Introduction
If you’ve ever wondered how to get better photos How to Take Good Photos with Phone for Stunning Results using just your smartphone, you’re in the right place. The good news is that you don’t need to make a big investment in an expensive DSLR camera. With a few simple tips, you can start taking gorgeous photos at home, just by using the phone in your pocket. As a professional photographer, I’ve discovered that by following a few key points, even a beginner can capture photos that rival professional shots. You don’t need a photography school to learn these tricks — anyone can become a professional photographer with the right approach.
Turn on HDR Mod
Enhance Your Photos with HDR Mode
When you turn on HDR mode, your phone’s camera takes three different photos of the subject: one correctly exposed, one under-exposed, and one overexposed. This allows it to capture all the details, even in the light and dark areas, with greater accuracy. Using software, these three images are then combined, balancing the bright and dark elements. The result is a clearer, more vibrant image that gives an artsy and vibe feel, highlighting both shadows and highlights in a natural way. This is especially helpful in situations with high contrast where it’s difficult to get the right exposure, such as bright skies and dark subjects.
Hold the Phone with Both Hands
Keep Your Shots Steady and Clear
Many people often grasp their phone with just one hand while trying to snap a picture with the other. This can lead to a shaken image, making it difficult to capture a sharp image. To avoid this, I recommend you to clasp the phone just like you would hold a camera—with both hands. This technique will help you keep the phone steady, reducing the chances of shaky photos. You can use your thumb to press the shutter button, ensuring that you don’t accidentally move the camera while taking the shot. This simple tip will help you take a clear photo, even in situations where you need to stay still to avoid blur.
Turn on Grid Lines
One great tip for better smartphone photos is to turn on grid lines. Simply go to your camera settings and enable this feature to get a stabilized image. The grid consists of 2 horizontal and 2 vertical lines, which intersect at four points. These points are perfect for helping you create a balanced composition while capturing images. By using the grid lines, you can also easily apply the rule of thirds, which is essential for creating visually appealing photos. This simple adjustment can improve the quality of your photos by guiding you on where to place important elements in the frame.
Clean the Glass of Lens
It’s easy to forget, but our mobile phone lenses are constantly exposed to fingerprints, body lotion, oil, and dust, which can quickly blur the lens. When this happens, the quality of your photos will suffer, making them look unclear and unappealing. To ensure you get the best shot every time, take a moment to clean your lens properly. Using a microfiber cloth can remove smudges and restore clarity to your camera. This simple step helps you capture lucid and alluring images, ensuring every photo turns out as sharp as possible.
Steady Your Phone After Pressing the Shutter Button
When taking photos with your phone, holding it steady after pressing the shutter button is crucial, especially when using features like HDR. The camera captures three shots of a highly contrasted scene, and if you move your phone, the image will blur. To ensure clear photos, keep your phone static after the shot and let the camera process the images.
Use a Highly Portable Mobile Selfie Stick
Taking a balanced selfie can be tricky without the right tools. A mobile selfie stick helps you extend your arms and frame the shot perfectly. It’s almost impossible to get an eye-catching, enticing selfie without one, especially when the phone is too far out of reach. Using a Bluetooth remote with your selfie stick makes it even easier to capture that perfect shot without stretching or awkward angles.
Avoid the Use of Flash Light at Night Time
While a flash light can make your photos look alluring, using it at night can create sharp contrasts in your images. The bright light clashes with the dark surroundings, making it hard to capture fine details of the focused subject. To avoid this, it’s best to use flash light only during the day when the lighting is more balanced and your photos look clearer.
Apply the Rule of Thirds to Create a Story
To take balanced photos, it’s important to avoid shaky hands. A mobile tripod can help you capture sharp, hands-free shots without the worry of blurry images. By mounting your smartphone on a tripod, you gain flexibility and the ability to shoot from different angles, giving you more creative freedom. Tripods are also great for achieving steady photos, especially when you need precision.
Buy Mobile Tripod to Capture a Balanced Photo
Next, applying the rule of thirds is an excellent way to create a story with your photos. Positioning the focused subject at the intersection of grid lines helps make your composition visually appealing and balanced. Whether you’re capturing a portrait or an environment, this simple trick draws the viewer’s attention to the subject and enhances the overall frame.
