American photographer Chase Jarvis once said “the best camera is the one you have with you” and these days you don’t need expensive or professional photographic equipment to capture the moment and produce good, if not stunning, images.
The smartphone in your pocket is always at your fingertips - ready to capture unexpected moments, wherever you are. Food, children, beautiful sunsets, flowers, clouds, strangers - we all have phone libraries full of the photographic opportunities that surround us daily and, as the line between smartphone and digital cameras grows finer with each new model that comes to market, this challenges and simultaneously compliments traditional digital photography.
Anyone can snap a cool grab-shot, but taking a great image with a smartphone requires the same thought and planning as using a standalone digital camera. Composition, exposure, lighting, subject and your phone model’s capabilities are all elements that go to make the final shot.
In addition, your smartphone can now easily edit as well as take the photo, with many built-in features and modes such as HDR, low-light and portrait, plus tools for correcting a horizon or adding a specific ‘look’. There are a multitude of aesthetic apps available to download, offering advanced editing tools like masking, spot removal and colour correction and the serious mobile shooter can even download exposure calculators, light meters, and planners for figuring out where the sun, moon and Milky Way will be at any given moment!
But where can you turn if you want to improve your image taking and learn more about post-processing? Sidmouth Photographic Club understand that everyone has a unique perspective to offer and so welcome photographers with all types of camera and levels of experience. Many of the club’s members agree they’d be lost without a mobile phone camera in their pocket and the club recognises the importance of this genre of photography by including mobile in digital competitions as well as holding two contests per season specifically for mobile photos. Some examples of club members’ smartphone images are featured on this page.
If you love photography, in all its forms, then SPC is the place to be. They offer regular workshops, speakers, practical and critique sessions, trips and social events to help you hone your skills, share your work with others and make new friends along the way. Meetings are informal and fun - find out more at sidmouthphotoclub.org
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