Travel Photography on the Go – How to Take Amazing Photos with Your Phone
These days, our mobile phones have lenses and settings that can easily compete with modern DSLR and digital Mirrorless Cameras. It’s no wonder that many of us think that a phone can capture similar photos and turn everybody into a professional photographer. Well, unfortunately, it’s not that easy. While technology plays a part in taking amazing photos, composition and creative approaches are even more crucial, especially when it comes to travel photography.
In my three-part series on “How to Take Great Photos”, I discuss the Exposure Triangle, Mastering Composition and Creative Techniques. These three blogs lay the foundation for what I am discussing below. If you haven’t read them yet, I encourage you to do so before continuing with the rest of this post.
Mobile Photography vs. DSLR – Key Differences and Tips for Great Travel Photos
I firmly believe that you can take great photos with your phone, but it requires as much technical knowledge and talent as using a DSLR or mirrorless camera. In this blog, I will focus on the key differences between mobile photography and DSLR/mirrorless photography and offer tips on how to compensate for those differences. With these insights, you can take great travel photos, even if you’ve left your camera at home or in the hotel.
With the basics in mind, let’s delve into the specifics. Mobile photography offers unique advantages and challenges that set it apart from traditional travel photography. Whether you’re capturing the vibrant streets of a bustling city or the serene landscapes of a quiet countryside, knowing how to leverage your phone’s capabilities can make all the difference.
Temple of Debod in Madrid at night - include and focus on light sources to improve image quality
Sensor Size – Understanding Your Phone's Capabilities
The most significant difference between mobile phones and digital cameras is sensor size. Phones have much smaller sensors, which impacts both image quality and the ability to take great photos in low-light conditions. Larger sensors in modern digital cameras capture more light, resulting in better picture quality, even in darker settings. They also provide better control over depth of field. To compensate for the smaller sensors in mobile phones, ensure you have plenty of natural or artificial light. At night, make good use of streetlights and ideally use the night-mode feature, which helps in low-light conditions.
Lens Choices – Making the Most of Fixed Lenses
One of the great benefits of cameras, both analog and digital, is the wide range of lenses available for different opportunities. For my travel photography, I always carry three lenses: the standard kit lens (18-55mm), a single focal length lens (35mm), and a super-zoom lens (55-200mm). While modern phones do offer different lenses, the range is limited. The main issue you will encounter is with the zoom. Digital zoom not only reduces photo quality but also lowers resolution, making post-processing more challenging. Avoid using digital zoom whenever possible and instead, move closer to your subject. This approach will yield better photos and provide more flexibility for post-processing.
Beer glass in bar - move closer to the object to get blurry background
Depth of Field – Achieving That Perfect Background Blur
I've mentioned depth of field before and how the smaller sensor in mobile phones makes it more difficult to control. Just as a reminder, depth of field refers to the effect that makes the background and the area around your main subject blurry, which is very effective in portrait photography. The different lens options for digital cameras can enhance the depth of field, especially those allowing for wider apertures. So, how can you achieve this with your mobile phone camera? Use the portrait mode that mimics the depth of field effect, but keep in mind that it might not work as well with complex backgrounds or smaller objects.
Manual Controls – Unlocking Your Phone's Full Potential
There’s no question that digital cameras offer more options and full manual control over shutter speed, aperture, focus, and ISO. However, most modern mobile phones now offer some control over these settings. While you won't get the precise settings needed for very fast-moving subjects and low-light conditions, there are apps available that provide more control beyond the in-built camera options. I encourage you to experiment with these settings to achieve better results.
Dynamic Range – Capturing Details in Light and Shadow
Dynamic range is the ability of your camera to capture more details in highlights and shadows. Mobile phone cameras tend to have a more limited dynamic range compared to DSLRs or mirrorless cameras. This means phones will struggle with very bright and very dark areas in your travel photos. Digital cameras have a much wider dynamic range and can capture more details, which is crucial for post-processing. To compensate for the limitations of your phone camera, use the HDR mode for photos with high contrast areas (e.g., bright sky and dark foreground). However, make sure to review the image to avoid over-processing, which can make the picture look unnatural.
Fountain in Madrid at night - mobile cameras have a more limited dynamic range (bright vs dark areas in the photo)
Low-Light Performance – Tips for Better Night Shots
As previously mentioned, mobile phone cameras struggle with low-light situations, mainly due to the smaller sensor size and limited lens aperture. This often results in grainy or noisy images. While this can sometimes create a vintage effect, it is usually not desirable. The larger sensors and ability to use faster lenses with wider apertures (like f/1.4 or f/2.8) allow digital cameras to handle low-light situations much better. In low-light conditions, use a tripod or something to lean your phone on to stabilize your camera. There are plenty of small tripod options, including some the size of a credit card, which are easy to carry on your trip. Another trick to stabilize your shots, especially if you have shaky hands, is to use a timer to avoid blurry pictures.
Battery Life – Keeping Your Phone Ready for Every Shot
For travel photography, it's crucial to have a good battery life with your camera, whether it's a mobile phone camera or a DSLR/mirrorless camera. Digital cameras generally have better batteries that can last for days while you travel. Additionally, these cameras offer the option to change batteries, so always bring a fully charged spare with you. Mobile phones, on the other hand, have shorter battery lives and using power-hungry features like night-mode or HDR-mode — which are essential to compensate for other shortcomings I mentioned — can drain the battery quickly. Before you head out on your adventure, make sure your phone is fully charged and ideally, bring a power bank to recharge on the go.
Shooting Speed – Capturing Action with Your Phone
With rapid technological advancements, mobile phone cameras are getting better at processing images quickly and allowing for multiple shots per second. Some higher-end phones even offer "live" features, essentially short videos that let you select the perfect frame. However, digital cameras provide higher shutter speeds and can handle continuous shooting much better with minimal delay (shutter lag). To capture action shots without blur, learn to anticipate moments and movements. For sports photography, you can also use burst mode on your phone camera to avoid missing the perfect shot.
Portability – Why Your Phone is the Ultimate Travel Companion
So far, I've focused on areas where mobile phones may fall short compared to digital cameras. However, one significant advantage of using your phone is its portability—you always have it with you. Besides being convenient, mobile phones allow you to process travel photos on the go and share them instantly with friends or social media. On the other hand, DSLRs and mirrorless cameras can be quite bulky and heavy, especially when carrying multiple lenses. If you're traveling in areas where you don’t want to stand out with a camera, perhaps for security reasons, a mobile phone is a great alternative. Always keep your phone handy to capture unexpected photo opportunities.
Mirroless camera and lenses - heavier and less compact than a mobile phone
Summary of Tips – Making the Most of Your Mobile Photography
I hope the above explanations and recommendations help you compensate for the limitations of mobile phone cameras, enabling you to take great photos regardless of the camera you use. The key to any good image while traveling is stability and light. Make sure to stabilize your camera—ideally using a timer—and ensure you have enough light. Use an artificial light source if needed. Experiment with manual controls to achieve the desired effects, and if that doesn’t work, try portrait mode or HDR mode. Lastly, avoid digital zoom. Instead, move closer to your subject to maintain the quality and resolution of your photo.
As mentioned before, the three-part series on “How to Take Great Photos” (Exposure Triangle, Mastering Composition and Creative Techniques) will help you improve your skills, no matter if you use a mobile phone or a digital camera.
As always feel free to leave a comment below or reach out to me. Need more travel planning help? Contact me!
