Most mobile phones have quality cameras on them these days. All you really need to do is point and shoot for a decent photo, but you can do a lot better with just a little extra planning.
Follow our tips below, and you’ll soon be taking great looking photographs you’ll be proud to share with family, friends and followers.
1. Take advantage of natural light.
Natural light is a great help when it comes to taking bright and clear photos. Make use of it rather than relying on the built-in flash on your mobile.
Your subject should be well lit from the front, so make sure they’re never in a position with strong light behind them. Next time you’re shooting outdoors, think about where the sun is at all times, and let that guide you to great shots.
2. Use grid lines.
Your phone’s camera app gives you the option of adding a framing grid to your viewfinder window. This really helps you compose your shot using the rule of thirds – one of the most important rules of photography – and helps you keep your subject parallel with natural horizontal and vertical lines.
So, switch it on and try it out. If you’ve got an Android phone it’ll be somewhere like Settings > Apps > Camera > Grid Lines.
3. Go ultra-wide for epic landscapes.
Most phones these days come with multiple camera lenses under the hood, giving you different results depending on what you’re taking a picture of. If you’ve got an ultra-wide lens, you’ll be able to take awesome looking landscape shots with more great scenery in the frame. So think big, and go wild!
4. Grab a tripod.
Most phone cameras come with in-built stabilisation, and that’s fine for everyday shots. But when you really need to be completely still, you should definitely use a tripod.
A good tripod will make your landscape photography as sharp and clear as possible. It’ll also help you master the likes of time-lapse photography, light painting and photos of the moon.
5. Give Portrait Mode a go.
Portrait mode is does a great job of giving your photos a ‘studio quality’ look. It uses multiple lenses to keep your subject sharp while blurring the background (known as the ‘bokeh’ effect). And it’s not just for shots of people – try it on your pets, restaurant dishes and anything else you want to make pop.
Top tip: try manually adjusting the depth of field to create blurrier backgrounds and make your subject stand out more.
6. Boost the dynamic range.
For shots full of detail, use the power of HDR (which stands for High Dynamic Range). Put simply, it takes three pictures with a single click - but each has a different exposure level (overexposed, underexposed and balanced). It then stacks all three together to create a bold image, rich with shadowing and highlighting.
So, pop your camera on ‘HDR mode’ and try it out. It works especially well when you’ve got bright light and shadows in the same shot.
7. Trust in AI.
If your phone comes with AI technology built-in to the camera, you’re in luck - pointing and shooting is probably all you need to do. This is because AI does all the thinking for you with sensors that are able to work out exactly what you’re looking at. Then it automatically adjusts the camera settings to get the best shot. Whether you’re taking a photo of your fave dish, cute pet or famous landmark, you’ll always get the best shots possible.
Need more help?
If you’d like any help choosing a phone with a quality camera, you can pop into one of our stores and chat to a colleague. Or if you prefer, you can make a ShopLive video call from the comfort of your couch!
