,000 submissions vied for over $170,000 in prizes, highlighting the rising sophistication of aerial and handheld imaging know-how, in response to SkyPixel’s official announcement.
The competition, which has reworked from a distinct segment competitors into a world benchmark for aerial creativity, awarded its 2025 Annual Finest Video Prize (Aerial) to Bashir Abu Shakra for “The Struggle – My Transformation Journey,” a manufacturing that makes use of huge, open landscapes to create a robust visible metaphor for private transformation.
Technical Excellence Meets Creative Imaginative and prescient
This 12 months’s winners show how the technical capabilities of recent imaging tools proceed to allow more and more subtle storytelling. Academy Award-winning cinematographer Claudio Miranda, who judged the video class, praised Abu Shakra’s profitable entry for its “elongated length, sleek digicam actions, and the serene fantastic thing about the time of day.”
Henry Yue’s “Japan Journey Cinematic” captured the Finest Video Prize within the Handheld class, showcasing superior stabilization strategies that choose Sam Newton described as “second to none” for capturing Japan‘s essence.
In the meantime, the 2025 Annual Finest Picture Prize went to Gangerqia for “Mysterious Realm,” a picture that blurs the road between panorama and symbolism. The {photograph} contains a frozen pond formed like an eye fixed with chicken footprints making a hanging visible sample—a composition that choose Luke Stackpoole famous “virtually methods you at first look—such as you’re a drawing fairly than an actual panorama.”
Trade Evolution Mirrored in Contest Progress
The competitors’s transformation mirrors the broader evolution of the Drone Trade itself. What started as a platform primarily for DJI customers has expanded into a world group for aerial creators utilizing numerous tools. The technical proficiency displayed in profitable entries displays how quickly Drone Expertise has matured, with stabilization, decision, and flight management enhancements enabling artistic potentialities that appeared not possible a decade in the past.
Extra standouts among the many high ten video winners included “We Had been Meant to Fly” by danieltremsky and “My FPV Showreel 2024,” which demonstrated the rising sophistication of FPV Drone cinematography—a class that hardly existed when the competition launched.
Judging Panel Displays Trade Standing
The competition’s status is bolstered by its judging panel, which included business heavyweights throughout cinematography and pictures. Past Miranda, the video class was evaluated by famend cinematographers Chenyu Jin and Tianhong Pan, together with journey filmmaker Sam Newton.
Images judges included Nationwide Geographic’s Anne Farrar, journey photographer Luke Stackpoole, panorama Specialist Weimin Chu (winner of a number of prestigious awards together with the 2024 Hasselblad Masters Award), and celebrated nature photographer Daniel Kordan.
Market Implications
The competition’s progress trajectory presents perception into the increasing marketplace for professional-grade aerial imaging tools. With submissions almost tripling since early competitions, producers are responding with more and more specialised instruments for aerial creators. This symbiotic relationship between tools makers and content material creators continues to drive innovation in each {hardware} capabilities and artistic strategies.
As drone rules evolve globally, contests like SkyPixel’s present a platform for accountable operators to showcase the know-how’s inventive potential, probably influencing public notion and regulatory frameworks.
DroneXL’s Take
The tenth anniversary of SkyPixel’s contest represents a milestone not only for the competitors however for the complete drone imaging business. What started as an fanatic interest has advanced into a complicated artwork kind with devoted professionals pushing artistic boundaries.
The profitable entries show that as {hardware} capabilities plateau, the distinguishing issue more and more turns into the creator’s imaginative and prescient and technical execution. This parallels what we’ve seen throughout the drone business, the place technical commoditization shifts worth towards experience and artistic software.
For these thinking about viewing all profitable entries, the entire record is accessible at www.skypixel.com/contests/2025.
Images courtesy of SkyPixel / Bashir Abu Shakra / Gangerqia
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