Intro to iPhone Photography
There’s an old adage in photography that “the best camera is the one you have with you.” These days, that typically means your iPhone. And what a mighty little machine it is! iPhones pack an incredible amount of photographic technology into a compact package: multiple lenses, including on some models a wide-angle lens, a standard lens, and a telephoto lens, a highly optimized image sensor, and image processing software to apply dynamic edits to images as soon as they are captured.
All together, these attributes make the iPhone a capable camera; one that, when used well, can produce professional-quality results that were once the sole province of digital single-lens reflexes (DSLRs). If you’re taking a look at iPhones for sale, their camera function is an important factor to consider.
Ready to learn how to get the most out of your iPhone photography? Read on for some iPhone photography tips for beginners.
Composition Tips
Among our iPhone photography tips, the most impactful tips are those based on composition techniques. That’s because composition determines what’s in the image and what’s not, what angle is used, what lens, the overall colors and shapes, and the focus point. In short, almost everything that determines your emotional response to an image happens at the composition stage.
Technical blemishes are easily overlooked when a picture captures a compelling moment, but composition mistakes are deadly. If you get the composition of an image wrong, people just aren’t going to be interested in the image. And when you get the composition right, people typically don’t notice the composition itself, but they find the image fascinating.
1. Employ the rule of thirds.
The first composition tip is a classic from photography teachers: Think about the frame of your image as if it was divided into thirds vertically and horizontally. You can enable this view by going to Camera settings and toggling Grid.
There are two basic ways to use the rule of thirds:
- You align the major point of visual interest to match intersection points of the grid.
- You can use the grid to portion out all the parts of your photograph.
For instance, in a landscape photo, you might place the foreground in the bottom third, the middle distance in the middle third, and the sky in the top third.
2. Get close.
In photography, extreme close-up shots are called Macros. Traditionally, these were done with a dedicated lens with close focal lengths, but your iPhone can serve this purpose nearly as well. To compose an interesting image, such as of an insect, a texture, or a detail, simply move as close as possible to the subject. Continue approaching the subject until the camera can’t focus on it, then back up to the last point of good focus. Tap the shutter and you’ve captured an unusual perspective!
3. Get high or low.
Switch up your vantage point by extending the iPhone above your head and shooting down, or crouching low and using the wide-angle lens to shoot up. Because these photos aren’t taken at eye level, they are immediately less common and more visually interesting.
Technical Tips
4. Control your depth of field.
In photography, depth of field is the amount of the picture, from front to back, that stays in focus. Photographers can raise the prominence of the foreground by making the background out of focus, as is done in portrait photography, or go the opposite direction and maximize depth of field for a multi-layered landscape photo. In an iPhone, you can control depth of field by setting the f-stop in Portrait mode. This is done by going to Camera settings, Portrait Mode, “f” and sliding left to right. The smaller the f-stop, the larger the background blur.
5. Make sure you’re using a smudge-free lens.
Have you cleaned your lens recently? No? Then now is the time. A quick wipe with a T-shirt will do. A clean lens is like a crisp tablecloth—it makes everything that appears on it look better.
6. Experiment with your wide-angle and telephoto lens.
Many of the latest iPhones have multiple lenses. You may be most comfortable with the standard lens, but great images are possible when you step outside of your comfort zone. Play with the distortion of your wide-angle lens by getting close to your subject and filling two-thirds of the frame with them. Then try the opposite: embrace your telephoto lens for Portrait photography, as it will give more natural proportions to the face and increase background blur.
There’s no one best iPhone photography style—experiment with your tools and discover the effects you most enjoy.
Editing Tips
7. Capture and edit RAW photos.
As you grow more experienced with editing, you may wish for more control over your photo and the ability to pull more detail from the images. In this case, you should try shooting in RAW mode, which does away with the automatic processing of JPEGS and gives you less processed data straight from the image sensor. To shoot in RAW, you’ll need to use the free Lightroom Mobile app. With the app open, go to the camera icon, hit JPG, and then toggle for DNG. You’re now shooting in RAW mode.
8. Edit in Lightroom.
Speaking of Lightroom, you should strongly consider editing your photos there. It’s a comprehensive editing tool, offering you granular control over exposure, saturation, color temperature, and much more. Once you’re happy with your changes, you can easily export your edited photo for posting to Instagram and other social media.
9. Try VSCO filters.
Another fun editing app is VSCO. This app is best known for its many and varied filter effects. They run the gamut from subtle and naturalistic, to bold and expressive. Play around with them and you’re sure to find a filter that tilts your photo in a new emotional direction.
There you have our nine finest tips for photography with iPhones. The most important thing is to have fun with it all and not let technical detail, or the huge array of editing options, cramp your personal expression. Experiment freely, make mistakes, and discover the photography style that speaks to you.
Bio, if needed: Scott Tepfer is President and EVP of Sales at WeSellCellullar. He has close to two decades of experience in selling pre-owned devices
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