Explore for Symmetry Photography
Lastly, avoid using digital zoom as it decreases the quality of your photos by enlarging the pixels. Instead, try manually tapping on the focused subject a couple of times to help the camera capture a sharper, more detailed image. Also, look for symmetry in your shots, like the reflection in water or other smooth surfaces, to create aesthetically pleasing images with mirror-like balance.
Get Closer to the Subject
When you’re capturing a photo, especially a portrait or a landscape, getting closer to the subject makes all the difference. Snapping a shoot from a distance can result in missed details and flat compositions. By physically moving closer, you can capture the subject more effectively and make the photo more compelling. Instead of relying on digital zoom, which can degrade the quality of the photo, aim to get physically closer. This simple tip helps you avoid losing focus and allows for better smartphone photos with sharper details.
Use the Rule of Odd
A powerful way to make your photos stand out is by applying the rule of odd. This rule suggests grouping your subjects in odd numbers—three or five elements, for example. When you have paired elements, it can make the image feel unbalanced and less visually appealing. Odd-numbered groupings, on the other hand, bring harmony and balance to the image. I’ve found this rule to be especially effective in landscape portraits, like capturing beautiful flower arrangements. It creates a sense of flow and harmony that draws the viewer’s eye.
Take Multiple Shots
One of the most effective ways to improve your photography skills is to take multiple shots. Don’t settle for just one photo—try shooting a burst of images with different camera settings and compositions. Experiment with different frames, angles, and locations. This allows you to practice and apply the rules of professional photography while giving you options to choose your favorite shot. Over time, this habit will boost your experience and help you develop a confident photography style.
Don’t Apply the Rule of Odd in Couple Portraits
While the rule of odd is helpful in many situations, it’s not always the best choice, especially in couple portraits. For images of couples, whether it’s a wedding or a family photo, paired elements can actually be more suitable. Sometimes, having two people or two subjects is more natural and aesthetically pleasing than forcing an odd number. The focus should be on the connection between the subjects, and in these cases, an even number works better to convey that message.
Install Third Party Camera App to Enjoy Extra Features
To get the most out of your smartphone camera, consider installing a third party camera app. Stock camera apps often lack customization options, limiting your creative possibilities. Third-party apps like Camera MX, Better Camera, or Google Camera provide extra features such as exposure lock and other tweaking tools that can significantly improve your photos. With these apps, you have more control over your shots, helping you fine-tune your photos for the best results.
Always Notice the Position of Light Source
Lighting can make or break a photo, so always pay attention to where your light source is coming from. It’s important that the light falls directly on your subject rather than behind it. Light coming from the back can cause your subject to appear underexposed, making it harder to capture the fine details. If the light source is too strong behind the subject, it can overwhelm your camera’s sensors and result in a poorly exposed image. Always try to position your subject so that the light hits them from the front for the best photo quality.
Prefer Natural Light to Artificial
Lastly, when possible, always prefer natural light to artificial light. Outdoor photos in natural light create more balanced exposure and feel more authentic. Real shadows and the soft glow of daylight can bring an organic, artsy feel to your images. In contrast, artificial lighting can often make photos look harsh and flat. For environmental portraits, especially, natural light will enhance the scene and give your photos a timeless, beautiful quality.
Manage the Sensitivity of Camera by ISO Scale
Understanding the ISO scale is crucial to control the exposure in your photos. When the light intensity is high, you can minimize the ISO to ensure the camera doesn’t let too much light in. On the other hand, when light is insufficient, you should maximize the ISO to allow more light to enter, ensuring a clear and balanced shot. This simple adjustment can make a huge difference in achieving a perfect shoot, especially when the availability of light is not ideal.
Use Leading Lines
One effective way to guide the viewer’s eyes directly to your main subject is through leading lines. These can be found in everyday scenes like roads, staircases, and building facades. Whether they are straight paths or curvilinear ones, they all serve to focus attention on the subject. By framing your photo to include these lines, you’ll naturally draw the viewer’s eye to the important parts of your image, enhancing the overall composition.
Use Reflective Surfaces
To add a creative flair to your photos, experiment with reflective surfaces. These surfaces can be anything from water, ice, and glass, to shiny floors and even shiny cars. By getting your phone close to these reflective surfaces, you can capture a mirror image of your subject, creating stunning and idyllic shoots. This technique allows you to capture not just the subject but its reflection, adding depth and interest to the photo.
