We are living in a time where ‘Digital cameras’ are everywhere. Gone are the days when a camera was a camera, a MP3 player was an MP3 player, a phone was a phone…
These days, digital cameras are found in a variety of other gadgets, including cell phones. In fact, camera phones are one of the fastest growing segments of the digital camera market and with the improvements in the quality of what is being offered in some phones (higher megapixels, better lenses, high capacity storage) many believe that they are beginning to win market share away from the low end offerings of many digital camera manufacturers.
Following are a few tips to help camera phone owners to get the most from their cameras:
Light up the subjects
The better lit your subject is the clearer your image is likely to be. If possible, shoot outside or turn on lights when shooting inside. Be aware that different lights impact the color in your images differently. Experiment with White Balance to correct this. Some cameras come with a built in flash or light – this can really lift a shot and add clarity to it, even if you’re shooting outside. If your camera doesn’t have a flash or light you should avoid shooting into bright lights as you’ll end up with subjects that are silhouetted.
Closer is better
One of the most common mistakes with camera phone images is that their subject ends up being a tiny, unrecognizable object in the distance. Camera phone images tend to be smallish due to low resolution – so fill up your view finder with your subject to save having to zoom in on the subject when editing it later (which decreases quality even more). Having said this, getting too close on some model camera phones creates distortion, giving either a fisheye effect or a lack of focus due to poor macro ability.
Steady and still
As with all digital photography, the steadier your phone is when taking your shot the clearer your image will be. This is especially important in low light situations where the camera will use longer shutter speeds. I always try to lean my camera phone/hand against a solid object (like a tree, wall, ledge) when taking shots. Keep in mind that many camera phones also suffer from ’shutter lag’ (ie the second or two between when you press the shutter and when the camera takes the shot). This means you need to hold the camera still a little longer to ensure it doesn’t take a shot as you’re lowering it away from the subject.
Try not to use the digital zoom
As tempting as it might be to zoom in on your subject when taking your picture (if you have a zoom feature on your camera phone), it will actually decrease the quality of your shot. Plus you can always edit your shot later using photo editing software on your computer. Some camera phones are beginning to hit the market with ‘optical zooms’ – these are fine to use, as they don’t enlarge your subject by enlarging pixels.
Mistakes are valuable
Remember that the quality of your cell phone screen will not be as good as your computer’s screen. If possible, hang onto your shots until you can get them to your home computer. You might just find that they look better on a good quality monitor. You may also find that even ‘mistakes’ and blurred shots can actually be quite useable.
Final thought
Unfortunately many of the pictures being taken with camera phones are poor in quality. This might be partially due to lower quality cameras but it is also often a result of poor photographic technique. Hopefully these tips will help you improve your quality.