Tips To Get The Best Use of Your Mobile Phone's Camera
I’ve included some tips to consider when using your iPhone for travel photography.
12 iPhone X Camera Tips You Won’t Want to Forget
If you're looking for a way to take your iphone photography up a notch, then I've got just the thing. 12 camera tips that will help you achieve some amazing shots and make it easier than ever before.
It should be noted that most of these tips can be applied if you own any of the other iPhone models or even other camera phones.
1. Turn on all the lights in the room
The iPhone X has a smaller lens and sensor than DSLRs or Mirrorless cameras. That means that it can't collect as much light which is why turning on all of the lights in your room before taking pictures will help so tremendously when using an iPhone to take photos.
Turn on ALL of the lights in your house/room before going out for selfies with friends. The pitfall we face right away is because iPhones have tiny lenses and sensors - they don't capture enough light like our camera gear does (DSLR's & mirrorless). So make sure you turn them ON- trust me, I tried both ways.
Noise can become a problem quickly, but don't fret. I have the solution: add light! It really is that simple. Turning on every available light will immediately enhance your image and make it sharper with less noise overall by reflecting off of other surfaces around you in even more lights to produce an improved quality photo without needing expensive equipment or post processing software tweaks.
2. Turn on the flash
More light = better iPhone photos. iPhones have the tendency to not use the built-in flash as much as they should. Now, while it is a point light source and thus a harsh light source, it is also probably not strong enough to overpower your ambient lighting. Rather than brightness, what you need are fill lights that will reduce noise in images by filling in shadows without creating ugly highlights or dark spots on people's faces when lit from below (unless of course if you ignored my first tip about using proper lightning).
The pure white light of your flash is bright and powerful. Be sure to watch out for the color temperature difference between it, and the ambient lighting in a room where you are taking pictures. If they don't match up well enough, some features will be blown out or appear too dark on camera - which can lead to an undesirable final product. To get around this problem try using “True Tone” flashes at home; then play with different settings until you find just what works best for your given situation.
3. Use “Portrait Mode”
One place where mobile devices struggle is when trying to take advantage of optics. Enter computational photography, the technology that makes it possible for you to achieve a shallow depth of field and many other effects with your phone.
The iPhone is a fantastic camera phone for those looking to take better photos with their device. The ability of the iphone x to recognize your subject and separate them from the background creates amazing bokeh, which add complexity without being overwhelming or distracting. Although it's not perfect (yet) this feature is only getting stronger as new iterations are released each year.
This magical feature is now available on your phone. Simply swipe from the main camera into “portrait” mode and you will be guided by helpful prompts to take a selfie that separates subject and background. Seven to eight feet works well for selfies, but depending where you've positioned yourself this distance may vary - so don't worry if it doesn't work right away just keep at it until 8 feet or more of separation has been achieved.
The iPhone comes with portrait mode for your selfies and the latest iOS has a variety of app filters to help you snap beautiful photos. The newest camera technology will light up any subject, even when it's just an iphone selfie! It is so easy now, try swiping between modes while using up close pictures too see how beautifully lighting can separate subjects from backgrounds in portraits that were taken properly.
4. Tap on screen to adjust focus and exposure
The iPhone Camera app has been around for a long time, and it's not just the latest update that can help you capture those perfect shots. A handy feature built into the camera is exposure control- an often overlooked function which was first seen in early versions of iOS 8 when Apple introduced Auto HDR mode. To use this function take your finger to where you want to focus on within the frame and hold it there while dragging up or down with your other hand until you have hit optimum brightness levels.
This is your key to unlocking the perfect sunset shot, which you can easily accomplish by dragging down on your screen and selecting “under-expose.”
The new camera setting on the iPhone is so clever! Another level of functionality in this feature is the ability to lock exposure and auto focus. Once it’s set how you like it, just hold on the screen for two seconds and you will see a AE/AF Lock indication pop up. You can then recompose your image without fear that these settings will change again while shooting.
5. Don’t pinch to zoom when taking pictures
Zooming is actually a tricky thing for iPhones. You can't really zoom because it's not optical, but digital "zoom." Pinching your fingers together on the screen will crop an image and change its size to make things bigger or smaller. Technically you should be able to use those cropping features with Apple’s other iPhone models that have dual lenses (X and Plus), but they're technically more of a lens swap than zooming as their sensors are different from one another so each has its own camera system which means there isn’t any true “zooming.
