photography1_50

Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips You Must Know!

by with No Comment CamerasPhotographyTips/Tricks

Are you disappointed with the photos you click from your smartphone? Do you think that your smartphone is not capable of taking good pictures? Worry not because these Top 10 smartphone photography tips which we have carefully compiled may change your life! These are some basic tips which anyone can follow irrespective of your smartphone model to achieve good results. All these tips are not that hard to implement and do not require any extra equipment. Just remember that there are few very simple basic things which we often forget while taking pictures.

Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips

Let us look at the Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips You Must Know:

1) Always keep your smartphone camera lens clean!

clean smartphone lens

This is the most common mistake which people usually ignore. Simply by cleaning the lens of your smartphone, the quality of the image is improved. Clean the lens using a micro-fiber cloth or any normal cloth will do too.

2) Never Use the Zoom feature! Always move closer if possible.

Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips

 This is an important tip to get better photos. Keeping the technicalities aside, zooming your pictures pixelates them which results in degradation of quality. Always try to move closer to the subject if possible.

3) Get the exposure right

Are your photos too dark or too bright? That’s because you are not adjusting that brightness slider (also known as exposure) you see before clicking a photo. It’s not compulsory to click at the same light level the subject exists. It’s totally up to you whether you want the photo to be dark or bright. Play around!

4) Use HDR smartly!

Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips

You may have noticed how your phone struggles when you want to click a landscape photo which has both shadows and bright light, for e.g. a bright sky and a field. This issue can be easily solved by just simply enabling the “HDR” feature on your phone. HDR or High Dynamic Range helps to capture detailed shadows and foreground. I am pretty sure that people mistake it for High Definition Resolution which is not really the case here.

Also read: How to read deleted WhatsApp messages?

5) Move Around! Click the same subject using different angles

You will find it amazing how the same subject looks so different when clicked from other angles. Always remember, Perspective is the key. Clicking from different angles will surely make you a better photographer.

6) Composition is the King

Top 10 Smartphone Photography Tips

Rule of Thirds

The subject is right in front of you. It looks amazing to your eyes. You are ready to click a photo. *click* and to your surprise, it doesn’t look as good as it looked to your eyes previously. This is largely because a smartphone lens is not as smart as your eyes. This can be avoided by carefully composing your pictures. It’s a common rule in photography that you don’t click just the photo of the subject but you should also include its surroundings (unless it’s a portrait shot). So always try to keep the subject on the intersection of the grid which is not in the center, so that the eyes pay attention to the background and subject.

Detailed explanation: Rule of Thirds in 5 minutes

7) Never Forget to Focus!

Many times, in the excitement of clicking a photo, we forget to focus which results in blurry images and a disappointed face when you notice it much later. No matter how excited or quickly you want to take a photo, never forget to focus. This is done by simply tapping on the screen where you want to focus and waiting for the image to stabilize and lens to focus on the subject.

8) Always try to use natural light and not Flash

Flash is recommended only when there’s absolutely no natural light available. Use creative angles to ensure your subject is well lit naturally. Never click pictures against the light as it will not give you good results.

9) Use third-party Camera Apps which provide more features

Most of the default stock camera applications don’t have many extra features which are necessary. That’s why you should use third-party applications available on App stores. We highly suggest everyone to use Google’s GCam which is possibly the best camera app available. This is unfortunately not available on app stores so you have to google GCam along with the name of your smartphone to get the best possible and compatible version. Not able to find one for your device? Mention the model number in the comment section and let us assist you with it.

10) Learn to use editing apps!

Just clicking a photo simply doesn’t cut it now. Editing is necessary to make the photo look even better. It isn’t as tough as it sounds. It’s just a game of sliders and filters. A short video will clear all the doubts you have in your mind. Apps we suggest:

  • Snapseed
  • Adobe Lightroom
  • Adobe Photoshop Express
  • PicsArt

So these were the top 10 smartphone photography tips which will give you some good results. Apart from this, if you have some technical knowledge, then you can try going in manual mode in the smartphone camera app. Try playing with shutter speed, exposure, ISO and other settings. Do let us know if you would like to know some tips on how to use manual mode in a smartphone camera app in the comment section below. We will definitely keep covering such cool tricks and tips.

