Step Up Your Vacation Photos

A couple on vacation uses their phone to take a photo

We’ve collected a few great tips on how to capture the moment with Instagram-worthy photos straight from your smartphone. So, before you head to the beach this summer, use this list to brush up on your photo-taking skills. Take a look at a few of our favorites.

Balance Your Shot With Gridlines

If you’ve never heard of the “rule of thirds“, get to know it, then use your camera’s gridlines to put it to use. So, what is this rule? The rule of thirds states that breaking images down into thirds, and aligning essential elements along the gridlines will create a more balanced photo. Try lining up the subject of your photos at the four intersections of the grid. These are called power points and can make for a truly dynamic image.

Highlight a Single Subject

One of the best things about taking photos with your phone’s camera is that you have instant access to hundreds of apps and built-in editing features. You can use the editing programs available on your phone to highlight the subjects of your photo. This is much easier to do when you focus on a single subject rather than trying to capture several interests at once. When you do that you can follow the professional advice of many photographers and capitalize on negative space. How? By lining up the shot so that two-thirds of the frame is negative space and the subject is only one-third. Surprisingly, this makes the subject stand out more than if they filled the whole frame. You can highlight the subject even more with features that allow you to blur the background.

You might also like: Hearty Salad Recipes

Avoid Using Zoom and Flash

Two things that can reduce the image quality very easily are the zoom feature and the flash on mobile devices. Zooming in on subjects that are far away can make the image appear grainy and pixelated. Instead, get as close as possible without compromising your safety and then crop the image later. The flash on most smartphones causes the photo to look overexposed, alter colors, or make people look washed out. So, when possible, use natural light instead. Afterward, you can load the image into your favorite editing app and brighten the image by playing with the exposure settings.

Now that you’ve mastered the art of balancing and highlighting photos, you’ll be able to snap the perfect picture in your new or used vehicle from Bob Brady Buick GMC. Come visit us today and we’ll help you find a stylish model to share the frame with.

Disclaimer: The stock image is being used for illustrative purposes only, and it is not a direct representation of the business, recipe, or activity listed. Any person depicted in the stock image is a model.