Smartphone Photography

Lesson Four Notes

Motion and Depth

Shutter Speeds

Why Learn About Controlling Motion?

Because it’s all about creative control. When there are a mix of stationary and moving objects in a
scene, you should be able to control whether to completely freeze the motion for everything in the
scene or to freeze only the stationary objects and allow a motion blur on other objects that are
moving.

Normally, when you pick up your phone to take a picture, the auto mode kicks in and to make sure
that your picture is bright enough, it dials in its own shutter speed settings so that you can take a
picture. But the camera cannot think creatively and decide when to freeze and when to show motion.
That is why it is important that we learn about motion control.

The cameras shutter controls the duration that light is entering the camera and exposing the sensor.

The length of time that the shutter is open is known as the shutter speed If we need more light – The
shutter will be open for a longer duration

If we need less light the shutter will be open for a shorter duration Shutter Speeds are measured in
seconds and fractions of a second Shutter Speeds also control how MOTION is captured in our images.

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Fast shutter speeds allow us freeze moving objects in our scene as static. Fast shutter speeds do not
allow the subject to travel any distance within the shot while the shutter is open, therefore the subject
appears as frozen or static in the image. This allows us to capture our subject mid movement/action
and create images that contain detail and visual interest that we would not get to experience in
normal life as the action would happen too quickly.

Slow shutter speeds allow motion or movement to flow within your image. Slow shutter speeds give
the subject time to move within the shot while the shutter is open. This results in the subject
appearing as blurred or flowing within the image. Slow shutter speeds create a sense of movement
and motion in our photographs which can create a dramatic edge to our images. The length of the
time that the shutter is open will determine how much the subject can blur within the shot.

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Apertures

Why learn about controlling depth?

Understanding how aperture controls depth in your images again gives you more creative control.

However, with smartphones it is just as important to understand its restrictions and limitations. With
this understanding you can still make the most of your images and use these limitations creatively.

Aperture and Exposure:

The aperture inside your lens is the cameras secondary mechanism for controlling light coming into
the camera. The aperture controls HOW MUCH or the volume of light that is coming into the camera.
The aperture inside the lens is a hole that can be made bigger or smaller to let in more light or restrict
light.

Apertures are expressed as F. Numbers or F Stops

Typically, each lens will have a certain range of standard aperture sizes Big Aperture numbers = Small
Apertures

Small Aperture numbers = Big Apertures

However, Smartphones are typically fixed at an aperture of f2* *This can vary slightly on different
smartphones.

This means that your smartphone will have a shallow depth of field.

Apertures also control how much of your scene is in focus – Depth of Field

Physically large apertures (small numbers) give us shallow depth of field. This is what our
smartphones are currently fixed at. Shallow depth of field is when only a small portion of your image
is in focus. Usually the main subject is in focus and the rest of the image is out of focus. A common use
is in portraits, where the main subject is in focus and the background is out of focus.

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How to achieve Depth of Field

1. The Aperture

2. Focal Length

3. Camera To Subject Distance

4. Subject To Background Distance

5. Get closer

6. Zoom in using optical zoom

7. Use telephoto lenses

8. Change where you focus

9. Move your subject away from the background

10. Apps can recreate DOF effect

What does the F stand for?

The F in f-stop stands for focal, as in the focal length of the lens. A f-stop is calculated by the focal
length of the lens divided by iris opening of the aperture.

For example, if you have a 50mm lens, with an f/2 aperture, divide 50mm/2 = 25 mm. This 25 mm is the
actual size of the aperture opening.

Now you know where the ‘F’ comes from and what it means!

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Deep DOF

A deep depth of field has a sharpness throughout the entire photo, that extends from the foreground
to the background. Everything appears sharp. This is used often in Landscapes.

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Shallow DOF

A shallow depth of field has a blurred out of focus background and foreground. DOF extends about
1/3rd in front of the subject and 2/3rds behind the subject.

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FOCUS

Talking about lenses and apertures, we will now discuss one of the most important functions of a
camera lens, the focus.

There are various focus modes available in smartphone cameras and whether or not all or any of these
focus modes are available on yours will entirely depend on your phone’s make and model.

Autofocus: The camera will do the focusing for you.

Macro: Hints the auto focus system to prioritize on focusing on the closest object.

Face Detection: Detects a human face and starts focusing on it.

Continuous autofocus: Great for capturing moving objects. The camera is continuously focusing on
the object in front of it and does not lock in at all.

Touch focus: The camera focuses on the area that you tap on the phone screen.

Infinity focus: Sets the infinite focus mode.

Autofocus lock: Once the camera is done autofocusing, it locks in and does not change until you take
the picture or start to re-focus.

Of all the focus modes available. I would recommend using the touch focus function (unless it’s a
moving object in which case, go for continuous auto focus). With touch focus, you just need to tap on
the area on your phone screen to tell the camera to focus exactly on that spot.

Most camera focus in the centre by default. Let’s say you are taking the picture of a person who is
standing on the right side of the frame and you want to focus on that person. All you need to do is tap
on the person in your phone screen and the focus will shift from centre to the person.

Setting up you phone camera

If you feel that your smartphone camera doesn’t have enough features to control your settings, a
third-party apps may ‘unlock’ these features. There are hundreds of different options, some may be
better for different cameral models and operating systems, so some research will be necessary. Some
recommended apps are:

iPhone: Manual, Camera +, 645 Pro Mk II

Android: Camera FV-5, Manual Camera, Camera Zoom FX

*Always check your devices compatibility with apps before downloading.

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