8 DIY Smartphone Photography Hacks For More Creative Photos
Jul 13, 2015
Allen Mowery
Allen Mowery is a Nationally-published Commercial & Editorial Photographer with over 20 years of experience. He has shot for major brands as well small clients. 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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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.
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!
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!
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!
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.
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…
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.
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.
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!
Allen Mowery
Allen Mowery is a Nationally-published Commercial & Editorial Photographer with over 20 years of experience. He has shot for major brands as well small clients. 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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5 responses to “8 DIY Smartphone Photography Hacks For More Creative Photos”
this is cool!
Carina Dolfing
it is a nice concept taking photography to next level
https://youtu.be/zal4vdob9aE
I’ve found this very useful trick to get stunning photos using only your smartphone. Check this out: https://bit.ly/2uq5vy7. Really cool, I promise, and it actually works. Have a nice photo sesh! :)