Photography

Top Tips for Capturing Stunning Shots

Rotate & Edit Your Videos

I, for one, think it's about time that Apple allowed us to edit our videos. I have a bad habit of recording my videos the wrong way, which means they frequently need to be rotated. To rotate and edit your videos, just select your video from the Photos app and tap the Edit option at the top right. You'll then see an option to rotate and crop your video in a row along the bottom, as well as options to add filters, adjust settings such as contrast and exposure, trim the length, and remove sound.

Access the Zoom Wheel

For more control and the ability to zoom up to 10x in the Camera app, you'll appreciate the zoom wheel feature. When you long press any of the zoom icons listed above your shutter button, a dial will pop up. Move your finger to the left along the dial to zoom in. Move your finger to the right to zoom out. If you have an iPhone or iPad with more than one camera lens, you have optical zoom and can tap the 2X option without losing resolution. Aside from that, the general rule is that the more you zoom in, the more pixellated your photo will become.

Take a 12 MP Selfie

If you have the iPhone 11 or iPhone 11 Pro, then when you take selfies in landscape mode, the camera will automatically zoom out to take a 12 MP selfie, which is great when you are trying to fit a bunch of people in a single shot. If you are taking a selfie in Portrait mode though, by default the camera will zoom in for a 7 MP selfie. But you can adjust that! Just tap on the expand icon along the bottom of the frame and the camera will zoom out. Likewise, if you don't want a wider shot, you can tap the icon and the camera will zoom in slightly.

View Images by Day, Month & Year

I take a lot of photos. That means it can be tricky for me to find specific shots. But Apple added some useful options to the Photos app in iOS 13 to help with this process. From the Photos tab, I can view my photos by Years, Months, Days, or All Photos. This makes looking back over memories a lot more fun, as the Photos app highlights the shots that it thinks I want to see. And if you take a ton of screenshots (like me), don't worry. These shots are intelligently sorted out of your memories

(but you can see them under All Photos).

Adjust the Intensity of Filters & Tools

A cool part of the Photos app is the ability to adjust the intensity of filters and other settings from the editing interface. Simply select the photo you want to edit from the Photos app and tap Edit at the top right of the image. If you want to adjust filters and other settings (such as contrast and saturation) then select the filter icon or other editing tool you would like to use and then adjust the intensity using the slider that pops up along the bottom.

Use the Shutter Button to Take Burst Images

If you have the iPhone 11 or later, you capture burst images differently than on older iPhone models. Instead of pressing and holding the shutter button, you press the shutter button, drag it to the left, and then hold it there! The number that appears in the center of the circle will show you how many photos you've taken. When you lift your finger, the camera will stop taking photos. To access burst images, go to the Photos app, select your collection of shots, choose Select, and then choose which ones you would like to keep.

Use the Shutter Button in Photo Mode to Record Video

If you have the iPhone 11 or later, you no longer have swipe to Video mode to start a video! This feature allows you to start a video much easier. All you have to do is press and hold the shutter button and your video will begin. When you release the shutter button, your video will end. If you would like to lock recording mode, then just slide your finger to the right and the video recording will continue even after you've lifted your finger. To end your recording, tap the red shutter button again.

Capture Clearer Images

Capturing the clearest images possible is very important to me—and there are a few different ways you can accomplish this! I recommend making sure that your lens is clean first and foremost (this makes a surprising difference). You should also lock your focus on your subject, which you do from the Camera app by tapping and holding on your subject on the screen until AE/AF Lock appears at the top. I would also recommend shooting in bright, natural light whenever possible, as well as steadying your hand to prevent camera shake (or use a tripod).

Use the Quick Actions Menu to Access Features

I forget how useful the Quick Actions menu can be when accessing an app's most basic functions. If I want to quickly jump to my Favorites album, for example, I just press and hold on the Photos app and the Quick Actions menu will pop up (on older iPhone models, you use 3D Touch). Likewise, if I press and hold on the Camera app, I will see options for recording video, taking a selfie, or shooting in Portrait mode. If you tap on one of the options listed, the corresponding app will open to your desired location.

Find the Photo You’re Looking For

As of this writing, I have 12,572 photos in my Photos app. That, my friends, is a lot of photos. So, when I try to search for a particular photo in my collection, I hit some roadblocks to say the least. That's where the Search function comes in and saves to day. Just navigate to the Search tab in the Photos app, enter a keyword (like flower) into the Search bar, and voila! You will see a collection of images of flowers. You can also search for specific people that you've added to the people album, or search locations and dates!