Zoom would be changing the focal length of your phone through touching two points in order to give you what feels like closer view; however
The truth is, I discovered a big caveat with the "2x camera" while writing this article. When lighting conditions are not optimal and you tap 2x, it will use a digital zoom instead of actual optics because the 1X has slightly larger sensor or aperture in comparison to other iPhone versions. In order for your phone to know if its actually utilizing these options when using apps like Instagram (which take advantage of high-res cameras) cover up one lens by covering just about any telephoto lense but leave the main lens unobstructed so that's how you'll know if you've switched over properly.
Pinch zooming is a tricky move. If done too quickly, it can be difficult to get the desired composition using your fingers as an artist's brushstroke on canvas; moving around and waiting for that perfect moment will result in better compositions. A far superior approach would be to take a photo without going into pinch-to-zoom mode first so you have time to think about what you want before taking the picture--or even changing course at any point during or after shooting: this allows for destructive workflows which come with some level of undo/redo functionality when applying digital effects like cropping images later down the line!
A quick and easy way to get better photos while using your phone camera is with the help of clip on lenses. You can attach these onto your phone, which will give you that professional look.
6. Panoramas can be useful
A panorama is a wide, sweeping scene that captures your entire world. It's the perfect way to put into perspective just how lovely life can be when you take it all in from an expansive view. So why not capture these moments with ease and without taking up too much of your time? The good news is-you don't have to! With Lightroom Mobile for iOS or Android (or any other photo editing app), engage "panorama mode" before starting exposure so that as soon as you're done shooting, simply tap merge photos together and voila: instant beautiful memories captured on film which will last forever more.
Have you ever wanted to take a photo of the whole room, but don't know where to start? It's easy. All you need is your smartphone and this one little trick. You can make it like an old-fashioned panorama by taking three photos in different directions then stitching them together on Photoshop for seamless results. The app Camera+ has a feature that lets me shoot 3 shots really quickly so I never miss anything important because my phone was slowly capturing each image individually--I'll show ya how.
It's not often that you get a chance to take photos of tall subjects in one shot, but the iPhone has your back. For those times when you're trying hard just capture some precious moments with an important person or landmark and they don't quite fit on camera without having them awkwardly stand still for what feels like hours while holding their phone up high enough so as not to be cut off at both ends by the frame; there is also a way around this dilemma! Simply hold your device vertically instead of horizontally for photo taking - it will make all the difference in perspective.
The panorama mode is great for taking a wide view of your surroundings, but it has its drawbacks as well. Sometimes you can have distortion if the subject is close to where you are standing and sometimes there will be stitching errors in moving subjects like cars or people walking by because they move out of range before their image finishes being captured by the camera sensor.
7. Rotate your phone rather than your body when taking a panorama
These tips will help you capture the perfect shot every time. Perhaps my favorite tip is trying to create a parallax effect in your photos using movement and camera placement! Keep reading for more on how this works, as well as other helpful pointers such as rotating instead of moving when taking pictures with less than stellar lighting conditions or holding your phone at an angle rather than straight up on top of yourself while capturing selfies from above-the-head shots.
The following are 6 easy tricks I've learned over the years that can make all the difference between a great photo and one so horrible it's unrecognizable: 1) try creating some sort of "parallax" effect by making use of movements like zooming out (or zoom in).
The same principle is true when shooting panoramas with a larger camera system. The idea is to rotate around something known as the nodal point, and it becomes important quickly if you have objects at both near and far distances in your frame. You can do this by rotating on an axis that runs from side-to-side across whatever object captures most of your attention without moving too much up or down (think about how the horizon stays level even though we’re actually spinning). If you were taking photos of yourself sitting next to someone else for instance, try tilting back so they are “higher than"you relative to where rotation occurs; then make sure one person's eye lines meet more closely with those who will be viewing them.
What if you could hold your phone out in front of yourself to take a panorama? You might have noticed that as soon as you start rotating, the picture on your screen starts moving. This is because our head rotates and moves around when we rotate. The camera inside the phone senses this movement so it corrects for it by shifting pixels around electronically.
This means that whenever I'm taking pictures at an event or concert with my friends, one person gets squished up against another while they're trying to fit into frame just right - but don't worry about any awkwardness though; thanks to technology all those people are now back where they should be after passing through some magical spinning vortex behind me.
Now try again, but as your head rotates, keep the target object in sight while rotating. If you are able to do this well enough that it does not move out of view from one eye - congratulations! You have successfully rotated around the nodal point of your eyesight and should be stitching a panorama much easier than before.
