If you’re a business owner, taking pictures for your website and social media is essential. But, let’s face it, we all can’t be professional photographers with expensive cameras. We also can’t all afford to hire a professional photographer multiple times a year.

Luckily, we are in an age where our phones are equipped with a camera. And while your iphone may not take super high quality photos like a professional photographer would, you can still take gorgeous photos that look professional.

Here are 5 things you can do to improve the quality of your iphone photos.

1. USE A TRIPOD

Say goodbye to the handheld selfie. A tripod is going to be your best friend when it comes to taking your own photos. It keeps your camera steady so you don’t get those annoying blurred shots that were taken between your pose and when you turned your phone around to look at the picture. 

Lots of tripods also come with a bluetooth shutter button for your camera. This is great because it frees up your hands for more dynamic poses. Yes, you will have to hold the button but it is easy to hide in your palm and by the placement of your hands.

WIth the help of a tripod you can play with angles, take pictures from a distance, and take group shots that don’t cut anyone out. 

2. FIND GOOD LIGHTING

Lighting is always KEY. Without the right lighting, photos just don’t look good. Using natural lighting is preferable because what provides better lighting than the sun? Use the light from a window with open curtains, but remember don’t put your back to the window for the picture as you will put your face in shadow. Try posing at an angle from the window or even facing the window to get a sufficient amount of light. 

If you want to take pictures outdoors, keep an eye on the weather. Wait until it’s cloudy outside so you don’t have squinty eyes or even rays of sun messing up the picture. Pro tip: many photographers love to shoot on rainy days because the lighting outside is optimal for pictures. 

Sunset is also a great time for pictures as the sun provides a golden glow you just can’t fake. Plus the colors in the sky always make for a gorgeous background. 

You can also use artificial lighting by purchasing some lights. But you don’t have to get those big expensive lights with photography umbrellas. You can simply purchase a few smaller lights or even a ring light that fits right on a tripod. 

3. PLAY WITH YOUR CAMERA SETTINGS

Iphones have some great settings for the camera and you can toggle between them based on the kind of picture you want to take. For example, if you switch to portrait mode, you get a picture where the focal point is in focus, but everything in the background is out of focus. In portrait mode, you can also play with the lighting. It gives you options for natural light, studio light, contour light, stage light, stage light monochromatic (black and white), and high-key light monochromatic.

You can also turn on the “live mode” which takes several frames for one photo. So, if you accidentally blink, you can go through the frames to find one where your eyes are open without having to take another picture.

4. TAKE A VIDEO INSTEAD OF A PHOTO

No, I don’t mean for a reel. Taking a video is a great way to get in some action shots (hello perfect jump shot) or even just getting several different shots without clicking the shutter 500 times. (This is also great if you don’t have a remote shutter button.) All you do is start recording then move around to give yourself different poses and angles. Then after you finish your poses, go through the video and take screenshots. 

5. DOWNLOAD THE LIGHTROOM MOBILE APP

Lightroom Mobile is (in my opinion) the best mobile editing app by far. This app gives you the same options as the desktop versions, so you don’t have to download your pictures to your computer to get the same quality edit. There is also a feature that allows you to edit select portions of your photos. There is both a free and a paid version of the app.

Getting great photos with your iphone doesn’t have to be a challenge. Just by utilizing these simple tips, you’ll realize you don’t even need that expensive camera or professional photographer. Beautiful photos are easy to take if you know what to do! Use these tips and tag us in your posted result (@collabincolor). We can’t wait to see what you come up with!