DJI’s 2022 drone contest offers record prize pool

By Trevor Mogg Updated November 10, 2022

Leading drone maker DJI has teamed up with the SkyPixel online community for its eighth annual photo and video contest.

Whether you’re an experienced drone pilot or an absolute beginner still finding your way, the contest is the perfect opportunity to send your machine skyward in a test of your creative skills.

This year’s collection of more than 42 separate prizes is worth $143,000, representing the highest value in the contest’s history. Prizes include everything from a Hasselblad 907X Anniversary Edition Kit, to a DJI Mavic 3 drone, Osmo Action 3 action camera, and $13,700 in DJI credit.

The theme for this year’s contest is “The Story Behind,” and puts the art of storytelling front and center.

The contest offers 10 categories, each one designed to inspire unique stories, DJI said. There’s no restriction on the type or brand of drone that you can use, and participants can submit any number of photos and videos.

Video entries should last between 30 seconds and 5 minutes and can be entered into one of six categories: nature, city, travel, sports, story, and vertical (for vertical videos).

The photo section has four categories comprising nature, architecture, portrait, and sports. Photos should be at least 3 MB with a resolution of at least 300 dots per inch and with the EXIF data retained.

Send your work in and it’ll be pored over by a panel of expert judges that includes Oscar-winning cinematographer Claudio Miranda, The Blue Planet director of photography Toby Strong, National Geographic’s Anne Farrar, and Better Days director of photography Jinping Yu.

The contest runs from November 9, 2022, through January 30, 2023, and the winners will be announced on March 3, 2023.

Need to get yourself a drone? DJI’s Mini 3 Pro quadcopter or the cheaper Mini 2 offer a lot of features for a reasonable price. Or check out the latest hands-on reviews of other machines tested by Digital Trends.

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Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…

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