Thermal camera car

Top Benefits of Using Thermal Cameras for Your Vehicle

by with No Comment autoCamerasTechnewzTechnology

The technology installed in vehicles for safety and convenience has been advancing rapidly. Innovators are developing new and improved options every day as witnessed in the new models on the road. However, most of the devices can be accessed as aftermarket options and installed on older models to make sure that they enjoy the benefits of the same technology. For today, we will discuss thermal cameras. They are the latest surveillance technology in vehicles, especially fleet vehicles. They have the following benefits.

Enhances Vision in Bad Weather

Even if you turn your high beams and fog lights on, some weather can be too harsh to see clearly. This is where thermal cameras come in. If you are driving through a storm or rain or fog, these cameras can still pick out the images of objects as long as they emit warmth. Therefore, it is an additional safety feature for drivers. You can see these images on a dashboard screen in your car in order to see more clearly when driving.

Saves Time and Lowers Cost

Fleet owners can save a lot of money if they rely on this device amongst other technological solutions. The benefits are even greater for those vehicles that are operated where thermal cameras are needed most. For example, accidents can be avoided in arid regions that experience sandstorms and products can be delivered on time. Safety is also improved for those who live in areas that frequently experience fog, mist and heavy rains.

Driving in Darkness

As weird as it may sound, there are times when your fleet drivers might need to drive through the darkness. For instance, if the vehicle headlights fail while a driver is out in the middle of nowhere, the driver can still make it to the nearest safe destination using the thermal cameras. Also, the thermal cameras can become useful when a driver feels threatened and the headlights make the vehicle an easy target. This is why you should visit Eyerideonline to upgrade your fleet technology.

Improved Visual Accuracy

Most thermal cameras can detect the distance of the object ahead accurately. When used during the day or night, drivers can tell how far away a certain object is. This is helpful during vehicle parking or any other time when drivers must know this information. Since thermal cameras do not require any light to work, they become even more useful at night when the visibility on the road is poor despite the use of headlights.

Recording Activities

Ordinary cameras may miss some activities if there is no light at all. However, thermal cameras can record a theft or any other occurrence regardless of how much light is present. Although a face cannot be identified using thermal cameras, they will provide a clue of what happened instead of working with speculation alone. These cameras should be left on in fleet vehicles to record any attempted break-in.

From this information, it is evident that thermal cameras are worth installing both in fleet or private vehicles. They have many benefits including the most significant ones outlined above.

 

GoPro Hero Budget

GoPro launches entry level HERO camera for 18,990

by with No Comment CamerasTechnewz

GoPro, Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRO) has added a new HERO camera to the family. On sale now, HERO is at Rs 18,990, go-anywhere, capture-anything camera that makes it easy share experiences that would be difficult to capture with a phone.

HERO features a 2-inch touch display, is waterproof to 30 feet and is extremely durable, making it the perfect GoPro for kids, adventurous social sharers and travelers.

“HERO is a great first GoPro for people looking to share experiences beyond what a phone can capture,” says Meghan Laffey, GoPro’s SVP of Product. “HERO makes it easy to share ‘wow’ moments at a price that’s perfect for first-time users.”

In India, HERO is available exclusively at Flipkart. “We are delighted to be a part of this exclusive partnership with GoPro. GoPro HERO adds to our world class selection and will help strengthen Flipkart’s dominant leadership in cameras. At Flipkart, we have a big customer base of passionate travellers & outdoor fans that are becoming more and more important. Along with GoPro we want to give them the perfect camera to capture their adventures”, added Adarsh Menon, Vice President and Head-Electronics and Private Labels, Flipkart.

