Content creators share their best tips to capture that perfect festivity shot with your iPhone

Festivals present an opportunity for family and friends to gather at a single location to celebrate the event together. Since the opportunity doesn’t come around too often in a year, you should cement those moments in creative photos and videos.

To help you with that, a bunch of content creators from Malaysia and Singapore shared some of their best tips to capture that perfect festivity shot using an iPhone. These tips can change the look and feel of your shots, but we’ll start with one tip that could potentially save you from losing that perfect photo.

Live Photos

We’ve all been there where someone blinked or had their eyes closed for some reason just as the photo is taken. Well, @cikmanggis recommends turning on Live Photos and the phone will not only save the photo you snapped but also a short video clip just before you hit the shutter button.

Now when you long press on the photo, you get to watch that video clip. But more than that, you have the option within the editor, to choose a different frame from the video clip to set as the new photo. So, if someone blinked when the photo was taken but not before, you can choose that frame instead.

Experiment with different perspectives

Here’s a tip that professional photographers use. Turn on grid lines under the camera settings to help you better frame your subjects. Besides helping you get an aligned shot, grid lines can also help with scene composition to direct the viewer’s attention.

Instead of the straightforward point-and-shoot method, you can experiment with different angles to make your photos stand out. Both @huxsterized and @moksva suggest turning your phone upside down to get a low-angle shot resulting in a more dynamic-looking photo.

Then there are flatlay shots, which are captured perpendicular to the subject to create a top-down perspective. When there is an array of food on the dining table, shooting from this angle can give a better picture of all the items.

According to @zarnizar, to get a perfect shot, it’s all about balance and alignment. You can use the straight lines on a table to help guide your framing. However, if your subject is not on a table or there are no straight lines, here is where the grid lines come in handy.

One tip from @yafiqyusman is to lower the exposure to get a cleaner look. But there are also plenty of other ways to shift the angle. Listen to @fazgaffa and get up, move around, and squat down to get a variety of angles.

Play with the camera modes

According to @moksva, different camera modes can give your photo more impact, so don’t just stick to the default shooting mode. If you’re in a tight space, @smashpop recommends switching to the ultra-wide-angle lens. On the other hand, @cikmanggis uses the ultra-wide-angle lens to capture more of the scene in a single shot.

Especially if you are shooting outdoors, where switching to the ultra-wide-angle lens can provide a sense of scale says @huxsterized.

Then there’s also portrait mode which creates a bokeh effect to inject a sense of depth into your photos. @zarnizar says this is one of the best ways to draw the viewer’s eye into the scene as most photos look better when they convey a sense of depth.

An example given by @cikmanggis is with a family portrait. @annicelyn says to take advantage of the natural light by shooting the family portrait outdoors.

A bokeh effect can also bring focus to smaller objects as pointed out by @umarnaq. Objects like ladies’ rings, their hands holding cups, sweets on the plate or a father’s watch can showcase a different story when shot in portrait mode. But don’t limit yourself to these examples. As @yaisyusman put it, “Don’t be afraid to use Portrait mode for non-portraiture photos.”

What if you don’t want to blur out the background but still want to create a sense of depth? Well, @yk says to move the subject closer to the lens.

Don’t forget about videos

iPhones come with action mode which helps keep the footage as steady as possible when it’s impossible to hold the phone steady. @fazgaffa says this mode comes in super useful when recording hyperactive children, especially when you need to run after them. Or slow things down by using slo-mo like @huxsterized to capture cooking moments like food being tossed in a pan.

Editing your work

To quote @mingasaur, “Good pictures become great pictures with a little editing.” And you can do it right on your phone.

As for videos, combining multiple clips into a single video can give a sense of progress. However, this can become length, which is why @smashpop prefers to keep each clip a couple of seconds long. Another tip from him is to start the video when the subject is already moving to create a more natural-looking feel.  

It’s also important to take note of continuity when shooting your clips to get a smoother flow. So, if you’re panning left to right, @yk says the next video should maintain the same direction as well. Finally, ensure that there is a transition from one clip to the next as it will make editing much easier. A pro tip from @yk is to roughly piece it on the spot to quickly check if everything is in order.

For editing slo-mo videos, here’s a tip from @heyrozz. Say you’re shooting a slo-mo video of satay on a charcoal grill during Hari Raya. Add background music that matches the mood, like an orchestra arrangement of a popular Hari Raya song and foley sounds of a sizzling grill just to help the viewer’s imagination.

As always, you can always use these tips as the foundation for your shot and put your own spin on it to make it yours. And these tips just don’t apply during festivities, so use them to take unique pictures in your everyday life.