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Summer, the time for travel, has finally arrived. With the popularity of social media sites like Instagram and Facebook, you'll definitely want to capture memories from your trip to share with family and friends. And you don't need to be a professional photographer, or spend hundreds of dollars on a high-quality camera to take great pictures. With a smartphone in hand, everything is more than enough.
There are countless tips and tricks for photography shared online. However, let's choose the most suitable ones to apply to a summer trip.
Fundamental principles
First, familiarize yourself with your smartphone and all the features it offers. Chances are, you'll find tools to create stunning images you've never tried before, especially with filters.
Learn the basics, such as the rule of thirds—the most famous rule of photographic composition—and negative and positive space. In photography, negative space is the area surrounding the subject, while the subject itself is called positive space. Negative space is often the open sky, water, beach, grass, or any cluttered part of the image that creates a simple background. Also, always remember not to use flash or zoom lenses.
Next, always keep your lens clean. Most people carry their phones in their pockets or purses when not in use. Therefore, the lens can get dirty, resulting in blurry images. So, before taking a photo, wipe the lens to remove any dust or dirt that could distort your pictures.
Finally, remember to rotate your phone horizontally. Most of the time, we hold our phones vertically. When it's time to take a picture, remember to flip it horizontally. This works well for both portraits and landscapes.
Don't stand still, be creative and try photographing the same thing from different angles.
This allows you to discover entirely new perspectives on the same subject. Taking photos from multiple angles is not only effective in avoiding harsh lighting, but is also crucial for creating diverse and creative images. However, be careful when climbing to high places.
You can shoot by bending over or stooping, even lying on your back and having your subject stand on you. You can shoot without aiming to get "unusual" but interesting angles. Imagine a beach volleyball game and think about the number of great scenes and situations you can capture by moving around, as well as increasing the number of shooting angles.
Avoid reflected light.
One of the challenges of taking photos on the beach is that the sand and water reflect sunlight. This often causes your camera or phone to overexpose, making the subject appear darker. Because of these reflections, the device may misread and reduce the exposure of the image, resulting in an overly dark foreground. In that situation, it's better to change your angle, move around, and try to find a spot with as little sunlight reflection as possible.
Cloudy days? Perfect for taking pictures!
Overcast days, on the other hand, are ideal for photography. In this case, the clouds can dim the direct, harsh sunlight, acting like a specialized filter. They also reduce the high contrast and shadows that often appear on bright, sunny days, creating a softer, more even light, perfect for portraits. Cloudy days also produce more balanced, diffused light, making them suitable for photographing all kinds of subjects. So, if you see a cloudy day, don't hesitate to go take some photos.
Experience in finding the perfect moment.
While it might be easy to ask the subject to pose, authentic photos allow you to capture the emotion and essence of the moment most effectively. And they're also much more enjoyable to look back on.
Certain activities can bring authenticity to a photograph, including scenes of children interacting with animals or nature, or couples showing affection—holding hands, hugging, or exchanging loving glances. And when you photograph someone genuinely expressing happiness or laughter, it's almost always a wonderful scene.
One of the best ways to get an authentic shot is to take multiple photos. The best photos are when everyone's eyes are open and their smiles are genuine. You might have to step back a little, put on your photographer's hat to capture one of these moments, but it will be well worth it.
Golden hour
There's a term in photography and film called the golden hour, or sometimes the "magic hour." This is the time after sunrise or before sunset, when the sun is low and seems to be bathing everything in a golden light. It's also when the light creates interesting shadows.
If you want to take special photos, such as family photos, try to schedule your shoot during this time. Just remember to check the sunrise and sunset times in your location beforehand and plan accordingly.
Try thinking differently than usual.
Try different thoughts and ideas. You can photograph subjects that don't follow conventional rules. By taking photos with a smartphone, you can also be a part of the frame. For example, on the beach, you can show your legs, or part of your hand as you hold the hand of the person opposite you.
When faced with something large, you can use flowers or shrubs as a foreground element, adding visual interest to the object behind it.
Sometimes your subject will look much better when reflected in water. If you want to photograph a subject that everyone else will photograph, you can create a unique image by finding a reflection of it in the water, especially when the water is calm. For example, on a summer evening, you can find many places near the docks with city lights reflected in the water. The best time to photograph is right after sunset.
Selective focus
Many smartphone camera systems today include a depth sensor. This small addition records data as you take a photo and allows you to change the focus even after the photo has been taken. When you do this, you're playing with something called depth of field. It's a great way to draw attention to foreground or background elements, so your photo can tell a story.
Some modern smartphones support post-capture focus selection. Instead of messing with advanced camera settings like shutter speed and aperture, if your camera has depth-of-field data, you can select your main subject and choose to blur the background behind it.
Taking photos of food in a restaurant.
Travel is always accompanied by food, and what could be more enjoyable than sharing local dishes with friends on social media? But the problem is that restaurants are often dark, and most smartphone cameras don't perform best in low-light conditions.
Fortunately, there's a great solution to this problem. Use the flashlight app on a friend's or relative's phone, ask them to shine the light on the plate while you take the picture, and you'll get a much better image.
Lines, repeating patterns, and symmetry
When lines appear in nature, remember to take advantage of the opportunity. In the photo below, the lines naturally draw your eye into the frame and towards the house. Always pay attention to lines that appear in nature such as paths, doorways, cliffs, tall grass, trees, bridges... Often, lines start at the bottom of the frame and extend upwards towards the subject. Photos using this perspective create a sense of movement or infinity.
Look around, and sometimes you might see repeating patterns. Lines, geometric shapes, forms, or even colors—all of these subjects can be captured beautifully and harmoniously. It could be a cup, a row of tables and chairs, a pastry on a tray, a car in a parking lot. Sometimes, capturing the floor can also create a striking photograph. Sometimes, it's easy to find repeating patterns in nature, or in the city.
Symmetry is also a good idea to attract the viewer's attention, thanks to the simplicity of the composition. In urban and natural environments, there are thousands of opportunities to find symmetry in seemingly simple scenes. You can also create your own context by moving some objects or by placing your subject right in the center of the photo. When you go outside, look overhead; find symmetry in skyscrapers.
But above all, don't lose sight of your main goal for your vacation – which is to have fun, relax, and live in the moment (not with your smartphone) this summer!
