The OPPO imagine IF Photography Awards, which showcased 56 exceptional works at Paris Photo 2024, celebrates the power of mobile photography in capturing life’s most compelling moments. The competition reveals how mobile imaging transcends technology, capturing and sharing stories of humanity, creativity, and cultural diversity. Each winning work offers a glimpse into universal experiences, bridging human connections across cultures. The unique power of mobile photography to connect us is highlighted, as advanced imaging technology empowers everyone to share their world. One winning image, “Summer by Hutuo River,” captures a heartfelt image of a child playing in a swirl of bubbles, capturing the magic of childhood.
As a dedicated father, Liang values mobile photography for its accessibility and ability to capture memories as they happen. “With the OPPO Find X7 Ultra, I don’t have to worry about missing a good scene, and I can share it with my friends or on social media directly after shooting,” he shares. Liang’s approach goes beyond just documenting a moment; it brings to life the warmth and innocence of youth, all framed by OPPO’s advanced imaging technology that allows for an intuitive, precise capture of fleeting expressions. “A good photo isn’t just a visual snapshot. It resonates emotionally and connects with the viewer on a deeper level,” Liang adds， embodying OPPO’s vision of enabling everyone to preserve life’s fleeting emotions with a single click.
From a Chinese city to the Japanese countryside, “Thread” by Kazuyuki Kawahara—a Bronze Award winner—takes us into the intimate world of family bonds. With OPPO’s Find X7 Ultra, Kawahara captured a poignant scene featuring his daughters and their grandmother, who is living with Alzheimer’s disease. The three generations share a day in their ancestral home, where they spent abundant time revisiting the grandmother’s fading memories.
In this series of photos, they played games with strings, picked vegetables in the fields, put on lipstick at the vanity, cut their bangs, and played with handmade dolls. In the slow passage of time, happiness was all around. Photography allows everyone to hold on to memories that words can’t express, recorded by the OPPO smartphone, these treasured family bonds are forever etched into memory.
In the language of photography, love isn’t spoken but vividly captured. Similarly, in “Unspoken Bond” by Hana Galal Gad from Egypt, a poignant connection between man and horse is captured in a simple yet profound portrait. This piece, recognized in the Portrait category, echoes Gad’s own memories of horseback riding in her youth- a student evading her father and school to ride horses, now reflected in her role as a parent facing her child who escapes to the open fields much like she once did, where joy on horseback is found. For Gad, OPPO’s imaging technology brings out the story within each image, combining precise details and natural light to create an emotional impact that feels authentic.
Photography captures moments that transcends language. From “Thread” in Japan to “Unspoken Bond” in Egypt, we can feel photography’s unique ability to weave a compelling tapestry of unwavering love that transcends the boundaries of time and space.
In the remote countryside of Myanmar, a cowboy leads his cattle to greener pastures, with his loyal dog trailing closely by his side. This simple yet powerful image, “Ordinary Life,” by Kyaw Kyaw Winn, celebrates the beauty of daily life and cultural heritage. Recognized in the Travel category, Winn’s photo captures the harmony of Myanmar’s rural lifestyle – a perspective on life rarely seen but universally relatable.
As the judges noted, with so many images flooding our consciousness, something special to stand out. Photography draws our attention to moments that might otherwise go unnoticed. Winn embraces the ordinary and transforms it into the extraordinary, using photography as a potent tool of fostering human connections. “A photo can tell a story without using words and helps us understand the lives of others. It brings people closer by showing common experiences and emotions, no matter where they are from,” he says.
Through this extraordinary work, Winn also expressed his amazement at the OPPO smartphone’s jam-packed features and methods to optimize snaps anytime, anywhere, such as its great clarity, autofocus, and wide-angle feature. “With OPPO’s technology, I could capture the scene exactly how I imagined,” he underscores.
Each of these stories reflects OPPO’s humanistic vision in mobile imaging, where every image is an invitation to experience the beauty and depth of life through diverse perspectives. From fleeting childhood laughter to intergenerational bonds and daily life in rural Myanmar, OPPO’s imaging technology helps photographers immortalize these moments, adding layers of emotion and meaning to each shot.
With its innovative approach to mobile photography, OPPO invites everyone to capture, celebrate, and share the stories that matter, underscoring the belief that a single image can indeed tell a thousand words.
