We live in an age where we all have cameras inside our pockets. Each smartphone is well-equipped with a small camera. At any point, you can simply take out your phone and snap a picture or video. It is this wonderful technology that allows us to use photo-sharing services like Instagram to its fullest potential. You may already have this great technology sitting in your pocket, but do you actually know how it works? In this article, professional event photographers from the best photo booth in Singapore explains how your camera works and provides you with a few tips you can use to get the perfect photo.

Capturing an image

The part of the camera that allows for photo-taking is the lens. In most smartphones, the lens is placed at the back of the phone. Some smart-phones also have a front-facing camera, and so the lens could be above the phone’s screen. Lenses act like the eye of the camera, and allows light to enter. When you press the shutter button, the lens captures a snapshot of what it sees, and sends it to the phone’s gallery. It’s as simple as that!

Resolution

Some cameras allow you to change the level of detail, or resolution, of your photographs. Many phone cameras are automatically set to take photos in a lower resolution as it conserves battery life. You can always change these settings to help make your photographs even better.

Adjusting to light

Unlike our eyes, the lenses of a camera are not always responsive to the changes of light. A camera is able to control how much light is captured by adjusting the settings known as ‘Aperture’ and ‘Shutter Speed’. Aperture determines how much light enters the lens, and shutter speed determines how quickly the lens snaps a picture. Sometimes, the aperture is also called ‘exposure’. Ensuring that your environment is well lit is key to taking good pictures. That’s why so many professionals photographers – such as those working for the best instant photo booths – use studio lighting to get the photographs they want. If the environment is too dark, you can switch on the flash feature on your smartphone to have a bright light shining directly from your camera when the picture is taken. But take note: it can blind your photo’s subjects.

Noise

When the lighting is low and you increase the aperture, there might be noise in your picture. Noise refers to those colourful pixels that you see in dimly lit photographs. Some people also describe the effect as “graininess”. Sadly, noise cannot be removed when photographs are taken, as it occurs due to poor lighting conditions. It can, however, be removed manually when you edit the photo to smooth out the colours.

Conclusion

There is actually a lot that goes on when you capture a photograph. Often, beyond just the technical specifications of the camera, the environmental conditions like lighting also play a big part in helping you get the perfect shot. The next time you take out a camera, remember to adjust the settings before you take the picture! It could save you time editing the pictures afterwards.