first published July 22, 2022

Vacation is a time to get excited about photography, and the endless opportunities that await. But what to do when vacation plans preclude the packing of bulky camera equipment, and when time is (rightly) dedicated to family?

The Challenge

This vacation I set myself a challenge, a) using my iPhone as a primary camera, and b) taking pictures only during regular family activities (ie no sneaking off on my own!).

I have to say that the challenge itself caused a change in mindset. In the past I would never have considered putting effort into shots unless they were being taken on my DSLR. With a goal of obtaining quality images using the phone in my pocket, right from the outset I found myself subconsciously seeking opportunities, giving the same consideration to composition, lighting etc as I would with my DSLR.

Results

The gallery below highlights the images I am most pleased with. I will leave it up to the viewer to decide the level of success, but I will say that each shot was carefully considered and composed etc as I would when using my DSLR, and processed using similar techniques.

Note that some images enlisted the use of the Camera Pro app to allow longer exposure/camera movement.

The gridline display of the same application proves helpful when aligning compositions. This is especially helpful when capturing multiple exposure images as required for the likes of the fountain and carousel images.

Conclusions

Although an image captured on a mobile device can never match that taken on a dedicated camera, with decent lighting the quality can be more than acceptable for the majority of uses. Smartphones are also a handy tool for learning techniques, or to capture sample shots ahead of a later visit.

The old adage rings true - the best camera is the one you have with you. The availability of a ‘real camera’ should not restrict photo opportunities, all that is needed is vision and the phone in your pocket.

iPhone Gallery

All vacation images taken handheld on iPhone 12. Camera Pro app used for long and multiple exposure images.

As always, I’d be happy to hear your comments, and would love to see some of your own smartphone creations.