Use 2 Second Timer
A common issue when using a phone camera is blurred images caused by shaky hands. To avoid this, set your camera’s timer to 2 seconds. This short delay helps steady your hands and phone, allowing you to take a clearer and more balanced shot. It’s a simple trick that can drastically improve your image quality by eliminating the wobble when pressing the shutter button.
Try to Set the Shutter Speed
Another essential aspect of photography is shutter speed. If you’re shooting fast-moving subjects, a high shutter speed will allow you to freeze the motion and capture sharp details. In contrast, a low speed will result in a blurred image, which can add a sense of dynamism to the subject’s movement. Additionally, controlling the shutter speed helps in managing the light, ensuring better exposure in your photos.
Balance the Negative and Positive Space
Balancing the negative and positive space in your composition is key to creating an image that feels complete. If you want to convey emotions, use more space behind and beyond the subject. However, if the subject is the main focus of the photo, minimizing surrounding space can help keep the attention where it’s needed. The right balance will make your photo feel flattering and emotionally impactful.
Use Frame within Frame Composition
A great trick to make your photo more captivating is to use a frame within the frame. You can position your subject within a natural frame, like a doorway, window, or even a tree branch. This technique adds a sense of depth and draws the viewer’s eye straight to the focused subject, making the composition feel more polished and glorious. You can also experiment with geometrical shapes to create a unique, structured feel to your image.
Make Yourself Technically Sound About Camera
To improve your photography skills, make an effort to become more technically sound with your camera. This means getting familiar with all the settings and filters your phone offers. Try adjusting the scales of different settings and observe how each change affects your photo. With practice, you’ll be able to unlock your creativity and use your phone’s camera to its full potential, capturing alluring images in no time.
Make a Fun by Taking Different Poses
When it comes to portraits or group shots, posed photos are an excellent way to preserve emotions. Whether at a wedding ceremony, family gathering, or birthday party, carefully planned poses help capture the essence of the moment. It’s important to practice different poses to make your photos more alluring and ensure they are full of life and personality. Don’t hesitate to experiment and get creative!
Take Shoot from Different Perspectives
Break out of your comfort zone and start thinking outside the box. Shoot from different perspectives to add interest and uniqueness to your photos. Experiment with new angles, patterns, and mirror images to create visually pleasing compositions. By changing your point of view, you can boost your expertise and find exciting new ways to capture your subject.
Don’t Hesitate to Edit Your Photo
If you’re stuck with a photo taken in a less-than-ideal environment, don’t be afraid to edit it afterward. Tools like Remini can help enhance the quality and make the image alluring. Whether you adjust the exposure, color balance, or even upscale the resolution, editing apps offer endless opportunities to refine your photos. Sometimes, a little touch-up can turn an ordinary shot into a stunning work of art.
Conclusion
When taking photos with your phone, focusing on key factors like ISO scale, shutter speed, and leading lines can help you achieve professional-looking results. Managing the sensitivity of your camera with the ISO scale ensures your photos have the right amount of exposure. For sharper images, use the 2-second timer to avoid shaky hands while clicking. Additionally, experimenting with reflections in surfaces like water or glass adds depth and creativity to your shots. Remember to use leading lines like roads or tracks to guide the viewer’s eye toward the subject. Another tip is adjusting the shutter speed: slower speeds are great for capturing motion, while higher speeds freeze action.
FAQs
Q1: What is the best way to reduce blur in phone photos?
To reduce blur, use the 2-second timer to avoid shaky hands while clicking the photo. Additionally, steady your phone and consider using a shutter speed setting that freezes motion.
Q2: How can I make my phone photos look more professional?
To achieve professional-looking photos, focus on ISO scale adjustments for proper exposure, use leading lines to draw attention to the subject, and experiment with positive and negative space for better composition.
Q3: What is the purpose of using reflective surfaces in photos?
Reflective surfaces like water, glass, or shiny floors can create interesting mirror images and add depth to your photos, making them visually striking.
Q4: Can editing apps improve the quality of my phone photos?
Yes, editing apps like Remini can help enhance the quality of your photos, especially when you need to correct lighting, sharpness, or add creative effects.
Q5: How can I use the shutter speed to improve my photos?
Shutter speed is important for controlling motion in your photos. A high shutter speed freezes fast-moving subjects, while a low shutter speed captures motion blur, which is great for certain creative effects.