The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus both feature built-in NFC functionality that will work seamlessly with Apple's new payment system, Apple Pay. This method combines NFC and Touch ID in order to allow you to make payments with your iPhone across thousands of merchants in the United States. The rear facing iSight camera in the iPhone 6 has an all new sensor that should handle everyday photography better than ever. HD video recording and slow-mo video have also gotten boosted to 60 fps and 240 fps, respectively. The front-facing FaceTime camera appears to remain largely unchanged.
At best, however, apps make bland photos looks a touch more interesting. That’s not what you want — you want control over how your images look, and that’s what apps should help you do. You’ll need an app that helps you control the focus and exposure of your camera. Most recent smartphones do this by default, like the iPhone 6 and above, or any smartphone with a manual or pro mode will. OS. The next set of apps you’ll need are the ones that will allow you to control things like contrast, white balance, colour saturation and brightness.
Most of the latest default camera apps come with these controls, but apps like Snapseed or Photoshop Express can help fine tune your images. This might seem like a no-brainer but you’d be surprised at just what your smartphone camera can do. Perhaps you’re familiar with some of the basic operations, like switching between camera and video modes, or turning the flash on and off.
But did you know that your handset’s camera has scene modes that can capture not just panoramas, but HDR (High Dynamic Range — capturing vivid colours and better details) images and bokeh effects, Don’t be afraid to tinker with your camera app. Any smartphone with 32GB of memory has plenty of space for photos, so you can take lots of pics and play with the features, effects and settings.
And if you have one of the recent flagship handsets, like the iPhone X, Google Pixel 2 or Samsung Galaxy S8, then there’s every chance it’s jam packed full of features for you to discover. Knowing your way around the camera software should become second nature — you don’t want to miss out on moments because of struggling with your camera’s settings. If you’re going to take impressive pictures, you’ll need good light. But how do you know what that is, Good light is the kind that gives a scene shape, depth and makes things look interesting.
Generally, shooting indoors with artificial light or outdoors midday or with overcast skies is bad, flat and boring light. You’ll know it when you see it — there are few shadows, if any, and everything looks evenly lit. Look for light with some kind of direction and colour. This happens naturally at just before sunrise and at sunset, what photographers call ‘the golden hour’. Alternatively, window light is great because it has direction and is often soft and diffused, not harsh on the subject you’re shooting.
When shooting indoors, especially, remember that using the handset’s flash can make the light harsh and spoil the ‘mood’ of the image. So you might want to keep it off. Good light is especially important in mobile photography because you can’t create much more interest with different focal lengths and varying depth of field like you can with a DSLR or compact camera. You’re stuck with one focal length and one aperture setting. It’s a very good exercise in finding a good composition.
Sometimes, there are no moments. Nothing is happening. There’s no one around, and it’s just a pretty scene. It won’t hurt to take the photo. Do that and keep it for yourself or share it with close people and tell a story along with it. But if you really want to get the good stuff, find a good moment.
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