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Easy smartphone tips on capturing worthy shots at the museum
Here are the tips and tricks on how to capture worthy shots when paying a visit to a museum using only your smartphone.
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Visitors to Paris' Louvre Museum take pictures of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa painting with their smartphones on Oct. 16, 2017. (Shutterstock/File)
Many museums have similar strict rules about taking photographs, no professional cameras are allowed inside.
Nevertheless, this rule doesn’t stop museum visitors from using another photography tool - their smartphones.
The use of smartphones allows visitors to capture many things, but it is evident that smartphones and professional cameras produce photographs of different quality.
As compiled by kompas.com, Aries Lukman, founder of smartphone photography community iPhonesia, breaks down the tips and tricks on how to capture worthy shots when paying a visit to a museum.
1. Observation
Aries states the first step to producing a quality photograph is by observation of the museum.
By firstly observing, visitors will gain an idea of how to take their shots, ranging from location to angles.
Aries then explains points that should be noticed during observation.
Lighting
Lighting is a key point in getting a clean shot. Unlike professional cameras, the limitation of a smartphone camera lies in lighting.
Most lighting in museums is sufficient to support a good-quality photograph, so visitors only need to adjust the quality of their smartphone cameras.
Read also: Seven tips on how to enjoy Museum Macan
Architecture
The exterior and interior of a museum usually blend with the art exhibits located inside the museum. Because of this, the architecture of a museum is just as interesting as the art itself.
Artwork
“The artwork is the main character, our face should not be the focus,” states Aries on the importance of artwork in photographs.
Interaction
Interactions between museum visitors is an interesting phenomenon to look out for when observing a museum, says Aries. It is a moment worth capturing.
2. Optimizing your smartphone’s ability
Smartphones should be used to their maximum abilities. Below are some ways to make full use of your smartphone.
Composition
Composition means arranging the location of any objects used in a photograph. Using the grid feature helps the composition process.
Focus and exposure
Playing with the focus and exposure setting can result in getting a quality shot.
“People tend to prefer the automatic way, whereas if they want to put more effort into making use of the focus and exposure setting, the results can be different,” explains Aries.
Read also: Top 10 most visited museums in the world
Wide lens
Aries suggests visitors use a wide lens for better-quality photographs.
By using a wide lens, the photographs can extend to a much larger “frame” and capture parts that are unable to be included using a normal lens.
Editing apps
Editing applications help enhance the quality of photographs. Aries suggests using Snapseed, VSCO Cam, or Lightroom.
3. Tell a story and practice
Aries says museum visitors should know what story they want to tell through their photographs.
A well thought-out story can help someone in taking a photograph. Stories help explore one’s imagination and dig into one’s creativity.
After all of the above, all one has to do is practice. (anm/kes)
