Tips for Taking Better Photos With Your iPhone

Tuesday February 23, 2016 10:36 am PST by Juli Clover

There's an adage that says the best camera is the one you have with you, and for most MacRumors readers, that's an iPhone. On popular photography site Flickr, the iPhone has long been the most popular camera, responsible for a significant portion of the photos uploaded to the site.

Apple has fully embraced the iPhone's position as a serious photography device, and over the years, the camera has steadily improved, but getting a great picture is about more than just the camera it's shot with -- factors like lighting and positioning can have a huge impact on the outcome.

With that in mind, our videographer, Mattdgonzalez, has created a basic introduction video on how to take better photos using your iPhone and the stock camera app.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Following the rule of thirds and working with the ambient light around you are two of the most important factors when it comes to good photography, but there are a few built-in iPhone tools that can help you get the perfect shot, like tap to focus, exposure control, and HDR.

There are two iPhone tools you'll want to use sparingly or not at all -- digital zoom and flash. Digital zoom is just going to make your photos look grainy, and it's rare photos using the flash will look halfway decent. Simple tips like additional light sources or moving closer to your subject instead of zooming digitally can make a world of difference when it comes to quality.

Matt's also been producing our iOS Beta walkthroughs and regularly publishing videos on our YouTube channel which don't all make their way to the main site. Other recent videos include:

- How to Create an "Unread" Folder in the iOS Mail App
- Avoid Read Receipts in Messages with 3D Touch
- What happens when you block someone on your iPhone?
- 5 Cool Things to do with 3D Touch!

Subscribe to our YouTube channel to be automatically notified of future videos.

Top Rated Comments

(View all)

zorinlynx

51 months ago

Digital zoom is a big one. It is absolutely identical to cropping. Avoid zoom and just crop; the result looks better (no upscaling) and you can change your mind later!

Rating: 11 Votes

macduke

51 months ago

Here's a tip: buy a DSLR if you want good photos.

Here's a tip: Not everyone knows how to handle a dSLR, nor the time to take to learn it, nor the capability to buy a $600+ device in addition to their expensive phone, nor the want (or extra attention) of carrying a bulky device around their neck everywhere they go.

Source: I'm sitting here at work with my 5D MkIII 24-70mm f/2.8L. I'm also considering a move to mirrorless to minimize size and weight. I know other pros who have already made the switch. For instance the Sony A7rII is a beast. If you can't get people like us to still use dSLRs, then there is no hope for regular consumers. dSLRs are still useful (mostly for sports), but they're in decline.

Rating: 10 Votes

ghost187

51 months ago

How to take better photos with your phone:
STEP 1: Upgrade your phone.
STEP 2: Wait a year, than goto STEP 1.

Rating: 9 Votes

DrumApple

51 months ago

Here's a tip: buy a DSLR if you want good photos.

Rating: 9 Votes

69Mustang

51 months ago

Here's a tip: buy a DSLR if you want good photos.

/takes DrumApple's advice
/buys DSLR

/takes pictures with iPhone
/realizes DSLR purchase didn't help me take better pictures with iPhone:rolleyes:

/hunts down DrumApple

OT: These are good tips for taking pics with any smartphone. More of us need to use them.

Rating: 8 Votes

Cronowerx

51 months ago

('https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/23/how-to-take-better-photos-with-iphone/')

There's an adage that says the best camera is the one you have with you, and for most MacRumors readers, that's an iPhone. On popular photography site Flickr ('https://www.flickr.com/cameras'), the iPhone has long been the most popular camera ('https://www.macrumors.com/2015/12/03/flickr-iphone-most-popular-camera-2015/'), responsible for a significant portion of the photos uploaded to the site.

Apple has fully embraced the iPhone's position as a serious photography device, and over the years, the camera has steadily improved, but getting a great picture is about more than just the camera it's shot with -- factors like lighting and positioning can have a huge impact on the outcome.

With that in mind, our videographer, Mattdgonzalez ('https://twitter.com/mattdgonzalez'), has created a basic introduction video on how to take better photos using your iPhone and the stock camera app.

[MEDIA=youtube]I9kNXQT38pE[/MEDIA]
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel ('//www.youtube.com/user/macrumors?sub_confirmation=1') for more videos.
Following the rule of thirds and working with the ambient light around you are two of the most important factors when it comes to good photography, but there are a few built-in iPhone tools that can help you get the perfect shot, like tap to focus, exposure control, and HDR.

There are two iPhone tools you'll want to use sparingly or not at all -- digital zoom and flash. Digital zoom is just going to make your photos look grainy, and it's rare photos using the flash will look halfway decent. Simple tips like additional light sources or moving closer to your subject instead of zooming digitally can make a world of difference when it comes to quality.

Matt's also been producing our iOS Beta ('https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/08/apple-seeds-third-ios-9-3-beta/') walkthroughs and regularly publishing videos on our YouTube channel ('//www.youtube.com/user/macrumors?sub_confirmation=1') which don't all make their way to the main site. Other recent videos include:

- How to Create an "Unread" Folder in the iOS Mail App ('//www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybvpXVyMWY0')
- Avoid Read Receipts in Messages with 3D Touch ('//www.youtube.com/watch?v=UY6Nj5KKgUc')
- What happens when you block someone on your iPhone? ('//www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYzg_JJTTnU')
- 5 Cool Things to do with 3D Touch! ('//www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhAk70G9yyg')

Subscribe ('//www.youtube.com/user/macrumors?sub_confirmation=1') to our YouTube channel to be automatically notified of future videos.

Article Link: Tips for Taking Better Photos With Your iPhone ('https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/23/how-to-take-better-photos-with-iphone/')

SOMEONE GET THIS TO TIM COOK ASAP BEFORE HE POSTS ANY MORE RUBBISH PICS

Rating: 5 Votes

stu.h

51 months ago

Tip for getting the FBI into someones phone without permission;

Ask U2.

Rating: 4 Votes

firewood

51 months ago

The tip that I've found makes the biggest difference is to brace your iPhone against a hard non-movable object (tree trunk, lamp post, doorway, window sill, table, chair, etc.) With such a tiny lens, the slower shutter speed can allow far more than 1 pixel of blur. And a hand-held camera seems to autofocus slower as well.

Rating: 4 Votes

macduke

51 months ago

Solid tips for those starting out and don't have basic knowledge of how to take a decent photo. But I wish the video had touched on burst mode. I'm always amazed how many people don't realize they can hold down the button to take like 10fps and then pick the best one from the stack and easily discard the rest. It's a great way to get a good action shot of your kid or dog running around, and in low-light it enables you to pick out the one with the least hand-held blur.

In addition to the benefits in the article for HDR, I like it because the stacking sometimes creates a sharper image than the original, due to small movements that might happen in the first photo that are mitigated in subsequent exposures. I often notice this when taking photos of my squirmy, blinky toddler. But you need to be careful of fast motion with HDR. Sometimes it leaves weird artifacts in the image. The easiest way to reproduce this is using HDR to take a photo of fire.

As a side note, at some point over the years Apple removed the capability to leave HDR on by default. I always find I have to tap it to reactivate it. Does anyone know a way around this? I almost always want it on as I keep both shots and then pick the best later.

Rating: 3 Votes