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8 DIY Smartphone Photography Hacks For More Creative Photos

Jul 13, 2015 by Allen Mowery 5 Comments

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Hacking is what we (and, indubitably, Anonymous) live for.  So when photographer Richard Schabetsberger releases videos like this, we get all giddy with excitement.  From aerial photography to creative selfies, Richard shares with us eight hacks to get better results and more creatively-dynamic images from your smartphone.

1.  Attach to a Drone Helium Ballon

With all the controversy and tightening regulations on drone photography, you can skip all the hassle with a helium balloon.  Simply fill a”big-ass” ballon with the gas and tether is with some fishing line.  Use a remote (if you have a compatible phone) or a timer app to capture photos.

Richard-Schabetsberger-helium-aerial

2.  Sunglasses As Polarizing Filter

Polarizers give you that nice gradient shading on images.  Unfortunately, finding one for your smartphone is pretty much impossible.  So, grab a pair of sunglasses, and shoot away!

Richard-Schabetsberger-sunglass-polarizer

3.  Cardboard Pinhole

Turn your smartphone into a pinhole camera by poking a hole in a piece of cardboard and holding or affixing it over your camera’s lens.  Nothing like going old school in a new school world!

Richard-Schabetsberger-diy-pinhole

4.  Frame Your Photos

Why bother with adding artificial frames to your photos in Instagram?  Cut out a real frame and literally frame your shots in real time!

Richard-Schabetsberger-photo-frame

5.  Shrink Your World

As Richard points out, panoramas are great and all, but they don’t resize well for social media sharing.  Instead, download a “tiny planet” app for your phone (like this one for iOS or this one for Android), and turn your panoramas into creative tiny worlds.

Richard-Schabetsberger-tiny-world

6.  Shoot High Key

Use a piece of dark paper (or, anything dark, really) to lock in your exposure.  Then remove it to actually capture your shot.  Who knows, you might be the next Terry Richardson…

Richard-Schabetsberger-high-key

7.  Inceptualize Your Selfies

Use a smartphone to take a photo of a body part not your own, then superimpose the image in real time for a little creativity.

Richard-Schabetsberger-selfie

8.  Project Your Phone

Make your own DIY smartphone projector with a box, camera lens, and magnifying glass.  Now you can turn your lonely bedroom into screening room for your latest projects.

Richard-Schabetsberger-diy-projector

The Ball’s In Your Court

Give these great hacks a try, and share your results below!  Have your own smartphone hacks?  We’d love to see ’em!

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

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Related posts:

8 creative camera hacks in under 90 seconds that you can try yourself Default Thumbnail43 Photography Hacks, Mods And DIY Projects 9 easy tricks & hacks to up your DIY photography game 8 easy and effective DIY photography hacks using cardboard

Filed Under: DIY Tagged With: hacks, photography tips, Richard Schabetsberger, smartphone photography

Allen Mowery: from diyphotography.net

About Allen Mowery

Allen Mowery is a commercial and editorial photographer, pseudo-philosopher, and wannabe documentarian killing time amidst the rolling hills of Central Pennsylvania. When not shooting client work or chasing overgrown wildlife from his yard, he loves to capture the stories of the people and culture around him.

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