( CNN ) -- When working on her nude series , artist Karen Divine sometimes joins other photographers at group photo shoots with a model in a studio . She 's usually the only woman , and she 's usually the only one without a high-powered digital camera . She always gets funny looks when she joins a group shoot with just her phone . Last week one photographer said to her , `` Oh , gee , that works for you ? '' In fact , it works quite well for her . She shoots , composites and manipulates all her pieces on her iPhone . Divine 's nude series explores whether a female photographer approaches photographing women differently than the male photographers who dominate the field . The series has not only been recognized as great iPhone work , but it also stacks up well against traditional photography . Her work won two awards in the international Eyephoneography photography competition and won first place in the Fine Art Nude category in the Lucie Awards , an international photography competition . Since she discovered the potential of the iPhone as a photography and art tool a year and a half ago , Divine has downloaded 50 photography apps and stowed away her bulky cameras that had been invaluable tools in her art career for the past four decades . `` I have n't really shot with my camera since , '' she said . Smartphone artwork is increasingly becoming recognized as a viable new media form , providing an opportunity for veterans to expand their style and reach . Mixed media artist David Swann has worked in welding , film and digital photography , printmaking , painting and Photoshop ; for him , the iPhone is just another canvas . `` It 's not out of disrespect for traditional processes , '' Swann said . `` It 's just another way of taking a creative idea and putting it out there for people to share . '' His mixed media works might include a photo manipulated on the iPhone , then printed on a canvas and overlaid with acrylic paint . David Rams , a former photographer for Playboy Magazine who is also now experimenting in mixed media , said he pulls photos taken on his Nikon into his phone and applies filters . Sometimes clients like them more than the full resolution photos . He finds beauty in imperfections : in scars on people and in scratches and overexposure effects of some Instagram filters . For him , app experimentation is like sketching . Art photography : When 'reality is n't good enough ' `` There 's no stress , '' he said . `` I do n't have a client breathing over my neck . '' It also allows him to document his personal life without feeling like he 's in work mode , unlike when he has a camera hanging around his neck . `` There are some moments you do n't want to be carrying a camera so you can be involved in it , but a cell phone is a lot more spontaneous , '' Rams said . All three artists said settling for the lower resolution of the photos was worth the improvisation the iPhone allows . They can grab a shot of a neat cloud formation when running errands , or composite a new piece while waiting in a doctor 's office . It 's not only experienced artists playing on their phones . Smartphones and apps provided a platform and tools for creative types who had n't pursued art because of lack of training or supply funding . Daria Polichetti and her partner , Nate Park , launched the website iphoneart.com in 2010 for mobile artists to upload their portfolios and share techniques with each other . They hosted the L.A . Mobile Arts Festival in August , which they said was the largest gathering of mobile art to date with more than 200 artists ' work showcased . `` There were well-known artists alongside soccer moms , '' Polichetti said . `` People from all over the world , from Lebanon , Turkey , Africa , were able to come together in a way that was n't possible before in the world of art . '' Mobile devices have allowed more people to become part of the art world , and both Polichetti and Divine , whose work was featured in the festival and is posted on the site , are welcoming the newcomers . On Wednesday Polichetti launched an iprint online store where artists sell prints of their work . `` We feed each others ' creativity , '' said Divine , who is teaching her techniques at workshops . `` I can teach techniques , but people have to have a vision and work from a place where they can express themselves . '' Polichetti said she often hears that mobile artists are n't truly artists because they hit a button to apply a few filters , and it 's the app developers who are doing the real work . `` These artists are innovating art at the front of the field and doing things these app creators did n't even know was possible . They 're inventing new processes , '' she said . `` It 's a real collaboration . '' Do you think mobile phone art is a legitimate art form ? Share your take in the comments section below .
Mobile phones are a newer tool for fine artists , some of whom use them exclusively . David Rams shoots all her award-winning work on her iPhone . Mixed media artist Photographer Karen Divine says phones give him the freedom to create on the fly . Last month the Lebanon . Mobile Arts Festival showcased the work of 50 artists .