As Christmas attracts nearer and lights, bushes, shows and all types of festive actions (together with snow within the UK!) start to look, you could be tempted to seize the second in your cellphone. However whereas iPhones (and most Android telephones) are respectable point-and-shoot cameras, there’s extra to capturing the right winter photographs than merely pointing and capturing.
From framing to digital camera modes, there are various methods to show a really common snap into one thing that appears prefer it was shot by a professional. Whether or not you’re taking images of your Christmas tree, a snowy scene on the park or your loved ones sporting matching Christmas jumpers as they tuck into Turkey on the massive day, these dozen suggestions ought to assist enormously.
So, with out additional ado, right here’s tips on how to get probably the most out of your iPhone’s digital camera this Christmas, together with some suggestions and methods from Tech Advisor’s resident professional photographer, Dominik Tomaszewski.
In abstract
- Clear your digital camera lenses
- Body your shot effectively
- Inform a narrative along with your photographs
- Take away any distractions
- Use a telephoto lens the place attainable
- Disable the built-in flash
- Use Night time Mode at night time
- Strive Burst Mode
- Use the Professional capturing mode or a third-party app
- Shoot in RAW
- Edit your images
1. Clear your cellphone’s lenses
Though a soft-focus impact could be what you’re after, it’s a good suggestion to examine and clear your digital camera lenses earlier than you’re taking any images – not simply these at Christmas. Ensure they’re away from any smudges, mud or different particles out of your pocket or bag.
They’ll have an enormous impact on the standard of the photographs taken – particularly if there’s a giant fingerprint on the lens.
2. Body your shot
Framing is likely one of the most vital elements, and it’s harder than you would possibly assume. Contemplate the topic of the picture, be it a Christmas tree, lights and even folks in festive jumpers.
When taking group household images, get far sufficient again (or use an ultra-wide lens) so that you don’t minimize folks’s toes out of the picture. Alternatively, transfer nearer for a waist-up shot.
If capturing just one or two folks, put them off-centre for a extra pleasing look.
Additionally, think about the background. Is it too busy or distracting? Transfer round till the background seems good. You can too do that to get rid of undesirable objects from the picture. Though some telephones can cleverly take away objects or folks, it’s finest to take the shot you need the primary time.
The identical goes for cropping. Don’t take all of your images utilizing wide-angle with the intention to crop them later. Get the framing proper if you take the picture.
Professional tip: take photographs out of your chest or hip. Taking images from head peak along with your cellphone’s predominant wide-angle lens typically ends in barely distorted objects, particularly when taking them of different folks. We’re all used to seeing this so you could not likely discover it, however by altering to hip / waist peak, you can also make a giant distinction to the look of your Christmas images.
3. Inform a narrative along with your photographs
Whereas images can exist in isolation, you’ll in all probability take multiple at Christmas. There’s the work Christmas occasion, the household get-together, Christmas decorations (indoor and outside) and – in the event you’re lucky – snowy scenes to seize.
The concept is to search for fascinating particulars, corresponding to taking an image of somebody serving to arrange the occasion or choosing up meals on the buffet. These assist inform a narrative, fairly than merely having posed images of individuals.
Ideally, mute your cellphone to silence the shutter sound and take images with out telling folks. That eliminates the difficulty of awkward poses when folks know they’re being photographed. The candid look is rather more pure, and likelihood is, your family and friends will actually recognize the outcomes.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
4. Take away any distractions
If you wish to get the right shot of your LED-emblazoned Christmas tree to share with your mates on social media, take away issues within the background which may distract from the primary focus of the shot.
That could possibly be the nook of a settee, folks or pets standing within the background, or perhaps a rogue plate of leftovers on a close-by countertop. A cleaner picture freed from distractions will present extra of an affect and look extra skilled.
5. Use a telephoto lens the place attainable
The principle digital camera of any current cellphone – together with all iPhones – is designed for capturing in each vivid daytime circumstances and low-light circumstances. But when there’s one potential draw back, it’s their wide-angle subject of view, which isn’t supreme for each shot.
For portrait images and different close-ups, use your cellphone’s telephoto lens – if it has one. As an alternative of capturing lots of stuff that you just don’t need to give attention to, zoom in utilizing a devoted 2x or 3x lens if attainable to crop the shot. Simply keep in mind that this could cut back total picture high quality as many telephoto cameras have a decrease decision than the primary digital camera, or don’t carry out effectively in low mild, resulting in noisy, probably blurry images.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
6. Disable the built-in flash
No matter whether or not you’re taking a photograph of your family members or making an attempt to take a snap of the snow outdoors, it’s finest to disable the flash. Whereas it may be helpful in some situations, the sunshine from the flash is all the time apparent in images and infrequently ends in a true-to-life picture.
