15 Easy Tips to Take Better Low Light Photos With iPhone
Low-light photography can be challenging for anyone but especially hard with a smartphone. Smartphones don’t have the same image sensors as DSLRs and mirrorless cameras. So they can’t produce images with the same level of detail in darker situations. This means that photos can turn out blurry or grainy.
But don’t worry! This blog will teach you how to take low-light photos on an iPhone and provide valuable tips and tricks. So whether you’re shooting indoors or outdoors, there’s something for you here!
1. Use Night Mode
One of the easiest ways to take low-light photos with your iPhone is to use Night Mode. This feature is designed specifically for taking pictures in low-light conditions and can really help you get some great results. When the ambient light is too low for the camera to use a standard exposure time, it will automatically switch to Night mode.
To use Night mode, open the Camera app, and the Night mode icon (it looks like a yellow moon) appears in the upper-left corner. That means night mode has been activated!
2. Hold Your Camera Still
The most important thing you can do to get a good low-light photo is to hold your camera still. A tripod is the easiest way to take a stable picture in low light. If you don’t have one, try finding something to set your phone on that will keep it steady: a table, a chair, a rock, anything!
Just make sure it’s not moving around or vibrating. You can also hold the camera with two hands. This will help stabilize your camera and give you more control over the shot.
3. Shoot With Live Photos
Live Photos are great for capturing special moments, but they’re also great for low-light photography. They’re a series of images and sounds captured at a single moment. So if you have kids playing in the rain or taking a selfie with friends on vacation, you can capture more than just the picture itself. You’ll also get the sounds and movements that make up that moment.
With Live Photos, every photo is an opportunity to tell a story. You can use these images to share on social media or save them to your camera roll. You can even turn Live Photos into animated GIFs!
To turn on Live Photos:
Tap the Live Photos icon in the Camera app at the top of the screen. If the icon is white, Live Photos is turned on. If the icon is yellow, Live Photos is turned off.
4. Leverage Portrait Mode to Take Better Photos
When you’re taking a portrait in low light, your camera might not be able to get good exposure for both the subject and the background. The background of this image will be overexposed or underexposed. Portrait Mode uses a shallow depth of field; it blurs the environment and makes your subject stand out. So you can focus on your subject and get a nice, clean shot.
5. Try Using a Flashlight for Extra Light
You can also use a flashlight to your advantage. A flashlight isn’t just good for finding lost items in the dark but can also help you take better photos in low-light conditions.
Use a Flashlight to Light Up Your Subject
You can create more intense shadows and highlights by using a flashlight to light up your subject. This can help add drama and interest to your photos. You can also use the flashlight to create a moody effect by lighting up only certain parts of your subject.
Use a Flashlight as Fill-Light for Your Subject
It will help you to create more depth in your image. The key is to find something that can act as a diffuser and soften the light so it doesn’t look harsh or too bright. If you don’t have a flashlight, you can use your phone’s screen. Just turn off the auto-lock and hold it up to light your subject from behind or at an angle. This will give them some extra illumination and make them stand out better from their background.
6. Add Some External Light Source
Adding an external light source can help improve your picture quality. If you shoot in a low-light environment, a lamp or other light source can help brighten up the scene and add more detail to your photos.
The key here is to ensure the light source is not too bright. If it is, you’ll end up with overexposed areas in your picture. This will cause your images not only to be more brilliant overall but also more washed out.
Use natural light
It can be hard to see your subject when you’re shooting a photo in a dark room. The trick is finding a spot with natural light near a window or door that lets in natural light. If you’re indoors, turn on some lights to help brighten the scene.
Another trick is to turn off your overhead lights and place a candle near the subject. This will help add extra light to your photo, making it easier to see detail in dark areas and shadows.
Use artificial light
If you’re shooting indoors, you can use artificial light to add light sources to your image. Table lamps, floor lamps, and even candles can all be used to add light to your photos.
Find some streetlights or a building with lights on it to get good shots during a night shot. They’ll help illuminate your subject without making them look washed out or overexposed.
Just remember that artificial lights will create shadows, so make sure they don’t end up in your shot!
Use reflectors
You can use reflectors to add light to your image without artificial light sources. You can make one by tapping a piece of aluminum foil or white paper on the back of your phone. Then, hold it up when taking photos so that it reflects the light from your subject onto them.
