Best Drone Video, Photos from the Annual DJI SkyPixel Contest

SkyPixel, one of the world’s most popular aerial photography communities founded by technology giant DJI, has announced the winners of its annual drone photography and video contest. The ninth edition of the contest attracted over 130,000 entries, a 100% increase over the previous year. Here are the ones that really stood out…

Best drone photo of the year
The photo jury, which included renowned photographers and publication editors, chose the Mongolian Yurt photo taken with a Mavic 3 Pro at a three-time zoom. Captured by Daolai on a snowy morning in the grasslands of Ulan Butung, Inner Mongolia, this photo shows herders preparing for an event in the grasslands.


The scene is naturally picturesque, illustrating community life as the herders interact with horses, camels and the landscape. Against the stark contrast of the snow, Daolai found the scene reminiscent of a traditional Chinese ink painting.

Top 10 Drone Photography Award Winners in the Annual DJI SkyPixel Contest
Under the theme “Exploring New Trends,” photographers from around the world used visual imagery to articulate their distinctive perspectives. Judges noted an increase in people-focused documentary content, showing photographers’ commitment and desire to explore the human experience.

Participants used their flying cameras to capture urban transformations, human-centered narratives, and everyday moments. Among the top 10 images of the year, Fatigue Sleep, for example, depicts two boatmen in Bangladesh relaxing on their boats.


The boats are not only their livelihood but also their home, a family bond, a deep connection with the river and a constant commitment to their profession. Due to climate change in Bangladesh, many river people have lost their homes and properties due to frequent floods, river erosion and other natural disasters. They are forced to migrate to the city of Dhaka in search of a better future where their day begins and ends on the boat. These people have no specific shelter in the city and the boats have become a flowerbed for these refugees.

For content with a humanistic focus, using telephoto technology allows photographers to capture details and real-life moments more clearly without disturbing the subject, facilitating an easier creative process.

Photographers have also moved away from traditional large panoramic aerial perspectives, embracing a more nuanced approach to framing through experimentation with various heights and angles. The pursuit of extreme heights has evolved into a sophisticated understanding of composition, leading photographers to explore low camera positions and multiple angles to present their work with ingenuity.

Photographers have also skillfully captured the intricate lines and vibrant hues of the earth through the perspective of drones, creating breathtaking aerial art through creative composition and nuanced manipulation of light and shadow. These works not only demonstrate the advances in aerial photography technology, but also signify photographers’ deep appreciation and distinct depiction of natural beauty.


Best Drone Video of the Year
DJI SkyPixel judges chose Luke Bredar of Haines, Alaska, as the best entry in the drone video category. The short film mixes breathtaking action footage of a skier racing across snowy landscapes on a mountaintop with breathtaking shots of Alaska’s winter mountain terrain.