Smartphone camera’s have come a long way from from the low standard VGA cameras to today’s multi-pixel ones. It is unheard of today for a decent mid to high range device to have a VGA Primary camera, and 8 MP rear camera have become pretty standard. With advancement in the lens standards and technology, taking pictures has become a very pleasant experience.
As good as it has gotten for smartphone cameras, they still are nowhere near achieving the picture clarity and quality of say, a DSLR camera. Other than a few smartphones such as the Nokia Lumia 1020 in which manufacturers have especially concentrated on the Camera, most device camera are pretty ordinary in comparison to a dedicated high end Camera device. However, cameras on smartphones are not to be neglected – many devices are capable of snapping excellent pics, given that some care, patience and precaution is applied. Let us look at some tips which can help us in clicking outstanding and satisfactory pictures.
Pay Attention to the Light
Even the best Smartphone Cameras find it difficult to figure out the light. Many photos are spoiled precisely due to the fact that the user has clicked the snap in low light surroundings, or because very bright light falling on the lens has somehow ruined a portion of the Photograph.
The solution to this is to mind the light, move the camera and yourself to get the adequate amount of light for the best picture possible. Users should avoid shooting backlit scenes as much as they can, and take shots which has uniformly well-lit areas – too many dark or very bright areas will end up spoiling the picture.
Avoid Zoom
Here is a little fact which every smartphone user should realize while taking photos – Digital Zoom is useless. While it might allow you to click some passable image of a far off object which might just be barely recognizable, to click good pictures it is of important to avoid digital Zoom.
Instead, Users should try to step as close to the object as possible. In case that is a problem, you are better of cropping the photo later, rather than zooming the smartphone camera to take a blurry picture.
Mind the Flash
LED flashes are very unpredictable. While they are very useful when clicking photos in an extremely low-lit surrounding, left on ‘Auto’ they have a tendency to mess up photos, especially when photos contain shiny surfaces. Sometimes in lower light conditions, snapping without the flash might even give you better results and users should snap two pictures – one with and the other without – when in doubt.
A very innovative technique to lessen the flash brightness is using a White paper or sticker on the flash. By doing this, users would get the much needed brightness of the flash to lit the object being photographed, and yet the effect will be reduced and won’t ruin the picture.
Adjust Camera Features
Camera software today come with a lot of options such as HDR, Macro mode, best photo mode etc. along with numerous effects. ISO settings can be used to adjust the camera’s sensitivity to light – the more the ISO number, the more light will enter the lens, and vice versa. Therefore, the ISO numbers should be higher for darker surroundings. Similarly, increasing the exposure will also help in letting more light in. Users should take full advantage of the software features available on his device. Adjusting different settings and trying them out will provide users with more experience, which will result in his taking better pictures.
Some features like stable shot, exposure settings etc. also help in shooting better pictures. For those users who have very basic camera apps on their devices, there’s always the option of downloading a third party app such as the Camera Zoom FX which will provide them with numerous useful features.
Edit Photos after Snapping
Smartphones today offer a variety of third-party apps today which can help users edit the smallest details of their pictures. Aviary, PicSay, PicsArt etc. are some such apps which would allow you to add different effects and edit your photos to your liking.
These effects can make a good photo look excellent and a decent pic out of a spoiled click. Great apps keep on popping up from time to time, so we suggest users to try as many as they can to make their clicks interesting.
Use Focus to Your Advantage
While smartphone cameras have the option to Autofocus, the fact is that user’s themselves would be able to best tell which part of the Photograph is paramount and should receive maximum attention from the camera lens. It is just a matter of touching a part of your screen – and your device will realize your preferences.
Moreover, once the camera realizes the exact spot which has to be focused upon, it can decide on the amount of light it needs to capture, exposure that is acceptable etc and adjust the lens as needed. Therefore, rather than ask the device to focus the lenses for you, it is best to do the job yourself.
Clean Lenses
While this may sound like a very basic advice, many-a-lenses have been ruined due to the presence of dust, moisture specks on the lens. Smartphone lenses are not protected with a shutter unlike the lenses on Camera devices – therefore they are more likely to succumb to dirt particles of any kind. Users should make sure that the lenses are clean, with no dirt on top of them, preferably before every shot. This would help in taking clean and clear pictures.
Use Your Brain
This might be a very generalized observation, but users either forget, ignore, or are unwilling to learn about the Camera’s functions, and apply their minds on where to use them. For example, using HDR with still images would be preferable, especially in bright, naturally lit surroundings. Similarly, when focus is on close objects or when the object has to be snapped in details, Macro mode should be used.
These are numerous other simple tips which do not require anything other than basic common sense are easily available online. Users should therefore research more, read more, and then use the knowledge gained to click better pics.
Conclusion
Not all of these tips might be needed in every situation. Similarly, many situations may require additional efforts, tips and tricks on the part of the users. It is significantly important for users to keep an open mind while taking photographs, and react to the situation in hand, rather than stick to some strict so-called fool-proof method.
That said, the tips mentioned above can be used to get better out of your comparatively limited camera lens. Users will find that by employing these tips, they are able to click better pictures and can take better advantage of their Smartphone Cameras for an enhanced Smartphone experience.
