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You’re on vacation and you see an amazingly lit scene. You grab your phone to capture the beautiful scene in front of you, only to look down and be blown away by the photo you’ve captured and wonder how your travel photos turned out to be such crap, like the amazing view you saw with your own eyes. Nothing is visible or from other photos of the same place.

Then you think to yourself: “If I had an expensive DSLR, my photos would be amazing, because smartphones take rubbish photos.”

I have created a guide on how to choose a travel camera and how you can choose the best camera for you.

Hold on to your hats, because I’m going to tell you the truth, it’s not your phone that’s taking trashy tour photos—it’s you.

I have been teaching myself photography by watching every YouTube video on photography and practicing most weekends for the past year.

And by understanding and practicing a few simple photography tips, my phone photography skills and travel photos have improved by leaps and bounds.

Also, I realized that you don’t need an expensive DSLR to take a great photo. I’ve seen people with expensive flashy DSLRs take some very impressive photos.

Many smartphones are turned only to photographers Instagram Those who follow these simple photography tips take the most incredible photos.

So, before you run off to drop thousands of pounds on a DSRL comparable to a small computer for your next holiday, why not brush up on your mobile phone photography skills first with the tips below.

If you’re visiting London and want tips on photographing this iconic city, you should read this guide. Photographs of London!

It includes how to get great travel photos of famous London landmarks like the London Eye and Tower Bridge.

Top Smartphone Travel Photography Tips

Clean your camera lens

Clean your smartphone camera lens before taking every photo. Yes, I know this tip sounds simple and you might think it’s pretty obvious, but we use our phones all the time and grease from our hands gets on our smartphone camera lenses.

There’s nothing worse than taking greasy, foggy, blurry photos from your phone. To get crisp, clean images, always remember to clean your smartphone lens before each photo.

Turn on the grid feature

I turn on the grid feature so that it appears every time I take a photo. These are the lines that run vertically and horizontally on your smartphone when you take a photo.

To access this function on a smartphone, go to Settings, Photo then Grid. But with the new OSI 11 update on iPhone, you can now turn on these features by going to Settings, then Camera, Grid.

You might be thinking: “Why should I enable the grid feature on my phone?” You will use the grid to apply the following photography tips.

Read more: Best travel cameras for you

Rule of thirds

The rule of thirds refers to the composition of a photo, and is one of the principles of photography.

It’s about placing the most important elements off-center to create a balanced and harmonious composition.

Basically, placing the subject off-center in your photo makes your photo more interesting.

If you want to improve your photography, you must master this principle and then put your own spin on it.

By improving your smartphone photography skills you will be able to create your own style and showcase your best photos.

Find natural light

I take all my photos on my mobile phone using natural light. I try not to take photos on my phone at night when traveling because it never ends well.

So, when I travel it usually means I wake up very early to get the most natural night possible.

Plus waking up early means I catch the golden morning and evening and miss the touristy areas.

Do not zoom in

Never zoom while taking a photo on your phone as this will cause pixel distortion in your photo which, in turn, will lose clarity in your photo and reduce the quality of your image (That is, it will produce a grainy donkey photo).

Instead, be a human zoom and get closer to the subject or object you’re trying to capture.

Shoot from multiple angles

Before I really got into photography I would be that guy who would take 100 photos of the same thing from the same angle and then wonder why my photos looked bad, or didn’t match what I was looking at. Instagram.

I didn’t realize that you should never stand in the same position and take a million photos of the same thing.

Now, I’ll usually take a few photos on a straight, wide frame, close-ups, and detail shoots while varying my angles by taking the same subject from above, below, and from the side.

This also enables you to tell a story with your photos, and photography is all about storytelling.

Again, this gives your image a varied perspective; Some angles will look better than others.

Changing the framing and angles of a photo can transform an image, which has been taken millions of times, into something unique and interesting.

This makes your photos uniquely “you” and personal too. Many photographers today are known for shooting at an angle or framing their subjects in a certain way.

read more: The best editing apps for smartphones

Shoot in both landscape and portrait modes

I learned this tip from a photographer who shoots National Geographic Tour, And the idea behind that was that some images would look better in landscape or portrait, and by capturing the same subject in both views you’d be able to choose the better orientation.

I shoot in both landscape and portrait for every image I capture, giving me two different perspectives of the same subject.

Use portrait mode

I brought the iPhone 7 Plus for three reasons: large memory; two lenses; and portrait mode.

Gone are the days that you can only get a blurry background (Or bokeh as the pros say) from expensive DSLRs.

Apple gives a full explanation of how the two cameras work to achieve this blurry effect, but let’s be honest, we’re more concerned about how well this will look on us in our selfies.

By taking photos using portrait mode on your smartphone, you can instantly transform your photos by blurring unwanted or distracting background elements and focusing on the subject in the photo.

Never shoot square

I never shoot square and I suggest you don’t either. It is much easier to cut into a square with a wide angle.

However, if you only shoot square you can never go back and adjust the framing of your photo, so don’t shoot square.

No one wants to be a square.

Look at your background

I’ve seen so many photos that people just focus on their subject, completely forgetting about what’s going on in their background.

A photo background can make or break your image. I’ve seen beautiful photos ruined by an ugly background, such as trash cans, parked cars, and electrical wires running overhead. A distracting or busy background takes focus away from your subject.

Always take a few seconds to look at the background before taking a photo, and check for the following;

• The background is very busy; Are they people walking around? Maybe wait until the venue is less crowded before taking a photo.

• Is there something cutting/passing your subject’s head or top? If so, move your subject a few feet away from what comes out of their head or cut the subject off entirely.

Edit your photos

I edit my photos on my mobile phone, be it for my blog or Instagram, using amazing apps like VSCO, A color story Or Snapseed.

There are many things you can do with these editing apps to up your mobile phone photography game and give your travel photos a professional look.

You can edit your photos by increasing/decreasing exposure, fixing your temperature, enhancing your highlights and sharpening them. The possibilities are endless

Practice makes perfect

As they say, practice makes perfect, and like anything in life, you must put in the effort if you really want to improve your mobile phone photography skills.

Your photos won’t be off to a great start, but by using the tips above, and practicing, whether you’re on your morning run, going to work, or out with friends, you’ll see your phone photography skills improve. and photos of your trip.

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