If you know how to take good photos with a phone, you have the power to capture a memory or document the important events of your life. You can make websites, brochures, or other different marketing collaterals more interesting.

Fantastic pictures can also make you look fabulous on social media. James Hannan points out in this video that putting a great image along with a headline is one of the ways you can get more interaction on social media.

Although a DSLR camera is what professional photographers use for taking stunning photos, it is not readily available as a phone does.

Knowing how to take good photos with a phone not only allows you to capture memories clearly and artistically. It is helpful in marketing too. Thus, learning how to take good pictures with your phone does pay off.

Basic Principles You Need to Know on Photography

Before learning how to take good photos with a phone, knowing some of photography’s basic principles improves your skills. Some of these basic concepts are the Exposure Triangle and the Rule of Thirds.

Exposure Triangle

The Exposure Triangle consists of ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. Knowing how to take good photos with a phone or any device is impossible if you don’t know what an Exposure Triangle is. Although phones have features making photography easy for everyone, learning about this rule gives you more opportunities to customize your shots.

ISO

The ISO is the fastest way to brighten up your images. Still, it should be the last resort to configure after the aperture or shutter speed. Brightening up a shot by just increasing the ISO is not how to take good photos with a phone. Although it can make the image brighter, it also makes it grainier.

Grain or noise refers to the small blotchy stuff on photographs. It becomes more visible on pictures taken in low-light conditions. Although some people find grainy images acceptable, most people don’t.

The ISO ranges from 100 to 3200 or more, depending on your camera or phone model. The higher the number is, the brighter the image will be.

Setting the ISO sensitivity at the lowest range is how to take good photos with a phone if you’re outdoors taking photographs on a bright sunny day.

However, if you’re taking pictures at night or in low-light conditions, be careful about setting the ISO at a higher range. Balance it with shutter speed and aperture to take a good shot while eliminating the noise as much as possible.

Shutter Speed

The shutter speed refers to the length of time the shutter opens and closes to capture light. Aside from affecting the image’s brightness, the shutter speed’s primary purpose is to capture images in motion. It is indicated on a camera as 1/15, 1/30, 1/125, etc., as shutter speed per second.

Placing the shutter speed at a slow setting is how to take good photos with a phone if you want to try long exposure photography. One example of it is taking a picture of a fast-moving car’s light trail at night. The trail effect becomes possible because this setting allows more light to enter your camera through the sensor.

Meanwhile, placing the shutter speed at a fast setting is how to take good photos with a phone for sports or action photography. This configuration allows you to capture the still image of an object or person in fast motion.

Aperture

The aperture is the hole where the light passes through the camera. It is indicated by f-numbers, such as f/1.4, f/4.0, f/8/0 etc., where these numbers are the focal ratio.

The aperture is responsible for the depth of field. It is useful in portrait photography, where the point of focus is sharper, and the background is blurrier. The lower the focal ratio, the higher the depth of field is.

If you want to take selfies, setting the aperture at a lower focal ratio is how to take photos with a phone or any device. If you put it into the proper focal ratio, you’ll have a picture with a blurry background. At the same time, you, as the foreground, remains sharp.

Rule of Thirds

The Rule of Thirds is the basic composition guideline that resembles the grid of tic-tac-toe. You can apply this when taking pictures of landscapes, people, nature, etc.

Placing the point of focus at the intersecting part of the grid is how to take good photos with a phone using the Rule of Thirds. In landscape photography, photographers use this guideline as divisions to compose a photo.

How to Take Good Photos With Your Phone

When choosing a phone for photography between Samsung or iPhone, remember that you always get what you pay for. These influential brands share almost the same features. Although they are not as technical as a DSLR camera, their features provide nearly the same effect.

How to Take Good Photos With an iPhone

The iPhone is costly, but it is worth it when it comes to the features it offers. For example, the iPhone XR has a 12-megapixel and can record videos in 4K. It is also user-friendly.

The only problem with iPhones is that the third-party apps are limited. However, it can be an advantage because it provides better user-satisfaction and more frequent updates.

If you want to know how to take good photos with a phone, take note of the following iPhone features.

Use a Shortcut

Sometimes, beautiful memories take place in a fraction of time. You have to beat seconds to capture the moment.

If your iPhone model has triple or dual camera features, you can use a shortcut to access the camera. What you only have to do is swipe left at the Lock Screen. Once you access your phone’s camera, the focus and exposure adjustments automatically take place so you can take a shot fast.

Make Use of the Portrait Mode

iPhones have a Portrait Mode feature. Using this mode is how to take good photos with a phone if you want to take selfies or portraits.

What makes this mode great is that the aperture’s manual adjustment is not necessary. You can customize the depth-of-field and the lighting in a user-friendlier way.

Enhance Your Photo

Sometimes, knowing just how to take good photos with a phone is not enough. You need to make some enhancements.

iPhones have photo editing tools. Access the photo you want to edit via Photos App. Choose Edit, and use the buttons at the bottom of the screen to enhance an image. This mode allows you to rotate, crop, add a filter and adjust your photo’s lighting.

How to Take Good Pictures With Samsung

Some Samsung models are expensive or even more expensive than iPhones, but some cheaper Samsung models are also available. As mentioned, you always get what you pay for. If you want a Samsung Galaxy phone with great camera features, invest in it.

Many Samsung models have features that can compete with iPhones. Among these is the Galaxy S10 with a 12-megapixel dual camera, 16-megapixel wide-angle camera, and a 4K recording capability.

Samsung operates using the Android operating system, giving you a wide selection of third-party apps.

Take note of the following features if you want to know how to take good photos with a phone:

Use the Right Mode

Samsung Galaxy has many photography modes. There is this Pro Mode, which is available on S8 and S8+ models. It allows you to adjust the Exposure Triangle and other settings manually.

The Selfie Focus feature is Samsung’s version of the iPhone’s Portrait Mode.

The Food Mode is also available if you want to take pictures of your meal. This setting makes the food’s colour more vibrant.

Aside from these modes, there is Night Mode, Sports Mode, Live Focus, and many more. Using these Samsung’s features save you time from manually adjusting the settings unless you want to customize your shots on a Pro Mode. Using these features is the easiest way how to take good photos with a phone.

Use Low Aperture

Some Galaxy J series models have low focal ratios. This feature is handy if you love taking photos in low-light conditions.

Capture Events in Motion

Samsung Galaxy phones have a burst effect. You can access this feature by holding the shutter button. You can take a series of up to 30 still photos of objects or people in motion using this feature, allowing you to select the best shot.


If you know how to take good photos with a phone, you can develop many creative ways to make a better shot. You can capture more beautiful images. Most of all, it can make a difference in your marketing collaterals. If you need someone to help you with marketing, contact a StoryBrand Guide in Australia.