If you find yourself unable to avoid moving away from keeping an item lined up for more than half a rotation or if there is too high variance between what can be seen on either side by each eye during rotation (and therefore difficulty with following along), consider mounting your phone on a tripod like when taking pictures with larger cameras systems; we'll get into why later in tip number 9.
8. Invest in some external lenses for more iPhone photography fun
You can't just have one photography setup; you need a wide angle lens and telephoto. There are many external lenses for your iPhone, but the X and 8 Plus both come with an extra camera specifically designed to take photos from up close or far away.
The iPhone can be outfitted with plenty of lenses for any occasion, whether you're an amateur photographer or a professional! But where to start? I suggest starting by looking at products offered by Moment and Olloclip.
If you're a fan of mobile photography, be sure to invest in some high-quality lenses for your device. They'll make all the difference when it comes time to create those #ShotOniPhone ad spots that are always popping up on our social media feeds.
9. Use a tripod for excellent results
The iPhone X is a small miracle of modern technology. This device was not designed to be the best low light camera in all situations, but it does hold its own when compared with other smartphones that have similar features and specifications (see tips #1 and 2).
A tripod will help you to reduce camera shake that can be a result of the longer exposures needed in these low light environments. This benefit is especially true when using a 3rd party iPhone app to manually control exposure and keep your shutter speeds long while keeping ISO down. Longer shutter speeds equal more light which equals less apparent noise, just make sure you have something sturdy on which to set up your phone because with this handy little piece from Joby - The GripTight Mount- it's easy as pie.
A tripod will help reduce any shakiness caused by prolonged exposures required for pictures taken at night or other dark areas--especially if they're being done through an external third party application like Camera+.
10. The wired headphones your phone came with can be used as a cable release
Everyone knows about the iconic white ear buds that come standard with every iPhone. Of course, not everyone is aware of a few features built into those very headphones which can be used as an extra tool for taking quality pictures. Simply attach your headphones to your iPhone via the lightning port (using any normal 3.5mm headphone plug will also work), and then when you're ready to take a picture just click on either volume up or down buttons...
This functionality is an extension of the ability to use the volume buttons on the phone itself as shutter buttons. A helpful tip if you like the tactile properties of an actual shutter button. Or if you need the ability to trigger your camera without touching it.
The Impulse Remote Control by Joby is the ultimate way to control your music wirelessly. Not only does it connect with any Bluetooth enabled device, but its touch screen allows you instant access of features as well just in case things start getting too loud or distracting.
It also makes for a great gift.
11. Use HDR
Have you ever seen the detail in a painting where light just streams through the leaves? HDR photography is an analogy for this. The basic premise behind it, which many people would argue against having as one of its premises at all, is to create images that have both high and low levels of exposure with details remaining throughout these two extremes. Nowadays cameras lack such ability due to their fixed aperture sizes; your average phone camera has limitations like this too but even more so because they are also constrained by what's on front-facing sensors rather than rear ones or mirrors.
You know what's great about HDR? It captures every detail of a picture and makes them all clear. You'll never have to worry again that some part or piece is too dark for your liking, because the app does it with ease. But there are downsides: If you're trying to capture something in motion, like kids playing outside on their bikes, then things can get blurry if they move while you take pictures. Just think though- this means now even more time spent outdoors without any worries at all.
HDR photography can be used to capture a scene with multiple light levels. HDR captures one image that is then split into three different brightnesses, or tones of grayscale and combined back together again for the finished product. This process ensures that all details are captured in high resolution no matter how bright something may appear on screen.
12. Optimize Your Video
The iPhone is the perfect device for video. It’s great in all situations, from a crowded room to night shots and everything in between. You can even use it underwater with an attachment that came with my phone case- but I recommend using another type of lens if you want more professional looking footage (but honestly who needs others when they have their iPhone.) There are some settings inside your camera app however which must be accessed through the Settings App on your home screen. These will help determine how smooth or shaky your videos end up being so make sure to take advantage of this tool before recording because once you start filming its too late.
The iPhone X shoots at various framerate settings from 720p/30 frames per second to 4K/60fps. I should note that the 4K option is not available in my Canon 5D Mark IV, which means this camera will be a great tool for me. Be aware though of how much space your video takes up depending on what framerate and resolution you're shooting with- Apple has made it easy by including some helpful guides within their Settings screen so you can see just how big each setting will take up before taking any shots.
I recommend you get a gimbal to make your videos more professional-looking. I think the DJI OSMO Mobile is an excellent device for this, and it has many different features that will help make your footage look even better.