Camera Phone Photo Tips

Take lots of pictures

Since your camera phone is always with you, take advantage of capturing those spontaneous moments. Take lots of pictures to increase your chance of capturing just the right shot.

Use pictures to communicate – it may be faster and easier for both you and the recipient.

Move in close

Many camera phones lack a zoom lens, so make sure you move in close to capture your subject.

Fill your phone’s display screen with your subject to create pictures with greater impact. Up close you can reveal telling details – a wrinkle nose or an arched eyebrow.

When the background of your picture is cluttered and the lighting is questionable, fill the frame of your camera phone by moving in closer to your subject.

Don’t get too close or picture will be blurry and distorted. as a general rule, stand about one or two feet from your subject.

Shoot at eye level

Direct eye contact can be as engaging in a picture as it is in real life. When taking a picture of someone, hold the camera at person’s eye level to unleash the power of those magnetic gazes and mesmerizing smiles.

For children and pets, that means stopping to their level. Your subject doesn’t have to stare at the camera – all by itself that eye level angle will create a personal and inviting feeling that pulls you into the picture.

Watch the light

To create impactful pictures, move in to close and fill your viewfinder or LCD with the subject.

Unless your camera phone has a built-in-flash, low light =  bad picture. Try to take pictures in bright light. Without adequate lighting, your camera phone pictures will look dark and grainy.

In sunlight, move around where the sun beams onto your subject. Indoors, turn on extra lights to brighten your subject.

Avoid direct sunlight

Your subjects will be cooler, happier, and more attractively lit if they don’t have a sunbeam hitting them in the face. If it’s an overcast day, you’re in luck. This is one of the best outdoor lighting situations for photographing people. If it’s a sunny day, have your subjects stand in the brightest patch of shade you can find.

Use a plain background

A plain background shows off the subject you are photographing. When you’re ready to take your picture, force yourself to study the area surrounding your subject. Make sure a tree isn’t growing from head of your subject and that no cars seem to dangle from their ears.

Check your picture in the phone’s display screen and retake it if necessary.

Try different angles

Start by shooting at eye level. “CLICK”

Capturing many angles will add variety and interest to your photos.

Keep the ones you like, delete the ones you don’t.

Wait for the “magic hour.”

During the times of sunrise and sunset, the sky is colorful enough for even a camera phone to capture land and sky with fairly good exposure.

Set resolution to high

Many camera phones include a low, medium, and high resolution setting (picture quality).

Setting your camera phone to the highest setting gives you the best quality pictures.

The quality difference might not be apparent on your phone’s display screen, but you’ll see it on a computer screen.

Stay still

Jittery hands cause blurring.

Keep your hand still a second or two after shooting, since the shot is still processing.

When you hear the click sound, it doesn’t mean you captured the photo, it just indicates that you pressed the shutter.

In low light, camera phones slow the shutter speed to let in more light and have a longer opportunity to capture movement. Hold the camera phone with both hands and brace your upper arms against your body when you shoot.

Edit Images Later

Whilst it can be fun to use your camera phone’s inbuilt editing and effects, editing pictures later on your computer produces much better quality images. Take your shots in color at high resolution to keep your options open on how to treat it later.

You can always make it black and white on your computer, but you can’t make it color if you take it in Black and White mode.

Don’t Throw Away ‘mistakes’

Remember that on many phones the quality of the screen will not be as good as your computer’s. So if possible hang onto your shots until you can get them on your PC. You might just find that they come alive on a quality monitor. You’ll also find that even ‘mistakes’ and blurred shots can actually be quite usable (in an abstract kind of way)

Experiment with White Balance

An increasing number of camera phones come with adjustable white balance which allows you to modify color balance in your images based on shooting conditions. Experiment with this feature to get a good feel for the impact that it has on your shots. Read your manual to find out how it works on your phone.

Use the rule of thirds

When composing a picture, imagine two horizontal lines and two vertical lines crossing like a tic-tac-toe grid on top of it. Place strong lines and divisions like the horizon on the gridlines and let elements of interest fall on the intersections.

Anticipate shutter lag

Get used to your camera phone’s timing so when something interesting happens, you’ll have a good feel for the point when you need to press the shutter release to capture the most interesting moment.

Get the right color tone

Shooting in black-and-white in any light can help develop your photographer’s eye by letting you concentrate on the relationship between light and shadow without the distraction of color.

Keep Your Lens Clean

One of the challenges with many camera phones is keeping them maintained and clean. Phones spend a lot of time in pockets, in bags and being used in all manner of weather and conditions. As a result they get dirty and can easily become damaged – fingerprints are a common problem on camera lenses – especially if your phone doesn’t have a lens cover. From time to time clean the lens of your camera using a soft cloth (sunglasses cleaning cloths are great).

Be courteous, be legal

Cell phones etiquette includes being mindful of its camera. Here are a few guidelines to keep in mind:

- Ask permission before taking picture.

- Don’t use your camera phone in places like health clubs or theaters.

- Places like airplanes, courthouses, concert venues, and military bases, don’t allow cameras or phones. Abide by their rules.

- Phones have limited storage space. Send pictures to online photo sites instead.

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All photos taken from camera: Sony Ericsson K800i

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references:

• www.kodak.com/global/en/corp/top10tips_cameraPhonePics/tips.html
• www.digital-photography-school.com/how-to-use-a-camera-phone
• photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-tips/camera-phone-photos/

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