March 05th, 2025

Simple Tips "To Do" and "Not To Do".

Tip #1  -  Don't have your subject face the sun!
Meet my grandson Brady, age 3.  Brady is the oldest child of my son Brian and his wife Sam.  I was visiting them in NC while Sam gave birth to their third son, Riley.  Three boys, age 3 and under!!

Tip #2  -  Do put the sun behind your subject, but be careful the camera doesn't make their faces too dark.
​I turned Brady around and now he isn't squinting.  The leaves are reflecting some of the sunlight back into his face, so that he is nicely lit.

This photo looks hazy because the sunlight is coming directly at my iPhone camera.  It's easy to fix by blocking the direct sunlight with a tree (or building).

Tip #3  -  Watch out for mergers.
So now Brady is in soft light (and saluting me with the Spidey hand signal).  Different than the harsh light I had him in before, but now I have a tree growing out of his head!  Mergers can be vertical like this tree or they can be horizontal like a fence or even the horizon.

Tip #4  -  Find shade.
​So handsome!!  At 3:30 in the afternoon, I found open shade (which provides flattering light) and I moved him in front of a nice dark bush, which allows Brady to stand out from the background.

Tip #5  -  Use Portrait Mode on your iPhone.
If (and this is a big if!) your subject is still, use portrait mode to take the picture.  It allows you to get the blurry background.  Friends will think you are a professional!!