Sharing cool experiences with HERO is simple. It offloads your photos and videos to the GoPro app which creates fun, shareable videos for you, automatically. No more fumbling with your SD card or plugging your camera into a computer. HERO makes it simple.

Key features include:

·         Award-Winning Image Quality: HD Video (1440p60 and 1080p60) and 10MP photo performance

·         2-Inch Touch Display: Using HERO is as easy as using your phone thanks to its touch display

·         Voice Control: Tell HERO to start and stop recording, take a photo and more

·         Waterproof + Extremely Durable: Waterproof up to 30’ (10M) and designed go everywhere your smartphone can’t

·         Video Stabilization: HERO features video stabilization that helps smooth out the shakes

·         Smartphone Compatible: HERO offloads your photos and videos to the GoPro app which creates fun, shareable videos for you, automatically

·         Body and Gear Mountable: compatible with 30+ GoPro mounting accessories

To learn more about the entire GoPro lineup including the Rs 37,000 HERO6, Rs 28,000 HERO5, Rs 18,990 HERO, visit GoPro.com.

 

Dual Lens camera

Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

by with No Comment CamerasiphoneMobile

Having a camera in a phone was also a big deal when we used to have old Nokia devices. But now the quality of pictures taken from a smartphone camera has increased significantly. Apple has always been the company which sets the bar of the camera quality they offer in their smartphones. When the single lens was not enough, companies started rolling out smartphones with Dual Lens. Companies like Oppo took it one step further by announcing Oppo F3 smartphone with Dual Lens Selfie camera. Now, these brands offer good quality camera at comparatively lower budget than Apple iPhone. But the one thing that we need to understand is how this dual lens camera in smartphone affects the overall picture quality.

Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

Dual Lens Camera

Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

To start with, there are some phones having an identical specification on both the lenses. But this was the case before, now the smartphones come with different type of lens. So the first lens captures a normal photo, and the second lens will assist the first one in improving the picture quality. Both these lenses work individually at first and then combine the output to improve the quality of the image. Following are the three major features or advantages that you get by using dual lens camera smartphone. Note that you might not get all the three features together in one smartphone.

Bokeh Effect

So this was the fancy term introduced by Apple with the iPhone 7 Plus. Bokeh effect focuses on one particular area and blurs the rest of it. So, the first lens will actually focus on one specific area where the user is trying to focus and the second lens will capture the details of the background. Here the second lens is actually capturing the depth of the image to create the Bokeh effect. One particular advantage of clicking a Bokeh effect image is, you can re-focus the image even after clicking it.

Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

Bokeh effect

You are Reading: Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

Low Light Performance

Sometimes smartphones having dual lens have a combination of RGB and Monochrome lens. So the first lens will capture a normal RGB image while the other lens will capture the monochrome image. This monochrome image is able to capture more light per pixel which is then combined with the normal RGB image to enhance the image quality. This improves the low light performance significantly.

Dual Lens Camera in Smartphone: Explained

Optical Zoom

Now the smartphones are focusing on combining a wide-angle lens with a zoom lens to capture a high-quality image even at 2X Zoom. So even if you decide to zoom in some view, the picture quality won’t be reduced. This will allow smartphones to click good quality images at multiple zoom levels. The wide-angle lens actually helps in capturing more area, so the phones with dual lens selfie camera will accommodate more people in a selfie.

Having a dual lens camera smartphone is always a boon if you are someone who clicks a lot of pictures. We have tried a lot of devices with Dual-lens camera and each one of them had some distinct improvements. I hope the concept of the dual lens camera in smartphone is all clear to you, doubts can be posted in the comment section below.

IMG_4675

ASUS ZenFlash full review

by with 6 Comments ASUSCamerasReviews

Nowadays almost all the smartphones come equipped with an LED Flash. But still the small flash of the phone falls short in fulfilling the adequate light requirement in a photo. For this ASUS has introduced an accessory called ZenFlash(Xenon Flash dongle) that can be used to output powerful flashlight to brighten up the images. As of now it only works with the ASUS Zenfone 2 variants. So let’s do the ASUS ZenFlash full review and find out what this accessory is capable of doing.

