Easy mobile photography tips for Holi

Try these simple tips to take great photos from your smartphone on Holi.

Simple to use photography tips for Holi festival. (Jayanta Ghosh)

Holi, the festival of colours and joy is here. As a photography enthusiast, Holi is one festival I have always looked forward to. Of course clicking photos amid raining water and colours is challenging, but it's a lot of fun as well.

Among the various reasons why I prefer taking pictures on Holi is that it (playing colours) is celebrated in the day time. This means you have abundant natural light to capture brighter and vibrant images which can be shot on your smartphone camera too, which otherwise struggles in low light conditions.

Fortunately, most of the smartphones come with pretty good camera capabilities. For instance, phones such as Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro and Mi A1 come with dual-camera setup and cost under ₹15,000.

Also, a lot of phones come with water and dust resistance capabilities, or are at least splash proof. For instance, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Apple iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X come with IP68 certification, the top rating for water and dust resistance.

If you're planning to celebrate Holi with your friends and want to capture some beautiful moments, here are some easy mobile photography tips.

You don't need to be a Pro

Smartphone cameras have evolved and become quite capable today allowing almost anyone to shoot great pictures.

"A few basic tips that I always share with people when it comes to photography - subject should be in focus, keep the horizon straight, have a clean/less distracting background and most important, have a human element," said Kunal Khullar, a senior journalist at a well-known media publishing house. He is also a post-graduate in Photojournalism.

"Before you go out to shoot, I advice that you carry a waterproof phone and if you don't own one, you can get a smartphone waterproof pouches online. Alternatively you can just wrap plastic around your handset," he added.

Portrait Mode

The dual camera setup is one of the best additions to modern smartphones in the last couple of years. The technology mimics the DSLR-like shallow depth-of-field effect, rendering the subject in sharp focus while the background is blurred.

This is something you can find on iPhone X, iPhone 8 Plus, LG V30+, Samsung Galaxy Note 8, OnePlus 5T, Moto X4 and even budget phones such as Redmi Note 5 Pro and Mi A1.

Some phones come with software-based Portrait modes to replicate the experience. iPhone X and iPhone 8 Plus in particular have some really impressive modes for capturing portraits. These phones come with dedicated Portrait Lighting which includes filters such as Studio Light, Contour Light, Stage Light, or Stage Light Mono.

A portrait shot. (Jayanta Ghosh)

A portrait shot. (Jayanta Ghosh)

Bird's eye view

One of the best photos of Holi celebrations you might have seen is the bird's eye view. It's a popular photography term for a photo taken from the above. These photos aren't straight down shots but at a slightly slanted angle, say 40-degrees. This frame gives you a larger frame and if cropped correctly, it can give excellent results.

Candid shots

The burst mode helps you take multiple shots of candid moments on your smartphone. One of the easiest ways to take a candid shot is to just keep shooting photos without making the person in the frame get conscious about getting clicked. Focus on mood and moments rather people while taking a candid photo.

(Jayanta Ghosh)

(Jayanta Ghosh)

Timer

Set your phone camera's timer to make the most of the rear camera which usually has higher resolution. The rear camera timer can be a good substitute to the selfies for taking a group photo.

Slow Motion

For dramatic effects, slow motion videos are the best. The slow motion mode will give you some excellent effects on moments such as water splashes and facial expressions and more.

Editing apps

Even though you may have taken average photos, you can still make them better with photo editing applications. Or you can just add more dramatic effects to them.

One of my favourite photo editing applications is Snapseed. There are tonnes of modes, filters and editing tools that let you customise the photo. VSCO is another popular app you might want to give it a try. Do try the fade effect to your photos to add more aesthetic appeal. iOS users should try the Enlight application which has a user-friendly interface and works fluidly.