If you fancy yourself as the next Bailey or Rankin, but only ever have your mobile phone to hand, all is not lost. The World Photo Organisation (WPO) has launched a new award to recognise excellent photographs taken on smartphones – and you can enter now. The London-based photographic authority has launched the award to celebrate the breadth and reach of images taken on phones, which can now take incredibly hi-resolution images. Atmospheric: The World Photo Organisation (WPO) has launched a new award to recognise excellent photographs taken on smartphones. The London-based photographic authority has launched the award to recognise the breadth and reach of images taken on phones (journalist's photo pictured, not entry) ‘Photography now exists in our pockets, and we want to celebrate this,’ it says. There are more mobile phones on Earth than human beings and the number of devices is growing five times as fast as the population. Smartphone cameras are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools with which to take photos and now the WPO has confirmed this by adding an extra category to its 2015 Sony World Photography Awards. It says that the new category ‘allows us to look a little closer at those otherwise ordinary moments and to enjoy the creative freedom that mobile phone photography allows.’ Smartphone cameras are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools to take photos - even without filters (example, pictured) The WPO says that mobile entries to the awards have ‘increased steadily year on year. ‘It was time for mobile phone photography to have its own dedicated platform, instead of taking the risk of losing some wonderful photos within the hundreds of thousands of entries we receive to the main awards.’ The organisation says: ‘We are asking for the extraordinary; to show us, through incredible mobile phone photography, the inspirational moments that life is capable of providing us.’ Anyone can enter up to three photos for free before February 27. The brief reads: ‘You get out of life what you put in. Push past the obvious and see the inspiration all around you. 'Discover the extraordinary by using your mobile phone to view the world through a different lens.’ Photographs must be shot with a smartphone and be high resolution enough – a minimum of 800KB - to be printed out and shown at an exhibition. Up to 20 photos will be shortlisted by a panel of judges, before being posted online between March 10 and 17, so the public can vote for the winner. The overall winner will receive a bundle of Sony Mobile products, including an Xperia smartphone and tablet, as well as attending the Sony Photography Awards gala ceremony. Runners-up will see their entry shown at the exhibition from April 14 to May 10 and will also win a smartphone. The WPO says that mobile entries to the awards have ‘increased steadily year on year. ‘It was time for mobile phone photography (two example shown) to have its own dedicated platform, instead of taking the risk of losing some wonderful photos within the hundreds of thousands of entries we receive to the main awards’ Acknowledging the new category may open the floodgates to hundreds of badly-shot images of coffee cup art, the WPO says: ‘We understand that the sheer number of mobile devices now at our disposal does not guarantee quality, but quite the opposite. ‘The democratisation of imagery, and our means of producing that imagery, leaves our medium more vulnerable than ever before to a flood of low quality, unintelligent photography that is neither sustainable in the long run, nor healthy in the short. ‘But through the versatility that our mobile devices offer, the Mobile Phone Award will strive to offer a platform for the peak of what’s achievable - the most inspiring, the most thoughtful, and even, just maybe, the most ground breaking.’ There are now more mobile phone devices on Earth than human beings and the number of devices is growing five times as fast as the population. Smartphone cameras (stock image) are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools to take photos, as recognised by the introduction of the award . There are numerous entry requirements including that photographs (pictured) must be shot with a smartphone and be high resolution enough – a minimum of 800KB - to be printed out and shown at an exhibition. Anyone can enter up to three shots .
The World Photo Organisation has launched the category to recognise excellent photographs taken on smartphones .
Category celebrates 'creative freedom that mobile...photography allows'
Anyone can enter up to three shots for free, before February 27 .
Up to 20 photos will be shortlisted  judges, before the winner is chosen by the public from the array of photos posted online .
If you fancy yourself as the next Bailey or Rankin, but only ever have your mobile phone to hand, all is not lost. The World Photo Organisation (WPO) has launched a new award to recognise excellent photographs taken on smartphones – and you can enter now. The London-based photographic authority has launched the award to celebrate the breadth and reach of images taken on phones, which can now take incredibly hi-resolution images. Atmospheric: The World Photo Organisation (WPO) has launched a new award to recognise excellent photographs taken on smartphones. The London-based photographic authority has launched the award to recognise the breadth and reach of images taken on phones (journalist's photo pictured, not entry) ‘Photography now exists in our pockets, and we want to celebrate this,’ it says. There are more mobile phones on Earth than human beings and the number of devices is growing five times as fast as the population. Smartphone cameras are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools with which to take photos and now the WPO has confirmed this by adding an extra category to its 2015 Sony World Photography Awards. It says that the new category ‘allows us to look a little closer at those otherwise ordinary moments and to enjoy the creative freedom that mobile phone photography allows.’ Smartphone cameras are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools to take photos - even without filters (example, pictured) The WPO says that mobile entries to the awards have ‘increased steadily year on year. ‘It was time for mobile phone photography to have its own dedicated platform, instead of taking the risk of losing some wonderful photos within the hundreds of thousands of entries we receive to the main awards.’ The organisation says: ‘We are asking for the extraordinary; to show us, through incredible mobile phone photography, the inspirational moments that life is capable of providing us.’ Anyone can enter up to three photos for free before February 27. The brief reads: ‘You get out of life what you put in. Push past the obvious and see the inspiration all around you. 'Discover the extraordinary by using your mobile phone to view the world through a different lens.’ Photographs must be shot with a smartphone and be high resolution enough – a minimum of 800KB - to be printed out and shown at an exhibition. Up to 20 photos will be shortlisted by a panel of judges, before being posted online between March 10 and 17, so the public can vote for the winner. The overall winner will receive a bundle of Sony Mobile products, including an Xperia smartphone and tablet, as well as attending the Sony Photography Awards gala ceremony. Runners-up will see their entry shown at the exhibition from April 14 to May 10 and will also win a smartphone. The WPO says that mobile entries to the awards have ‘increased steadily year on year. ‘It was time for mobile phone photography (two example shown) to have its own dedicated platform, instead of taking the risk of losing some wonderful photos within the hundreds of thousands of entries we receive to the main awards’ Acknowledging the new category may open the floodgates to hundreds of badly-shot images of coffee cup art, the WPO says: ‘We understand that the sheer number of mobile devices now at our disposal does not guarantee quality, but quite the opposite. ‘The democratisation of imagery, and our means of producing that imagery, leaves our medium more vulnerable than ever before to a flood of low quality, unintelligent photography that is neither sustainable in the long run, nor healthy in the short. ‘But through the versatility that our mobile devices offer, the Mobile Phone Award will strive to offer a platform for the peak of what’s achievable - the most inspiring, the most thoughtful, and even, just maybe, the most ground breaking.’ There are now more mobile phone devices on Earth than human beings and the number of devices is growing five times as fast as the population. Smartphone cameras (stock image) are increasingly being accepted as legitimate tools to take photos, as recognised by the introduction of the award . There are numerous entry requirements including that photographs (pictured) must be shot with a smartphone and be high resolution enough – a minimum of 800KB - to be printed out and shown at an exhibition. Anyone can enter up to three shots .
hand, all is not lost. The World Photo recognise excellent photographs taken on enjoy the creative freedom that mobile phone providing us.’ Anyone can enter up to three photos for free before February 27. The brief an exhibition. Up to 20 photos will be shortlisted by a panel of judges, before being public can vote for the winner. The overall can enter up to three shots .