Camera Phone Picture Tips

If you are one of the millions out there that have a camera phone and want to take the best picture possible, here are some tips to get you started.

1) Shoot lots of pictures. Pros may shoot hundreds of photos of a single scene trying different angles and positions. You then pick the best ones later and delete the rest. You can also try new things by taking photos you might not otherwise have taken. It's fun to let the kids take pictures to see what they get from their point of view.

2) Hold the camera steady, using two hands if possible and press the shutter button smoothly. Most blur comes from jamming the button down and moving the camera. If the light is dim, as it is indoors or at dawn or dusk, brace the camera against a tree, railing, or other solid object.

Thinking about the light
1) Be aware of the quality and direction of the light. The best time for many photos is when it's cloudy, bright and everything is bathed in a soft luminous light. In this light you can do no wrong. On clear sunny days, shoot with the sun behind you and on your subjects. If the sun is behind your subject the camera will expose the background and leave your subjects as a dark silhouette unless you get as close as possible so the subject fills the viewfinder. The best colors are usually at dawn and dusk when the sun casts a warm light that enhances everything it illuminates.

2) Indoors, use flash or position your subjects near a window where they are lit from outdoor light.

3) Use the weather. Rainy, snowy, and foggy days give some of the best photo opportunities. If it's raining or snowing keep the camera protected by shooting through a rolled down car window or from under an umbrella, doorway, or other overhang.

Thinking about the scene
1) When taking individual portraits or groups get as close as possible and have a group cluster together so they all fit in the frame. Most people stand way to far away from their subjects so they end up being just a small dot in a sea of background. If a group stretches out into a line instead of clustering, it forces you to move farther away. Hats and sunglasses usually detract from a portrait. Also think about the background. Take lots of photos because the larger the group the more likely someone will have their eyes closed.

2) For action shots, such as a child blowing out the candles on a birthday cake, anticipate the action and even press the shutter button slightly ahead of the movement you want to freeze. There is typically a delay between pressing the button and the actual taking of the photo.

3) In landscapes add a foreground subject, such as a red barn, to add depth to the image, give it scale, and provide a center of interest. That magnificent mountain range may not look so magnificent if just shot from a distance. Also play with the horizon line. Perhaps, putting it low so you can include dramatic billowing clouds, or, putting it high to include a bright flower in the foreground.

4) At concerts and other public events where photography is allowed but you can't get close to the stage, photographing the reactions of the people near you may capture the event better than far away shots of the performers.

Housekeeping
1) Keep your camera phone charged.

2) Offload your pictures frequently, either to the Web or your computer. This will free up memory for more pictures.

3) Add more memory to your camera phone. The more memory, the more photos, and the more likely you are to capture a magic moment. If you are traveling, many photo stores can transfer your images to CDs so you can keep on shooting.

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