Posted this at Glyn Evan’s iPhoneography site (in the User Forum section):
Tips for iPhoneography don’t vary tremendously from photography with other cameras – some differences do apply. Here are some generic thoughts:
Keep your iPhone handy or easily accessible. You’ll wish you had it out. Practice constantly and consistently. It takes diligence and discipline to be good at anything. Fill the frame if possible, or experiment with different distances from a subject — since you are pretty much stuck with that lens, you’ll have to be creative about its fixed length. Oh, and slow down. From the hip doesn’t necessarily mean at a run.
A Bit More Specific
1) The primary tip I would give iPhoneographers is to not punch the shutter button. Since the app is a software interface, pressing the button and holding it until you are ready for the shot — then gently releasing or moving the finger aside, is probably the best way to avoid jarring or sudden motion when shooting.
2) Consider that the iPhone screen/interface window is a larger viewfinder than those in any SLR or dSLR. Pay attention to the corners and edges as you hold the iphone, first because it is easy to block it with fingers and not “see” parts of a scene, and second because in terms of composition those edges can be critical to your shot (see exercise below).
3) Remember to tap to focus and expose (at least with the iPhone 3GS). Explore alternative exposure and focus, and practice exposing then changing it and shooting quickly as the iPhone adjusts and moves between one setting and another.
4) In terms of creative composition — you have more flexibility to move the iPhone away or toward a subject while shooting — zooming in and out quickly with hands and/or feet (of course you can also shake, rattle, and roll as you take the shot!). Also remember that you can diffuse the light, or add home-made filters (soft translucent netting material, or lightly colored gels — attach with a rubber band), and that you can break out of the mold (the rectangular mold of the iPhone ergonomics). Try it.
5) Take the time to experiment with apps — you’ll learn tons about the effects, but also about how best to compose next time and how to visualize the result you want. With a bit of patience, practice, and luck you will end up figuring out how to create particular effects without always relying on “out of the box” solutions. However, keep in mind that…
6) Just because there’s an app for that does not mean you have to use it to process your image. Over-processing is too easily done on the iPhone – be mindful that you don’t do it.
7) If iPhoneography for you is a lomographic, vernacular, or artistic pursuit — spend some time developing how best to engage in such practice and captures. It is important to learn to *see* – to visualize given your photographic imagination, interests, and goals. Spontaneity is good, but art is also disciplined. Of course, in the best Zen style, master the rules then discard the rules… wisely.
Break out of the box. The iPhone is a great little device, but we are also constrained by its rectangular shape. Break out of the rectangle — portrait and landscape are not the only orientations through which to frame an image. Experiment.
9) Take a moment, if possible, to also capture audio. The audio might help you remember (or put you back in the mood) the scene and your feelings and/or thoughts at the moment. That might be a great aid in processing the image, but it also might allow you to compose a nice photo-essay with audio.
10) After a bit of shooting with the iPhone (or any other camera) the emphasis shifts from “technique” to expression — at that point there are no simple recipes or formulas for great photography or iPhoneography. I suspect that most folks want to get better at the latter of those dimensions, not the technique part. That aesthetic, expressive side requires reflection and creative practice. Being a mindfulness practitioner I recommend adding mindfulness to that mix. Look deeply, take your time, study the scene both outside and through the interface of the iPhone’s screen, calm your mind and body and be present with what you are trying to capture. Learn to recognize what filters you bring to the moment and how that might inflect your seeing and creative expression. Try to gently dislodge such filters and look deeply again.
See my next post on exercising the photographic imagination.