GET SPECTACULAR PHOTOS WITH MOBILE (11 VERY SIMPLE TRICKS)

They say the best camera is the one that always goes with you. So, regardless of the advantages and disadvantages that the mobile phone camera may have in particular, the truth is that, if a camera always goes with you, this is your phone's. I will not enter the debate about whether mobile photography is “authentic photography” because we have already entered the subject many times (for me the answer is flat yes). However you consider it, the point is that you use it at all times, right? So it is very important to learn to get the best of him at every moment. To do this, let's quickly see advantages and disadvantages, because it is by knowing our camera that we can best overcome its limitations and express its advantages.

ADVANTAGE

Size: It is evident that its lightness and size accompany when wanting to work with it.
Always on top: We don't go out without a phone or buy bread .
Ease of use: If we compare it to working with a manual reflex, yes, a Smartphone seems the simplest in the world (although beware, you can also and maybe you should work from time to time with its manual options).
Discretion: Not surprisingly, many lovers of street photography have been the first to bet heavily on this type of cameras. They go completely unnoticed, are little invasive and "threatening" and, therefore, become a perfect camera for this type of photography.
Continuous improvement: There is a fierce competitive race between different brands that does nothing but favor us. Different brands struggle to gain a foothold in the market through constant innovation and competitiveness that makes them improve quickly and constantly. We are lucky, above all, because all brands are committed to improving cameras as a constant consumer complaint element.

DISADVANTAGES OF MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHY

Price: It is clear that we not only buy a camera when we buy a Smartphone or smartphone, today I don't know if we buy powerful mini computers with cameras, cameras with integrated mini-computers or what. But the truth is that prices in general are in the clouds. If you had been told years ago that you would pay thousands of euros for a mobile phone, you would not have believed it.
Image quality: It is the “classic” complaint of those who are still reluctant to use the Smartphone's camera since, although the improvement is constant, we still have certain limitations due to the reduced sensor that Smartphones cameras have. It is the price to pay for having such a small and light camera ;-). Of course, time to time, because the improvements are happening at an amazing rate.

Mobile photography can give you great results if you learn what their strengths and weaknesses are and learn to solve them when you face any scene. Let's see how we can improve the quality of your mobile photographs with some tips:

The optics, very clean
Be aware of the size of the mobile camera sensor
Light, lots of light
Do not use the flash of your mobile
Frame well from the beginning
Hold the phone correctly
Never use digital zoom
Never photograph with a selected filter
Learn to work with the manual settings of your mobile
Composition Tricks
Edition

Let's see them now one by one:

1. OPTICS, VERY CLEAN

Yes, it is the least photographic advice on the list but one of the most important and in which we usually fail more often. You will rarely have a goal in such "bad conditions" as the mobile phone. Not in vain we are touching it all day, we carry it in any way in the bag or jacket pocket ... So I assure you, it is dirtier than desired and that affects, and much, the sharpness of your Photographs. So you know, before you start taking pictures like a possessed person, remember to clean the optics well with some soft material (ideally, the typical suede that you use for the purpose of your camera, but badly, a piece of clothing of cotton will be useful to you).

The optics, very clean

2. BE AWARE OF THE SIZE OF THE MOBILE CAMERA SENSOR

Being aware of the limitations of the Smartphone camera, allows you to advance to the problems. We know that the sensor size of mobile phones is very small, that is why you have to try to make things easy ;-). You will see that many of the tips are related to this fact.

3. LIGHT, LOTS OF LIGHT

If you want your Smartphone to perform at the highest quality, you should look for environments with good lighting, and if it is uniform, without too much contrast between light and shadow. And why? Because the dynamic range of these cameras is very small, that is, they are not able to correctly process the lights and shadows in the same scene. It is best that you look, therefore, for more homogeneous lights such as diffused natural light.

Indoors, approach a window and turn on all available lights.
If the outdoor light is too hard, look for a shaded area
If you still have a lot of contrast, try the HDR mode of your camera, it can give you good results on some occasions.
Prioritize exposure to lights, it will give you the best results.
And remember ... the darkness is the worst enemy of your Smartphone, the images appear easily full of noise.

Try to avoid environments with a high dynamic range

4. DO NOT USE THE FLASH OF YOUR MOBILE

If you are looking for light, other than this . The flash light of mobile phones is extremely hard and will rarely give you good results. It is better to try to turn on all the lights you can, move your protagonist, or force the ISO into your phone's settings.

5. FRAME WELL FROM THE BEGINNING

Do not fall for the "I'll fix it later" because any cuts you make in the edition will affect the quality of your images. This is especially true when working with small sensors such as those on the mobile phone. So you know, it is always best to think before shooting, and get the best possible image directly from the phone.

6. HOLD THE PHONE CORRECTLY

With how light the phone is, you may never have thought too much that the way you grab it can affect the quality of your photographs, but it is true. A good grip with both hands and with a balanced and stable body will reduce trepidations. Get a mini tripod; It is essential if you really want the best possible quality in low light situations.

7. NEVER USE DIGITAL ZOOM

It is of very poor quality. If you need zoom, let your legs be the ones that bring you closer .

8. NEVER PHOTOGRAPH WITH A SELECTED FILTER

You are always in time to add it calmly in the editing program you choose, but if you take it with a certain filter and then you don't like it, there is no going back .

9. LEARN TO WORK WITH THE MANUAL SETTINGS OF YOUR MOBILE

Knowing how the parameters related to exposure work and interact will help you improve and squeeze your possibilities to infinity.

Shutter speed : The speed at which the camera shutter opens and closes. The faster this movement is, the greater the ability to freeze the movement (high speed values). If the shutter remains longer open, however, more is impregnated in the image (low speeds).
ISO : It is the sensitivity of the sensor to light. The higher the ISO value, the more sensitive it is (it has more ability to capture light) but sharpness is progressively lost.
Diaphragm opening : In most terminals it is fixed, so we can not play with it, but time to time, because there are already some phones that incorporate very bright openings, and it looks like it will be increasingly common. The aperture of the diaphragm is related to the greater or lesser light input to the sensor and the depth of field.

10. COMPOSITION TRICKS

Take care of the background: Remember that the depth of field in the Smartphone in general is very high, that means that everything will almost always come out focused on the image.
Activate the grid of the phone : It will help you to compose, to place the center of interest in the frame, to keep the straight lines, and thus you will also avoid cropping the image .

11. EDITION

The photograph has to be as correct as possible when you leave the camera, that is what will give you more possibilities to work after a possible edition with good results. You can improve your image with small adjustments of editing, lights, leftovers, contrast or saturation, but remember that the more tweaks the greater the loss of quality. Before saying goodbye, I leave you with this video of Mario with five tips for photographing with smartphone: It's hard not to succumb to the charms of mobile photography, don't you think, it's hard not to fall for your comfort, opportunity, and versatility, so why not try to get the best out of it whenever possible? I hope these tips have been useful, if so, do not hesitate to share it on your favorite social network, but above all, what really matters is that you put it into practice . Thank you and see you next time.