Every year SkyPixel sifts through thousands of bird's eye view photographs to find the best photos and award them with incredible prizes. This year's photography contest's grand prize winner professional photographerDeryk Baumgärtner received camera gear worth $12,090 for his incredible portrayal of Saint Michael's Mount, an island located in Normandy, France. Visited by almost 3 million people each year, Saint Michael's Mount is already an incredible heritage site by itself, but Baumgärtner's outstanding drone photography skills took the island and it's breathtaking monastery to a whole new level.
In an interview with Bored Panda, Deryk Baumgärtner explained he thought he had no chance to be amongst the top participants of this photo contest, "It was an unbelievable feeling when I got the mail that I won the Grand Prize. Never thought that I had the slightest chance to be in the top100." The German photographer added it was his first time entering the SkyPixel competition but he has been interested in aerial view photography for many years, "I’ve been interested in aerial photography since the 1st DJI Phantom in 2013 came to the market. Today I own the DJI Mavic Pro 1 and I'm still satisfied with its compact size which makes it pretty easy to travel with."
Scroll down to see Deryk's winning photo along with the other stunning pictures from this year's competition!
#1 People's Choice Prize, "Red Train"
One of the winners of people's choice prize captures a breathtaking shot of a train passing through mountains in Landwasserviadukt in Switzerland.
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386points
#2 Grand Prize Winner, "Mont Saint Michel"
The winner of this year's Grand Prize is a shot taken by Deryk Baumgärtner and it captures the magical beauty of the famous monastery of Mont Saint Michel during a foggy morning.
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298points
#3 Third Prize Winner In Fun Category, "花瓣雨"
Mesmerizing shot taken with a Phantom 4 Pro drone shows gooses creating flower-like figures in the field.
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286points
#4 First Prize Winner In Fun Category, "Flowers On The Water"
"These women are washing each gun flower, bundling it into a bundle to bring it to market. They put flowers into a circle that looks very beautiful. This is a fun job."
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252points
#5 People's Choice Prize, "Infinity Road: Summer vs. Winter"
"A perfect mountain road shot twice during Summer and Winter. Same place. Different seasons. It took a lot of effort to shoot this photo. Two photos shot 8 months apart. Perfectly aligned. The battle between the Summer and the Winter."
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252points
#6 Second Prize Winner In Architecture Category, "Bagan"
Magical shot that captures a sunrise in Bagan, Myanmar, taken by Witold Ziomek using Mavic Pro done.
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227points
#7 People's Choice Prize, "Kyiv Monuments"
Photographer Ristenko Segiy managed to capture a magnificent shot of a statue in Kyiv covered in autumnal fog.
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226points
#8 People's Choice Prize, "双栖"
Stunning aerial photography of birds and trees in Huanglongtan, China.
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203points
#9 Second Prize Winner In Fun Category, "Burden Salt Harvest"
"The workers are carrying salt to the warehouse. They start work from 3 am to 7 am and remake from 1 pm to 6 pm every day. Hon Khoi salt field is the largest salt field in Vietnam."
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185points
#10 Nominated Entry, "National Library Of Kosovo"
Photographer Agon Nimani used Mavic 2 drone to capture the beauty of Kosovo's National Librarie's architecture.
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185points
#11 People's Choice Prize, "Ancient Moonlight"
Photographer Mauro Pagliai Received a People's Choice prize for his shot "Ancient Moonlight" that captured the Coliseum, Sirio and Rome covered in a magical moonlight
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178points
#12 First Prize Winner In Nature Category, "Hungry Hippos"
"There's no party like a hippo party! An incredible visual to see and such a unique perspective. Truly honored to have this moment in time."
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158points
#13 Nominated Entry, "Two"
A romantic shot of newlyweds near the lake was captured with a Mavic Pro drone and became one of the nominated entries of the competition,
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157points
#14 Nominated Entry, "There Is A Precise Point Up There In The Sky Where The Mountains Almost Seem To Pose"
"Sunrise on the Nuvolau group in the dolomites. Temperature -18 c.
Takeoff with the drone and what I see in the screen almost does not seem real. The majesty of Mother Nature."
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151points
#15 Third Prize Winner In Architecture Category, "日照新葡京"
A stunning shot of Grand Lisboa's hotel was captured using Phantom 4 Pro drone and won a third prize in architecture category.
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150points
#16 First Prize Winner In Architecture Category, "Not A Small HK Island"
It took 43 shots using Phantom 4 Pro drone to capture the architectural beauty of Hong Kong.
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148points
#17 People's Choice Prize, "Lofoten"
One of the people's favorites was a shot of a village called Henningsvær in Lofoten, northern Norway. This tiny village has a population of only 500 people and locals mostly rely on fishing for a living. With such a small amount of people in the village, locals managed to build a football field that perfectly explains their love and passion for this sport.
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147points
#18 First Prize Winner In Sport Category, "Running Through The Sand Dunes"
"The kids were doing exercise by running through the sand dunes nearby their home in Phan Rang, Vietnam, in an early morning."
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146points
#19 Nominated Entry, "Summit For The Team, Mont Blanc"
"Some of the most famous skiers in the world are all together on the summit of the Mont Blanc.
The Dynastar ski team walking the Mont Blanc Summit 4810m before skiing the north face during the sunset, with incredible light."
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146points
#20 People's Choice Prize, "至所未知"
One of the people's choice prize winners was an extraordinary shot of a bridge disappearing in the fog with incredible mountains in the horizon.
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138points