IMG_4675

ASUS ZenFlash Full Review:

Box Content:

  • ZenFlash
  • Silicon Case
  • 2 velcro strips (1 attached and the other 1 spare)
  • User Guide and Warranty card

Design

Front look ZenFlash (With ambient sensor)

Front look ZenFlash (With ambient sensor)

The size of the ZenFlash is almost the same as the size of a normal matchbox. The dimensions are 48 x 30 x 15.7 mm and is very light weight. It has one ambient light sensor in the front and the other flash sensor at the top to detect when the default camera flash turns on. There is a micro USB pin with the cable wrapped around the ZenFlash. The body of the ZenFlash is made of plastic with a rubberized grip at the sides. On the back, it has a velcro attachment with adhesive tape to stick it to Zenfone.

Performance

The Xenon Flash or the ZenFlash is said to be 100 times brighter than a normal LED flash on a smartphone which proves to be true. It drives power from the micro USB port of the Zenfone. The current input of ZenFlash is 5V 300mA and the recharge time is 5-6 seconds. The performance is very similar to a DSLR or professional camera’s Flash.

How ZenFlash Works?

IMG_4685

A Xenon Flash normally has Xenon gas filled inside it which emits very bright light when high voltage electricity is passed through it. So this ZenFlash works in sync with the existing LED flash of the Zenfone 2 series smartphone. It detects the LED flash using the built-in sensor and fires at the same time to give much brighter and detailed pictures. It drives all the power from the smartphone itself and takes some time to recharge for the next shot.

How to use ZenFlash?

On my own it took me a while to understand how the ZenFlash works. So it is better to go through the given user guide before starting to use ZenFlash. Follow the below steps and refer the images given below each step.

Step 1: Remove the ZenFlash from the silicon case.

IMG_4688

Step 2: Remove the micro USB pin and the unwrap the wire from around the ZenFlash.

IMG_4691

Step 3: Separate the adhesive velcro tape from the ZenFlash. Next remove the plastic to uncover the adhesive side and stick it to the ZenFlash in the vertical direction.

IMG_4696

Step 4: Now attach the ZenFlash to the smartphone using the velcro such that the top sensor of ZenFlash and the LED flash are on the same side.

IMG_4694

Step 5: Time to connect the micro USB pin of ZenFlash to the micro USB port of the smartphone.

IMG_4695

Step 6: Download and launch the ZenFlash camera app if it doesn’t start by itself when you connect the accessory. Now you are all set to start clicking pictures without worrying about light conditions. Make sure you select proper distance of the object, as the intensity of flash depends on it. If you choose a larger distance for a closer object then you will get too bright images and vice-versa. It takes some time for the ZenFlash to recharge itself before clicking the next shot.

Zenflash camera app

 

Make sure you disconnect and remove the ZenFlash after use. The adhesive tape is reusable and you can also apply normal glue if it stops working after a certain period of time.

SAMPLE IMAGE

The below image was shot in complete dark scenario in zero light condition

ZenFlash Image sample

ZenFlash Image sample

The above picture is the compressed version of the original image, to see the full HD image click here.

Pricing and availability

The ZenFlash is priced for Rs.1599 which is costly. But for all those enthusiastic photographers out there, this is a very nice accessory to use if you have a Zenfone 2 series smartphone. The quality of images for indoor parties and events will definitely improve if you use ZenFlash. As of now it is not available in the market for buying, we will let you know as soon as there is any news. Let us know what do you think of this accessory and if you would buy it, through the comment section below.

