Must-Know Smart Phone Photography Tips From Portrait and Fashion Photographer Artu Nepomuceno

What aspect of photography should people focus on? 

If you’re aiming to get DSLR quality photos out of your phone, you’re expecting too much too soon. The evolution of mobile photography has escalated and amplified ever since the rivalry between Apple and Samsung. Despite it being almost two decades, mobile cameras are not yet at par with DSLRs. So if you’re working with a mobile phone camera, rather than depth of field, you should focus on composition. 

What are your tips for taking photos at night with smartphones? 

The latest mobile cameras brag about major ISO reduction, meaning you can shoot at night without having that ugly purple noise on the black portions of the photo. Today, the latest mobile cameras are so good that you can really shoot at night—but remember the three elements that allow photographs to exist: ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. If you shoot at night, your camera must compensate by pushing up your ISO (which means the higher it goes, the more chance of that purple noise coming in). If the ISO isn’t enough, it will sacrifice aperture. (which means your photos may be out of focus). And if that isn’t enough, it will sacrifice shutter speed (which will increase the chances of blurry photographs).

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How important is light to smartphone photography? 

Photography literally means “drawing with light.” If you do not have light, then you cannot create a photo. One element that makes a great photograph is your understanding of light and where to position yourself around it. There are no fixed set of answers on the effects of light on shapes, but there are questions you can ask to help you curate your photograph better. 

What is your stand on photo-editing applications?

In classical photography, the life cycle of a photograph starts from the shot and ends with the print—in today’s digital world, the print aspect is in the post-processing. Take advantage of the apps out there and find the one that speaks to you the most. Search for apps that emulate film, or apps with the most powerful editing tools, or even those that allow you to photograph with more settings. Apps serve as software hacks; there’s an app for almost every photographic need you have nowadays!

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