10 key steps to better iPhoneography

1Use the Lock screen shortcut

You can jump directly to the Camera app from the Lock screen by swiping up from the camera icon at the bottom-right corner.

2 3D Touch If you have an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, though, the speed with which Touch ID unlocks your phone might mean you never see the Lock screen! In this case, make sure the Camera app is on your first Home screen, then press hard on its icon for a menu that lets you jump to taking a photo, regular video, slo-mo video or selfie.

3 Get the exposure right

Tap somewhere on the screen to set focus and exposure, but since it might not always get the latter (brightness, more or less) correct, remember that you can slide your finger up and down to manually boost or reduce the exposure.

4 Hold the camera securely

And not just because you don’t want to drop it! Holding your phone using both hands, elbows tucked in against your body, helps reduce camera shake. Alternatively, use a tripod.

5 Avoid the flash

Despite advances, the flash built into iPhones often produces unflattering results. (It’s not altogether its fault; ideally a flash should be separated from the lens, but on the iPhone they’re next to each other.) More often, a ‘noisy’ picture is preferable in low light. Tap the lightning bolt symbol and set the flash to Off.

6 Alternate shutters

As well as tapping the on-screen shutter, you can take a picture by pressing the volume buttons on the side of your iPhone or on some connected headphones.

7 Zoom with your feet

You technically can zoom with an unpinch gesture, but all that does is crop the photo that is taken – which you can control better later using the Photos app’s Crop tool. Instead, simply try to get closer if possible.

8 Get manual

The built-in Camera app doesn’t provide much manual control for pros, but there are plenty of alternatives, including our favourite, Camera+ (£2.29, https://appsto.re/i6SR7CC), which let you set white balance, ISO and more. Camera+ also has a terrific macro mode.

9 Edit, edit, edit

The definitive advantage of shooting on your iPhone is that you can quickly and easily edit your shots, whether it’s to crop, add filters, or perform extensive manual tweaking. Use this to create the best pictures you can!

10 Take more photos!

You have your iPhone with you always – so use it! You can always delete the shots you don’t want to keep.