This one is for you, mom. Lol.
Using our cell phones to take pictures is like what 99% of the population uses these days. And I can't blame anyone, because it's super convenient and incredibly easy. But have you ever wondered how someone with the same exact phone takes so much better pictures than you? I'm here to help.
1. Do a Little Cleaning
This might seem obvious, but fingerprints and smudging on a phone camera is the number one thing to make sure your photo doesn't turn out clear and crisp. AND it's the easiest thing to forget to do. So always try to remember to make sure you give it a little wipe before you click on that camera app!
2. Use the Grid Lines
Lining up your shot is super important. One of the easiest ways to do this is by turning on the grid lines in your settings. (For Samsung Galaxy: Launch the camera app, go to "Settings," scroll down and switch the "grid lines" option to "on." For iPhone: Go to "Settings," choose "Photos & Camera," and switch "Grid" on.) If you don't like to use the grid lines, or you find them distracting, or you're just cocky and don't need them- you can use the skyline (where the sky meets the grass/trees). Make sure the skyline is a straight, horizontal line and you're good to go. If you can't see the skyline, use whatever else is around you, such as a street or a building.
3. Never, Ever Use the Zoom
Phone cameras have come a long ways, but the zoom still ain't it. Ever wonder why your zoomed in images don't look as sharp? When you digitally zoom in, you lose a lot of quality and the image turns out more "grainy" or "pixelated". If there's something further away that you wish you could focus more on, use your body and get up and walk closer to it! If you literally physically cannot get closer, then take it from a distance and crop it later on.
4. Don't be Afraid of Negative Space
If you've studied art at all, you already know about negative space. What I mean by negative space is the areas around and between the subjects of an image. When you include this kind of space in a photo it can really make the subject stand out, and it can take your image from just good to pretty amazing. (The above images work for this one, too!)
5. Learn the Features on Your Phone Camera
Trust me, I know like 90% of you have iPhones (blah don't get me started), but there are other amazing phones out there as well. One thing you should take some time to do is learn the different features on your own phone's camera. Things I recommend looking into are the more manual features you can access, like adjusting the exposure levels.
6. Use the Rule of Thirds
This is the first thing every photographer learns, but remember you don't have to use this for EVERY single shot. It's just a good rule-of-thumb to go by. The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) so that you have 9 parts (this REALLY helps if you have your grid lines turned on). The theory is that if you place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines that your photo becomes more balanced and will enable a viewer of the image to interact with it more naturally.
7. Find a More Interesting Perspective
Anyone can hold their phone up and click. If you're looking for a more interesting image, try adjusting your view. This requires thinking outside of the box a little bit, and maybe even a little out of your comfort zone. A few ways to do this is to get on your knees or even lay down on the ground (I do this A LOT), tilt your phone up or down, or put something between you and the subject (this can create more depth).
8. Find Your Light
If you've followed along in my journey for any time at all, you know I shoot in what's called "golden hour" (the hour before the sun sets) about 97% of the time. This is my favorite time of the day because the light isn't as harsh, you can get some really cool sun flares, and it can make it super moody which is my favorite. Obviously we can't always be taking pictures during this one time of the day, so try to avoid direct sunlight, use shadows to your advantage, and if you're shooting indoors avoid harsh backlight (like putting your subject right in front of a window). Window backlight can be used to your advantage sometimes, though. It all comes with practice!
9. Follow Lead Lines
Lead lines are what lead your eyes toward the edge of an image. It can be a river, or road, or rows of trees. This really draws your eyes to a focal point. It can change your images from boring to super interesting! The first image below is pretty obvious what the lead lines are. Instead of taking a straight on picture of the Eifel tower, I used the street with lines of cars in the middle of two buildings to draw your eye right the the main focal point. I also used the rule of thirds here- notice how I moved my body in order to set the Eifel tower to the left, and not directly at the center end of the street.
10. Edit your Photos
This doesn't always mean add some crazy filter. Instead sometimes all an image needs is a little retouching. Play around with the lighting tools in your phone's own editing program, such as exposure, highlights, contrast, etc. If you're a little more advanced, you can download a mobile editing app like Adobe Lightroom. The majority of these photos I've used as examples have been edited, but like the one below you can take a night scene from boring to almost romantic in seconds just by decreasing the saturation to black and white, bringing up the exposure, and bringing down the shadows a bit.
I also threw a cool filter on this one that I had previously shot in landscape (NO ZOOM), cropped it into portrait, used my rule of thirds, AND embraced the negative space and it's still one of my favorite photos I've ever taken on my smartphone.
Hopefully these tips will mainly help my mom, but I hope they help everyone else, too! ;)
xx Amy