Techniques I’ve learned that have helped me get some great results from my iPhone camera. Many of these techniques will work for any mobile phone camera. Hope you find it helpful.

1. Hello

3. Shoot to Thrill
Getting the best from
your iPhone camera

4. It's all about the image
It's about making the best of the
constraints of the iPhone camera
NOT about high megapixel
perfection
A great shot is still a great shot,
even if it's only 600px wide on
your screen

5. The camera never lies, or
Once you point a lens you've already
made a decision - to take a photo in the
first place!
Then you're choosing angles, framing,
exposure control etc.
Processing the final image to enhance, or
change it is part of the same process -
it's ALL selective
There is no such thing as photographing
something 'as it was'

6. The iPhone is making me
a better photographer!
I'm shooting more
I concentrate more on what I'm looking
at shooting
I pay less attention to the mechanics
of how I'm getting the shot
It's faster and more direct, I feel closer
to the image I'm shooting
No auto-review - so no time wasted

7. The iPhone camera
3MP (2mp for previous versions of iPhone)
3.85mm focal length (equiv to about
37mm on regular camera)
Sensor 1/4" CMOS
Autofocus (on 3GS) 2cm to infinity
Auto exposure & ISO from 70 to 1600
Aperture fixed at 2.8
Shutter speed fixed at 1/5th sec.
(exposure controlled by auto-variable ISO)

8. But it's not a real camera!
No such beast! Mostly camera marketing BS
Any camera is as real or serious as YOU
make it
ANYTHING that captures an image is a
camera, from a cardboard box pinhole to a
Hasselblad
A few short years ago 3mp cameras were top
of the line for SLRs
Quality of iPhone camera is more than

9. Constraints of
the iPhone
camera are far
outweighed by
its convenience,
because...

10. The best camera
you have
is the one that's
with You

11. iPhone is perfect
for unplanned,
or unexpected
photo-ops

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17. F8 and be there!
Small, discreet, easy to take shots
without attracting a lot of attention
iPhone has a huge high-res preview
screen, excellent for seeing the
quality of what you've just shot
It's also extremely efficient at
directly uploading to the various
photo-sharing sites

18. The Best Camera
you have is the one
you have with you.
Laterally relevant:
This is a good case history of how to create,
market and profit in the iPhone economy

19. Chase Jarvis and Best Camera
Excellent and insanely dedicated
photographer
Totally comfortable in the digital
realm, not just for the core
photography, but the whole
business
Saw potential in the iPhone - even
back in early 2009 with the 3G
Started shooting with iPhone

20. Chase Jarvis and Best Camera
Collected vast amount of images
- remember shooting is cheap
Used all existing iPhone camera apps,
studied their strengths & weaknesses
- thought he could do better
Designed a new iPhone photography app
based on his Photography experience &
use of iPhone & R&D on apps
Built a community website for the app
Published a book to promote the app &
website - using the photos he started

21. Physical aspects
of iPhone
shooting
techniques

22. Holding the iPhone
You have no control over the shutter
speed selected so:
Hold with two hands, if possible
Hold close if you can, tuck your elbows
in
Remember on 3GS you also have to
touch select focus too
Brace yourself against a wall or support

23. The shutter release
In case you haven't figured this
out yet - the shutter actually
takes the picture when you
RELEASE your finger from it
It's important to know this as
timing is already tricky on these
types of cameras

24. Tripod/Support
Joby Gorilla tripod
Moviepeg
Sellotape/Bluetack - anything that
holds it still, or props it up
You need a self-timer app for this
(Joby made one)

25. Keep it Clean!
Outer element of lens nearly always
has oil from your skin on it, or other
materials. Gross, I know!
Always wipe the outmost glass on
something clean (maybe a few
times) before taking a shot.
An optical wipe is great, if you
happen to have them.
Otherwise image quality can be

26. Touch to select on 3GS
A sophisticated solution for this type of device
Makes for a much greater photo than more
megapixels
Take care how to use: try several areas in your frame,
often a balance between extremes is needed, bracket
plenty!
This tech actually does three things: sets exposure,
focus and white-balance.
THIS ALSO affects how you're holding the iPhone for
the shot - and not in a good way!
For maximum hilarity try doing this while shading the
lens from flare! ;-)

27. Lights,
Camera,
Action!
Good light is critical

28. Beware of Flare
When shooting towards any
light-source always try to
shade the lens if the source is
out of frame, it makes a huge
difference to the shot...

29. © David McDonald 2010

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31. Difference in lighting,
photos taken about 1 hour apart
© David McDonald 2010

32. Also bear in mind
As with most small sensor cameras
performance in low-light is not very
good
Careful of highlight burn-out in very
bright areas (due to narrow dynamic
range)
No Flash, but you can still modify the
light
Use a reflector
Move your subject into the light - OR into the
shade

33. Be more Composed
iPhone image quality is not great, go
for strong composition, geometric,
graphic, contrast - look at the shapes
on the view screen, move around, re-
compose if necessary
The big iPhone screen is an advantage
when used as a viewfinder - make the
most of it
Of course try vertical and landscape
orientations - sometimes even an
obviously vertical opportunity can

34. Be more Composed
iPhone lens has a wide-angle
lens & it does not zoom, that
means YOU have to
Get your lens in a different
place!
- Joe McNally
(Easier to do with a small device like the iPhone)

35. Due Process
Taking the shot on the iPhone is
only the first step
Although you should always aim
to capture the shot as best you
can the iPhone Photography apps
really allow you to make
significant improvements to your
images...

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42. Choose good, well-
designed apps that
best fit how you
want to work
Check out what other good
iPhone photographers use

43. The Apps I use
A lot of these offer fairly similar functionality:
Autostitch Gallery
Best Camera Pano
Camera (I usually use Photos - often to
the iPhone app itself select an image
to take the shot, before working on it
although other apps in an app
can do this too)
The Mill
Camera Bag
TiltShiftGen
Flickr
Tumblr iPhone app

44. Sharing is Caring
Careful of auto-resizing when
exporting or emailing
Remember to tag, caption etc. -
you are unlikely to do that later
iPhone also records GPS data,
very useful, but often stripped out
on export/upload

45. HAVE
FUN!