HOW TO MAKE PHOTOS BETTER

That’s a big question!

So let’s break it down.

Here are 5 practical things you can do today to improve a photo.

Try one, or all five!

1. DON’T BE SHY, GET CLOSER AND ZOOM IN

the benefit: clean, classic perspective – looks more professional.

We often stand too far with our camera and we use the default 1x lens. This gives us a boring, average view.

Instead, step a bit closer with your phone and zoom in. Watch the improvement instantly.

2. CONTROL THE EXPOSURE

the benefit: creative use of lighting, rather than mucky results.

Your camera will automatically make your photo darker or brighter, depending on the lighting information it receives when you point your camera at a scene.

For better results, you should control how bright or dark to set the photo before taking a picture.

Simply manually adjust the exposure.

On an iPhone camera, tap on the screen until you see the yellow square show up. Swipe up or down to control the brightness before taking your photo.

3. EXPERIMENT WITH MULTIPLE SHOTS

the benefit: your photos will stand out above the average.

Don’t just take one photo from one perspective. Move around! Change angles! Be extra weird, or extra unexpected!

But above all, don’t be shy to try.

Most people shoot from a basic, standard viewpoint. And guess what happens: their photos look normal, expected and not particularly captivating.

Be the one to shake things up. Make photos that get noticed!

4. DEEPEN YOUR BLACKS

the benefit: rich, vibrant photos that look polished.

Have you noticed that most of your phone photos don’t have deep blacks?

It’s hard to notice, but take a good look. Are the blackest blacks in your photos as deep and rich as they could be?

Probably not. That’s because phone cameras apply average contrast and make your photos look a bit washed out.

​You can fix this in Lightroom. Just use the blacks slider to deepen the blacks. That’s the number 1 adjustment I use in Lightroom. Nothing looks good without first deepening the blacks!

5. USE CORRECT CAMERA SETTINGS TO CAPTURE NIGHT PHOTOS

the benefit: the ability to capture stunning starry skies and northern lights

Night photography can be really difficult to master, but phone camera technology has come a long way. It’s now possible for the average person to take incredible night photos thanks to these two helpful tools:

• night mode on the camera
• phone camera tripods

Simply turn your phone camera to night mode,

set it to max,

attach it to your tripod,

and trigger the shutter with the bluetooth remote (so you don’t cause camera shake by touching your phone).

Taking your phone photography to the next level is easier than you might think.

Just take it one step at a time. Try one of these techniques, watch it improve your photos, and use that confidence boost to take you to the next technique. Good photography habits come with practice and baby steps. It’s a lifetime of discovering new joys and skills!

For more phone photography tips,