In the event you do want some sort of fill mild in your shot so as to add further mild to the scene, think about using one other cellphone’s torch, an actual torch, or turning extra lights on.
7. Use Night time Mode the place attainable
If utilizing a torch isn’t going to work, then change to the iPhone’s built-in Night time Mode, out there on the iPhone 11 and later. This actually shines on the newest iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Professional vary, however you’ll additionally discover it on many Android telephones.
The Night time Mode, because the title suggests, is for low-light images. This makes it supreme for taking photographs of the snow or different outside options at night time, with lengthy shutter speeds capturing as a lot mild as attainable.
Jim Martin / Foundry
Professional tip: use a tripod or relaxation your cellphone on a stable floor. This not solely reduces the shake out of your palms when taking a protracted publicity shot, nevertheless it additionally means that you can seize extra mild, with the iPhone particularly providing as much as 30-second publicity on a steady floor in comparison with three seconds when handheld.
You can too allow a brief self-timer to set off the seize, as tapping on the display screen can introduce a slight wobble to photographs.
8. Strive Burst mode
The issue with flashing LED lights on Christmas bushes and outside decorations is that they will change too shortly, making it more durable to nail that good shot. The identical may also be mentioned of group photographs, with it seemingly close to not possible to get everybody to take a look at the digital camera and smile on the similar time.
In situations like this, it’s finest to experiment with the burst mode, which takes a number of pictures per second and routinely chooses the perfect – although you even have the choice of manually searching and deciding on your favorite.
Activating Burst Mode on an iPhone differs relying on the mannequin you’ve got; in the event you’ve received an iPhone X or older, merely faucet and maintain the shutter button, whereas these with an iPhone XS or newer have to swipe the shutter button to the left and maintain.
To evaluate the burst pictures, faucet the burst picture within the Pictures app and faucet Choose within the bottom-right to browse and choose the primary picture. You can too discard all the opposite burst pictures when you’ve chosen, serving to hold file sizes down.
On some Android telephones you would possibly discover a comparable mode, and it could even routinely choose the ‘finest’ picture.
Jim Martin / Foundry
9. Use the Professional capturing mode or a third-party app
In the event you’re capturing in low mild or different difficult mild circumstances, it’s in all probability a good suggestion to ditch the cellphone’s built-in ‘AI’ and manually regulate your digital camera’s settings utilizing the Professional mode.
You’ll be able to entry professional instruments in any iPhone built-in Digital camera app by tapping the arrow on the prime of the digital camera UI, mentioning a number of icons that allow you to regulate components like publicity, although we’d advocate utilizing a third-party app like Halide in the event you’re severe about your images.
Third-party apps present rather more granular management over components like ISO, permitting you to seize the absolute best picture out of your iPhone. It’ll take a little bit of experimentation in the event you’re new to the world of images, however the outcomes are often value it.
10. Shoot in RAW
If you wish to seize the perfect Christmas pictures attainable, we’d advocate capturing within the RAW picture format.
The RAW picture format, out there on choose Professional fashions of iPhone, permits them to seize extra knowledge, making it a lot better for post-processing, notably in darkish areas. With customary photographs, particulars in shadows and highlights will be misplaced, however these will be introduced again with RAW photographs and a little bit of post-processing by way of the Pictures app.
Lewis Painter / Foundry
You would possibly discover the identical on some Android telephones, however not all can shoot in RAW.
Don’t go too wild with RAW pictures although – they take up rather more house than customary JPG or HEIC recordsdata. Reserve it for these particular photographs that actually have to look their finest.
11. Edit your images
All telephones do their finest to routinely course of pictures to make them look interesting, however you’ll be able to often enhance upon this with a little bit enhancing to essentially make them pop.
That may be something from including a filter (the iPhone’s Vivid filter makes colors brighter and lights actually stand out) to adjusting the publicity, brightness and different components to offer your picture a selected look. You would additionally add a black-and-white filter to snowy scenes for a powerful impact.
Lewis Painter / Foundry
Whether or not you’ve got an iPhone or Android, you possibly can additionally use the Google Pictures app which provides the same set of enhancing instruments. You’ll be able to go even additional and regulate particular elements of a photograph in others apps, such because the free Snapseed, or you possibly can go the entire hog and switch them to your Mac or PC and edit them in Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop.
12. Take an influence financial institution
In the event you’re headed out within the chilly to take images of native Christmas lights, we’d advise wrapping up (after all!) and taking an influence financial institution with you.
The chilly temperatures most of us expertise over Christmas can have a adverse impact on smartphone battery life, and also you would possibly discover it operating out sooner than common – particularly in the event you’re utilizing the Digital camera app typically.
An influence financial institution can present further juice when wanted, and relying on the capability you go for, they’re not that cumbersome or heavy. Check out our hand-picked number of the perfect energy banks in the event you’re uncertain which to go for.