Gallery

Aditi Arya - Winner, Mr Yasunobu Nishiyama San, MD, Fujifilm India, 1st runner-up Aafreen Rachel Vaz, 2nd Vartika Singh

Fujifilm launched the Instax Series of cameras in India

by with No Comment CamerasTechnewz

Fujifilm launched the Instax Series of cameras in India on May 8 2015. These cameras are capable of printing photos instantly as soon as you click them. They don’t store photos like the digital cameras, instead prints them on a film. There are four cameras launched under Instax series Mini 8, Mini 25, Mini 50S and Mini 90. All the cameras are built to use in different scenarios by people of different age groups. The Instax series has been already launched in some other countries, and according to Fujifilm they have received a good response. The Finalists of Femina Miss India 2015 unveiled the new Instax series at the Fujifilm launch event held in Mumbai.

Instax Series Femina Miss India Finalists

Femina Miss india Finalists, Mr. Yasunobu Nishiyama (Fujilfilm Managing Director)

This new series of cameras are mainly built to target the youth of India as they love to try out new things. You can even take selfies using the mirror given on the front of the camera. The series has a suitable camera for different occasions to be used by all kinds of different people. It takes approximately 2 minutes for the film to sharpen the image once it is clicked using any of the Instax Cameras.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr. YasunobuNishiyama said, “We are excited to launch the Instax series which has been well accepted in countries outside India. This range has been designed keeping in mind predominantly young age group and their requirements. Indian young population is experimental/ wants to seek new experiences and maintain their family values. Each camera has its own unique features, distinguishing one from the other and comes with 1 year warranty. Considering the growth of the market and the steady progress of the Indian economy, we have an extremely positive outlook for this series and expect it to be welcomed by customers of diverse needs in the country.”

Fujifilm Instax Series Mini 8

Instax Mini 8

First one in the series is the Mini 8 which has a nice and cute look. It is available in seven different colors and is suitable for kids and ladies. They can choose the color according to their dressing style. It is very easy to operate the Mini 8 due to its user friendliness. The camera can be easily carried as it is very compact in size. Also the camera has a dial to adjust the brightness of the photos. Actually it tells you the brightness which is most suitable for clicking the photo and you can select it by rotating the dial. The Mini 8 can hold up to 10 films at a time. Mini 8 is priced at Rs.6441.

Fujifilm Instax Mini 25

Instax Mini 25

Next comes the Mini 25 which is specially meant for taking selfies. It has a mirror on the front to help you express more in the snapshots. It looks stylish so you have the freedom to use it wherever you want. Also it has a built in flash and can store up to 30 films at a time. There are two shutter buttons on the camera to choose between vertical and horizontal shots. For shooting a small object, use the close up lens to take a shot up to 35 cm from the object. The price of Mini 25 White is Rs.8045.

Fujifilm Instax Series Mini 50S

Instax Mini 50S

Next one on our list is the Mini 50S which is a more glossy looking camera. It can be used by people who attend glamorous parties and would like to click some instant photos. It comes with a self-timer function which can be used to take group photos. If you click photos in high-performance flash mode, the camera will automatically adjust the shutter speed according to the brightness. It can contain a max of 30 films at a time. Mini 50S is available in two colors piano-white and piano-black. The price of Mini 50S Piano-Black is Rs.9147.

Fujifilm Instax Series Mini 90

Instax Mini 90

As we told you that Instax Series has a camera for everyone, the Mini 90 is for people who need more options. With the Mini 90 you get many features like the bulb and double exposure mode, macro mode, party mode, brightness control, kids mode and high-performance flash. You can rotate the dial to switch between these modes. The Mini 90 has got a more Retro look which looks quite good when you hold the camera in your hand. It can contain 10 films at a time. Mini 90 is priced at Rs.10,999.

The cameras are currently available in offline stores across the Metro Cities of India. Soon they will be available in other cities too. You can get more information for buying the product on Fujifilm website.

So the Instax camera series is designed with the motive of getting instant photos. These cameras can make instant memories and can be used on various occasions like birthday, wedding etc. Please let us know your views on the Instax camera series, and would you go for it through the comments section below.

Gallery:

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