The Secret & Awesome Features of your iPhone Camera
Now some of you may know that I'm an Android girl, but I know many of you are iPhone, so when one of my fellow photographers, Julia Kelleher, gave me permission to share this, I knew you'd want me to.
Your iPhone is with you at all times, right? It’s like your right hand — always there, always ready to help you muddle your way through the day and kill boredom when the need arises. But that phone of yours can be oh-so-frustrating when your darling child chooses a particular moment to do something photo-worthy and your phone chooses that time to revolt.
Well, when you learn the inner and secret features of your iPhone camera, your days of being “slow on the draw” will be over. On top of that, your camera skills will improve 10-fold and your images will too, making your memories print and wall worthy.
So let’s look at some of the tricks and features inside your I-phone that will make you shine at the next family get together!
Open Your Camera App FAST
Don’t miss ANY moment. To get to your camera lickety-split do one of two things depending on if your iPhone is locked or not.
LOCKED:
1. Hit the home button
2. Locate the camera icon on the lower right corner of the screen
3. Swipe up & the camera will open
UNLOCKED:
1. Swipe Up
2. Tap the camera icon & the camera will open
Turn On Your Grid
Activating the grid will place a “tick-tac-toe” box on your screen as you shoot. What’s the benefit? Where the lines cross is called a “power point.” When you place your subject on of the four points you create images with a little negative space and better, more artistic composition. A little pro tip that will make your images that much prettier!
TO ACTIVATE:
1. Go to Settings > Photos & Camera > Grid > Turn it On
Adjust Exposure And Focus At Your Will
Professional photographer know light like the back of your hand, and every lighting situation poses different issues, especially of you camera. A camera cannot see light and adjust the way the human eye can. So, it’s important to be able to tell your camera how to behave when you need it to in order to get a good “exposure.” The classic scenario that may drive you crazy is shooting a darker subject on a bright background. Your camera will want to make the background look good and your subject will be dark and ugly! ARGH! The way mourn this? Use the hidden feature in your iPhone that lets YOU control how bright an image is.
CUSTOM SET YOUR EXPOSURE
1. Open the camera
2. Compose your shot
3. Tap and HOLD on the screen where you want to focus. The yellow box will blink and set focus
4. Swipe up or down to make the camera brighten or darken the exposure
5. When you’re happy with how it looks, take the shot!
Turn Off Your Auto Flash
Flash from your camera almost never looks good. It produces a harsh, flat light that doesn’t always need to be there, yet the camera seems to want to use it all the time. Turn it off when you can for more pleasing light in your images.
TURN OFF YOUR FLASH
1. In the camera app, tap the lighting bolt icon in the upper left corner.
2. Choose and tap “Off.”
3. Shoot as you like!
Use Burst Mode For Fast Action
Did you know your I-phone can shoot 10 frames per second in burst mode? WHAT? My iPhone has burst mode? Yes it does! And it’s great for catching your toddler on the run.
TO ACTIVATE:
1. Press and HOLD the shutter release button on your camera app.
2. Voila! 10 frames per second.
Edit Like A Pro
Taking the picture is just half the process in the Pro world. Editing and enhancing the image is 50% of the process. Yes, even when you shoot with your I-phone you can make your images stand out even more by using a good editing app.
Here’s a few fun suggestions to try out: Photogene, hipstamatic, Rhonna Designs, snapseed, pic-tap-go, wood camera, camera+, mextures, after focus, tiltshift generator, procamera
