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Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Education Field Instructional

Mobile Photography For the Dedicated Camera Photographer

Chris Gampat
No Comments
03/30/2016
2 Mins read

Last Updated on 03/30/2016 by Chris Gampat

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer SNAP! Pro iPhone case review images product photos (7 of 8)ISO 2001-60 sec at f - 2.8

Sadly, there are loads of photographers out there that don’t accept what a phone is capable of while mainstream culture embraces the art that can be created with them. Then there are the photographers who just don’t get it–and ask questions like why it’s so hard to have manual control and a fixed aperture. And why does the high ISO output suck?

A man named Evan wrote an email to me recently saying talking specifically about a letter I wrote that’s all about embracing flaws in an image. He says “It’s like you’re apologizing up front for bad quality…which you are not.” Evan states. “Show the work, warts and all. There is no need to explain away ‘flaws.'”

And he’s right: these flaws can be embraced to create works of art which still completely count as being a photo and stretch the imagination on what a proper photograph really is.

Minimal Gear

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Photojojo Iris Lens review product images (1 of 8)ISO 2001-60 sec at f - 2.5

With Mobile Photography, you don’t need a million lenses: though you can give you various ways of interacting with a scene. However, most shooters just use one lens–the one on their camera phone. Embracing the one lens one camera philosophy, you’ll keep your gear minimal and instead force yourself to create new images without getting new items.

The old adage “Keep it simple, stupid!” sticks well here.

It’s All About the Content

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer SNAP! Pro iPhone case review samples (8 of 21)ISO 251-1500 sec at f - 2.2

Mobile photography doesn’t rely on trickery for good images, instead it’s all about the content. Shooting a portrait? Your beautiful bokeh won’t be a tool you can use here: instead you’ll need to find a way to make the image visually interesting in an otherwise flat space with no immediate visual depth besides shapes and composition.

You know the old saying “F8 and be there?” Try more like f22 in terms of depth of field. But by thinking in a new way you’ll get it.

More in the Moment, Less Technical

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer SNAP! Pro iPhone case review samples (6 of 21)ISO 501-30 sec at f - 2.2

While photography with a dedicated camera can embrace the idea of capturing the moment, sometimes the technical parts of it can get in the way. With a phone, it makes it easier for everyone. To that end, that just means that you need to try harder or think in a different way.

The truth of the matter: if your work is seriously that good, it doesn’t matter how you got it. What matters is the end result.

More Artsy Fun, Less Snobbery

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer SNAP! Pro iPhone case review samples (17 of 21)ISO 251-1150 sec at f - 2.2

As stated in a previous section, mobile photography is all about the moment, fun, and embracing that you can fix or enhance something later. In some ways, it holds true to the standards of both Lomography’s culture and digital. It’s more about getting the shot and transmitting fun, emotions and freedom into the images you create.

And seriously, that’s it. Working within confines but also with some more elbow room in some situations is what mobile photography is all about. Don’t make it anymore complicated than it needs to be.

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Chris Gampat

Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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