With the dawning of the iPhone, a whole new age of photography has arrived: the iPhoneography era. Having a camera built into your phone makes it easy to take pictures on the fly. The sheer size of a SLR or DSLR makes it less portable and convenient than a phone, which most people have on them at all times. With all the benefits and fun that come these new smart phones, people everywhere are starting to play with iPhone photography. Here are just a few tips to help make the most of your iPhone photos!

1. Understand your Camera’s Limits
With the much smaller size and limited abilities, it is no surprise that the photos you take with your iPhone will not be the same quality as what you can get with your DSLR. Photos taken with a phone are going to be a much smaller file size so they won’t be able to be printed very big. Also camera phones are not designed to do well in low light situations so knowing this in advance can help you to avoid situations where you may not be able to get the best quality photos.

2. Keep Your Camera Steady
When you first start using your phone’s built in camera, it’s natural to want to shoot pictures with one hand. However, holding your phone like a camera will steady yourself and insure that your pictures are as crisp and clear as possible. For the greatest steadiness, be sure to keep your arms in closer to your body (nice and tight), bend your knees slightly and just lightly tap the shutter button with your finger.

3. Don’t Use the Camera’s Zoom
While most smart phones have a built in zoom on them, I would never recommend using it. The minute you start using the zoom on the camera – you’re going to get some noticeable pixelation. It is far better to move yourself and your phone closer to whatever you’re photographing and only use the phone’s zoom as an absolute last resort!

4. Take a Couple Shots
The great thing about digital photography in general is that you can take more than picture to be sure you get one you like. You can take the same shot from a couple different angels, make sure you’re steady and that your shot is in focus. Be sure not to delete any of these extra shots while you are out and about because you may find when you get home that the shots that looked poorly on your phone actually look much better on your computer monitor.

5. Understand the Light
Just as with photographing with a traditional camera, light is crucial to taking great photos with your camera phone. As mentioned previously, low light situations can cause very grainy and pixelated pictures. Unless you are taking pictures of the sun or the ocean, always try to keep the sun behind you and your subject. This will ensure that your subject is well lit.

6. Clean the Lens
This may seem like common sense, but it’s funny how easy this is to forget. Think of all the places you put your phone, your purse, your pocket, in your car. You may use it while you’re eating or cooking or your kids may smear it with their fingers. With all the places your phone goes, it makes sense that cleaning the lens can make a huge difference!

7. Play with Apps
Just because your phone comes with a built in camera app, doesn’t mean that there is no other app out there you can take pictures with. In fact, there are a slew of them! Everything from Camera apps like Camera + and Synthcam to processing apps like Snap Seed and Over. Play around and have fun. After all that’s what iPhoneography is all about!

As you can see there are pros and cons to using your camera phone, but the portability and convenience of your phone’s built-in camera make it worth having fun and playing with. Just remember the limitations and the little things you can do to improve your shots and you’re sure to have a blast taking pictures using your iPhone!

Well I hope you found this post at least a little helpful! Go out and have some fun taking pictures this weekend! I know I will be! 🙂

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