If you also want to take your skills in Mobile Photography to the top level and have made it one of your goals then you must keep reading. From clicking Self Portraits (which is mastered by pretty much everyone nowadays) to capturing breathtaking pictures during your journey, portraits, and aesthetics by your smartphone. I am sure, You’ll indeed find all the answers to your curiosity.
Even if you have already started the journey of Mobile Photography by clicking portraits or landscapes with just your phone, you might feel a little left out or lag. Here, my friend, all you need is patience and confidence. With the right amount of faith, you can learn the steps quickly, and with the right amount of patience, you can ace any variety of Mobile Photography.
I know Mobile Photography is not something new, especially in the era where everything is about sharing moments on Social Media. Everybody wants that perfect shot, and that too clicked from just their smartphone. Sometimes it might be a hassle to carry around your giant DSLR camera to some locations where it can be risky to carry such devices; hence you might miss some clicks. But guess what? Not anymore.
Here are some easy Mobile Photography tips for beginners so that they can ride the wave too, with confidence!
#1. LIGHTING
In Photography, Lighting matters a lot. Different hours of the day will have other lighting effects on your photos.
You have to study the lights and shadows and the direction of the light source. If you want to click pictures in the “Golden hours” of your day, try to take your photos during the time of sunrise or sunset. These are the most magical times of the day to click pictures outside as the sunlight can cast unique shades and tones during these times. And your pictures will turn out no lesser than professionals. You can also click pictures 40 to 50 minutes after the sun sets or during the midday lighting.
You should keep in mind that if you click the pictures during the wrong time, your photos might look harsh due to the hard lights and shadows, which doesn’t allow your pictures to have a smooth finishing and might disappoint you while editing them later on.
Also, if you don’t like clicking outside and want to stay indoors while experimenting with your mobile camera, then you need not worry; we got you! All you need to do is detect the light source that will help you with your lighting. Indoor lights are often soft, so there is no tension in getting pictures with harsh sunlight and shadows when you click outside. Do a lot of portraits, sit at every corner of your location or place to find the right amount of light. Secondly, if you still want to click some sick images but don’t have a natural light source, then you can simply use artificial lighting like a bulb, RGB lights, Chinese bulbs, and ring light.
#2. CAMERA FOCUS ON THE MAIN SUBJECT
It’ very important to know that what is your main subject. You don’t want your picture to be overcrowded, do you? So it is better to check which is your main subject and accordingly, you can choose and focus on the subject.
This is the essential step in Mobile Photography; setting the focus on your subject will help emphasize the subject and set the focal length in the whole picture. It looks professional as well, with the main subject to be in focus and the background being blurred automatically. Also, if you are capturing your picture in a tight frame, you must set and adjust the focus accordingly to avoid blurred images. The best way to prevent blurred pictures is holding your camera or mobile still as it is in its position for letting the camera to load the picture after clicking.
Clicking pictures at a very closer distance is another way to add drama and exposure to your pictures. Capturing photos from a very low distance will also allow you to show off your subject’s natural beauty without damaging the quality of your pictures. Some Mobiles even have their own portrait mode features that can automatically blur out the background, focusing on your subject mainly. In order to achieve a clearer image, the person must have steady hands. However, only a few are lucky to have that. But if you are somebody who doesn’t have steady hands, then don’t worry! As we have the right solution for this. You need to find an object on which your phone can lean and have support for its safety. The moment you find the right angle upon leaning it, click the capture button, and voila!
Here’s a tip for you, If you feel you’re not confident enough about your first shot, keep clicking, take several photos keeping the subject in mind. And experiment with the lighting, steadiness, and poses. This will help to increase your chances of getting the best picture as you’ll have other options to choose from to get that perfect shot!
And if you can invest a little bit, you might want to opt for mobile holders, tripods, ring light stands, and many more. The best part is, they come at a very affordable price, so it is not like that you have to make a hefty investment to get those extremely desirable shots. All the good gems that you’re getting are very pocket-friendly.
#3 USING GRIDLINES
If you’re also a sucker of symmetry and take your Mobile Photography to a top-level, then here comes the best thing to maintain while clicking pictures, mainly landscapes and outdoors.
Symmetry is a very beautiful thing, and if you can maintain or follow the grid lines, you will find it easier to see if your subject is going off the frame or not. Try to keep it within the idle area, but sometimes you want to click pictures from a different perspective; for that, you can apply the rule of thirds where the AI helps you to detect where the subject should be placed in order to get the best picture shot!
You can also switch off the Gridline feature in your smartphone, but I would suggest if you keep it on while clicking because who wouldn’t love to get some work done in an easier way?
In some smartphones, there is a feature called Leading Lines, where it helps the photographer to understand the subject to space ratio; too many spaces won’t look on pictures like headspace.
Now I hope this was helpful for you if you have read it till here. The three foremost things about Mobile Photography are an eye for aesthetics, Patience, and Confidence. Ace all the three, and you are good to go to start with your journey and capture all your amazing and magical moments. And once you are done with the capturing, don’t forget to slide your pictures to the next process that is post-production. You want to feed your pictures with some extra color corrections. Don’t you? For that, don’t forget to check out apps like Snapseed, Lightroom, and VSCO. They will really breathe life into your pictures. You are making the magic look more Magical!