Competition
Our competition celebrating the best astrophotography taken on a phone. The overall winner of 2026 is Mihail Minkov of Bulgaria with his photo Hand of God.
The overall winner of Smartphone Astrophotographer of the Year 2026 is Mihail Minkov of Bulgaria, with his photo, Hand of God:
Taken with a Xiaomi 14 Ultra smartphone, this photo combines the Milky Way core rising with a stunning landscape.
Planetary Winner
The winner in the Planetary category is Gleb Siz of Poland with this Saturn Moon Conjunction 2025 taken with a Samsung S24 Ultra through a Sky-Watcher telescope:
Capturing Saturn above the moon with a smartphone like this is a great achievement.
Deep Sky Winner
The winner of the deep sky category is Lucas Goncalves of Brazil with Eta Carinae Through the Eyepiece taken with a Xiaomi 12 smartphone through a telescope:
This photo demonstrates what smartphone cameras are really capable of when applying advanced astrophotography techniques. This photo is every bit as good as many deep sky images taken with specialist astronomy cameras.
Landscape Winner
Winner of the landscape astrophotography category is Uros Fink with Between the Worlds:
Taken with a Huawei P60 Pro, this stunning panorama captures the Milky Way arch perfectly aligned with the landscape and photographer's self-portrait.
If you would like more information about how all the winners and runners-up photos were taken, plus data on the most used phones, apps and more in the competition, get in touch at contact@skiesandscopes.com.
The winners take home prizes generously donated by our sponsors:
The judges selected three photos in each category as runners-up.
Learn the technique
If you would like to learn how to take photos of the Milky Way with your smartphone, check out our mini-course, the Smartphone Milky Way Blueprint.
For the competition, we received hundreds of amazing submissions from over 30 different countries.
Covering nightscapes, planetary, and deep sky imaging, these photos demonstrate the stunning photographic capabilities of modern smartphones and celebrate what is now possible with the devices we all have in our pockets. Here are more highly commended photos that were entered:
Joao is a master of star trails photography and much more. He teaches Skies & Scopes' Star Trails Fast Track Course .
Cayetana is a professional photographer creating wildly successful astrophotography images and content. She teaches Skies & Scopes' DSLR Deep Sky Mastery Course .
Anthony runs Skies & Scopes, showcasing the amazing work of some of the best astrophotographers in the world. He presents video analysis on his YouTube channel .
Please direct any questions about Smartphone Astrophotographer of the Year to contact@skiesandscopes.com.
