With the growing technology and innovation, people have it all on their palms. One such #thng is the camera. There was a time when to get a pretty picture, one had to have a digital camera or a DSLR! Those days are long gone. Not only, can you take good photos with your phone for awesome Instagram content but also have a memory bank for yourself.
How to take good photos with your phone worthy of Instagram?
As a new creator, you likely do not know the secrets or photo enhancement secrets using just your phone. Here are 5 #thngs you can do to create kicka$$ content with your smartphone
Step 1: Look for the camera settings on your phone and make sure they are correctly set.
The first rule is to make sure what you are working with before you use it. Almost all the phone cameras are super powerful with a 1-megapixel front-facing camera and an f/2.2 aperture.
Turn off HDR
Start with turning off the HDR or the High Dynamic Range system. It is available simply to help take better-looking pictures. It takes multi shots of the same picture at different ranges and exposures then puts them together in one frame so that your final picture has a ton of detail.
It is awesome if you are confident enough to work with HDR. If not, your picture may look unnatural and off! By turning off the HDR, you’ll still get high-quality pictures without the need to think too much about the exposure levels. So don’t worry much!
Step 2: Look for Photo Mode, it enhances the picture quality.
There are so many different settings on phone cameras these days that sometimes it’s hard to know which ones are useful and which ones aren’t. One such thing is the ‘Portrait Mode’ which detects a well-lit object within a certain distance from the camera and creates a bokeh effect!
It is obviously great for portraits but the interesting part is that for many content creators portrait mode works wonders for food and product shots.
Let’s look at the drawbacks of it now. The portrait mode is not very great when shooting in low light or indoors. This requires the object or the person to be still. Don’t let this dishearten you. There are other modes for various pictures.
Step 3: Understand DOF and get the Composition correct!
Understand the depth of field
To have a DOF (depth of field) with your camera is a pretty fantastic way to improve your Instagram Photo play. It is not that difficult, once you get used to it your followers will go nuts guessing your technique!
For example, if you’re taking a picture of a person facing the water and you want the background to be blurred all you need to do is tap the person’s face on your phone and wait for that square to appear. This gets you that perfect picture through DOF! This may take time but constant efforts will get you there!
Get your composition correct
Gorgeous Instagram photos divert viewers to the subject of the picture while capturing a story or an emotion. The composition of your phone camera will help click pictures from ‘good’ to ‘amazingly good’.
To get this, you need something called ‘The Rule of Thirds’, also known as the ‘Golden of Photography’. It helps you break down the picture into 3 sections.
The aim is to display the best aspects of the picture in the intersection of the grid to have a well-balanced and natural-looking picture. If you can’t imagine the grid, then turn on the grid on your phone while you click the pictures. On an Android phone, select Grid Lights to help your composition.
Rules are always meant to be broken right? Except for a few though! We don’t want you to end up in trouble! Anyway, the Rule of Thirds is not to be applied 100%. It is just to assist you if you need it when taking good photos with your phone.
Pay attention to Lighting and Exposure
One of the major photography hacks while shooting outdoors is to underexpose your camera. It is always better to have an underexposed shot than to have an overexposed, blown-out picture.
This is easy to do on both iPhone and Android.
If you have an iPhone, tap your phone screen when you’re taking the shot and wait till the square box appears. Once it is on, move the little sun on the right of the box and you’ll see the exposure lowering. Now keep moving the square sundown until your liking. It’s almost the same thing on Android phones. Simply tap the screen on darker and lighter parts of the shot and it will manually balance the exposure.
Pro Advice
The best way to get the perfect Instagram photo with your phone is to shoot in natural light! If you’re able to use natural sunlight or be outside, do it, you’ll notice your photos look so much better than when you are shooting indoors or with the flash on.
Step 4: Add Props to make the picture better
When you’re taking a selfie or a flat lay make sure to keep in mind the art direction of your picture. To get a perfect flat lay, try to take it in natural light. Have a textured background when you are about to take your shot. For example, whites, light concrete marble, wooden tables, and pastels are some great options.
This works not only for food but also for product shots. Also, find the perfect backdrop – it contributes a lot! If you want to have a scroll-stopping Instagram picture, you have to have the best picture spot. Remember, you can make any spot Instagrammable using your creativity.
Always browse locations and hashtags for inspiration. Next is attention to the props! Whether you are the subject or the photographer, give one or two props that will help build a better picture for you. From holding a book to having a flower in the hand, add something ‘extra’ to your frame to make it look lively!
Step 5: Edits and Post Production.
The next level is to edit your perfect shot and take it a level up! Do the edits using lightroom. Lightroom presets make the editing process super easy and fast. Additionally, Lightroom CC on your phone lets you edit your best photos for free! It improves your edit quality and gives a unique style to your Instagram page.
That’s it for today, folks!
Those were some tips and tricks to take good photos with your phone and improve your game on the ‘gram too. Use them and let us know in the comments below.