7. Use a Self-timer
Using a self-timer can help to avoid camera shake and blurriness in your photos. When you press the shutter button, the camera will wait a few seconds before taking the picture, allowing you to get into position.
To use this feature, open the Camera app, then swipe up to find the self-timer option at the bottom of your screen. Set it for however many seconds you need, then tap the shutter button again to take a picture.
8. Use HDR to Capture More Detail
HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. It’s a technique that allows you to capture more detail in the shadows and highlights of an image. This is useful for taking pictures in low light, with many dark areas and bright highlights. iPhone has a built-in HDR mode that you can use from the Camera app.
Tap the HDR icon at the top of your screen in the Camera app to turn on HDR on your iPhone. You’ll see three options: Auto, On, and Off.
Auto is the default setting, and it will automatically enable HDR for you when it detects that the scene needs it. If you want to control when HDR is on or off, tap the On/Off toggle next to HDR. When this option is enabled, the camera will use HDR whenever you snap an image.
9. Shoot in RAW for Better Editing Options
RAW mode on your iPhone captures more data than the default JPEG mode. This means that you’ll have more flexibility when editing your photos. After taking a picture in RAW mode, you can adjust the white balance, exposure, and color temperature.
To switch to RAW mode, open your Camera app and tap the RAW button at the top of your screen. If you want to turn off RAW mode, tap it again.
10. Get Creative With Long Exposure
Long exposure is a fun way to create artistic photos. With this technique, your camera will expose the image for longer. This can create cool effects, like light trails from car headlights or city lights. To keep the camera steady, you’ll usually need a tripod.
The iPhone doesn’t have this feature, but several apps will add this effect. One of our favorites is Slow Shutter Cam. It’s easy to use and has many great features like exposure control, timer mode, etc.
11. Try Burst Mode
Burst mode allows you to take a rapid succession of pictures. This can be helpful in low-light situations because it increases the chances of getting a sharp image. With burst mode, you can press and hold the shutter button to quickly take multiple shots. The camera will continuously take pictures until you release the shutter button.
12. Leave the Flash Off
It’s best to leave the flash off when taking pictures in low-light situations. The flash will only illuminate your subject and create harsh shadows. It also draws attention away from your subject and makes it challenging to capture a great image.
Instead of using the flash, try to find a way to increase the amount of light in the scene. You can do this by moving closer to your subject, moving them into better light. You’ll get a more natural-looking image by leaving the flash off.
13. Adjust Exposure in iPhone Camera App
In most situations, the iPhone does a decent job of exposure adjustments., but you may want more control over your photo’s appearance. To do this, open your camera app, then tap on the screen. You’ll see a sun icon near the focus area. To increase or decrease the exposure, swipe up or down.
14. Apply Filters or Photo Editing Tools
Applying filters or adding presets to your low-light photos can give them a little extra flair. There are several ways to do this. You can use the Photos app or an app like Snapseed or VSCO. If you want to get more creative, consider apps like Darkroom and Afterlight. Both apps allow for more customization than what’s available in the Photos app alone.
15. Get More Control with a Third-Party Camera App
Third-party camera apps give you greater control over your device’s built-in camera. Many are available in the App Store, but we recommend ProCam and Halide. Both apps have an intuitive interface that gives you more options than what’s available on your iPhone by default.
Halide is a powerful app that gives users manual control over their photos. It has a minimalist design with easy-to-use controls and handy shortcuts to take great pictures as quickly as possible.
ProCam is another excellent option that features a simple interface. Still, it offers many different shooting modes, including Slow Shutter and time-lapse. You can use the app’s histogram and focus peaking features to get the perfect shot every time.
FAQs
How can I prevent blurry photos in low-light situations?
There’s not always an easy answer to taking good low-light photos. However, one standard solution is to increase the shutter speed. Doing this will help decrease the amount of blurriness that can occur in shots taken in low-light conditions. You can also try using a tripod or a camera app with manual exposure controls, giving you more control over your photos.
Conclusion
Taking a low-light photo with your iPhone isn’t as hard. Most people are so afraid of the camera on their phones that they don’t even try to take a good picture in low light. When you use these tips and tricks, you will immediately notice an improvement in your photos!
