Shoot like a pro: smartphone camera setup made easy

Welcome to my latest blog, which this week visits a topic that some of you might think is unnecessary because of course you know how to set up your smartphone camera, don't you? I was on a camera club walk last week and was stopped by two separate groups of passersby who wanted me to take a photo of them with their smartphone, not mine. The first thing I asked both of them was, 'Have you got your grid lines and horizontal set up?'. I got a firm 'No!' from each of them, together with a puzzled look. After I very briefly explained what the grid lines and horizontal are and why they're useful tools for anyone taking photos, we set about finding the camera settings and toggling them to 'On'. Both of the people I helped had iPhones, not phones with which I am remotely familiar, but nevertheless I was able to show them where to look in the phone camera settings. They were both grateful for my intervention and very pleased with the better-composed and horizontal results.

I'm telling you this because it always surprises me how many people use their smartphone for taking all of their photos, and yet nobody seems to take the time and trouble to set their camera up so that it takes sharp, well-exposed, and well-composed photographs and videos.

I'm now going to run through some very simple steps to help you set up your smartphone camera; I’ll break it into first-time setup and ongoing tweaks. I think that no matter which make of smartphone or model you have, you should be able to follow the steps.

Your phone might be straight-out-the-box-new or have been with you for ages, nestled amongst the fluff and dust that also sits in your pockets, handbag or backpack. The camera lenses might be covered in fingermarks. The first thing you must do is clean your lens with a microfiber cloth or lens-safe wipe. Even a small smudge can make images look hazy.

Check for OS or camera app updates; newer firmware can improve image processing and quality.

If your smartphone isn't new, but you haven't yet set up the camera, then I recommend you look at how much storage you have left. Clean your phone to remove any unwanted data, and upload your photos to a cloud before deleting them from your device. 

Open the camera app and find settings (usually a ⚙️) and choose the highest resolution available. The higher the resolution, the more detail your photos will have. Also for most phones, a 4:3 aspect ratio gives maximum detail. The 16:9 aspect tends to crop the image. 

Now we come to the grid lines and the horizon I mentioned earlier. Turn on the grid lines. Most photographers prefer using the 3x3 grid i.e. the rule of thirds, when composing their shots. The horizontal helps you keep your images, yes you've guessed, level. No more shots of the sea with the water running out to one side! 

Next you want to know how to exercise some control of the focus and exposure or brightness of your photos. When you open your camera and are preparing to take a shot, the camera will automatically focus at a point in the middle-ground, but if, say, you want to focus on something nearer to you, all you have to do is tap your finger on that something, which will adjust the focal point. My Google Pixel 8 Pro has a menu (three horizontal lines) where I can adjust the brightness, shadows, white balance, focus, shutter speed, and ISO of my photographs. Your smartphone will probably have a similar menu somewhere in the app, you just have to find it and do a bit of experimenting.

Do you want to capture as much detail as you can in your photos? Perhaps you're not that fussed and are content to let the camera automatically save them in JPEG, which is an edited image where some of the detail has been lost. RAW format doesn't lose any of the detail, but uses a lot more storage. RAW format also allows you much more leeway when editing. Some smartphones allow you to shoot in both JPEG and RAW, which is my preference.

If your smartphone has multiple lens, for now I would set lens selection to Auto and let the camera do the work for you.

Camera shake is something that can affect even the best photographers. There are several ways to avoid it, but for now, if your phone has Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) or Electronic IS, keep it on for sharper handheld shots.

Avoid leaving the flash on auto as it is better to work with natural or ambient light, shadows and lighter areas where possible. Light from a flash tends to flatten an image.

I want to quickly mention video. Smartphones are great for capturing those precious moments when a photo just won't do. You'll probably have to switch to Video to find the video settings. Set your video options to 4K at 30fps for high quality or to 1080p at 60fps for smoother motion. Again, it's a question of playing around to see what's best for your purpose.

If your smartphone has Stabilisation, then I recommend keep it on for handheld shooting.

I want to say something about storing your photos. Every photo you take is by default stored on your device, which is fine until one day further down the line you realise that you're running out of space. How do you prevent this? I use Google Photo cloud, and this is set to automatically upload all of the photos and videos I take. I subscribe to the 2TB package, which according to Google gives me four years' storage capacity. Once a photo has been up loaded I delete it from my device - this is called Gallery - to preserve my storage. Some apps and websites will only let you share your photos with them via your Gallery, but all you have to do is download the photo, share it, then delete it from the Gallery.

I occasionally revisit my smartphone camera settings just to review them and to see if there's anything new. Under Manual Controls I came across Quick access controls, which when when activated allows you to adjust white balance, brightness, and shadows by tapping the viewfinder. This is a neat little shortcut.

You're now ready to go, taking shots where you have much more control over how your photographs are going to turn out. Having said that, a photographer friend of mine recently said that as the manufacturers have invested millions in developing izzy wizzy software so you can take great photos, why not just leave your phone on auto?! You pays your money and you takes your choice, as they say.

Ongoing best practices include regularly cleaning your lenses. To eliminate camera shake, hold your phone with both hands for stability or use a tripod or mini-stand for long exposures, night mode, or filming yourself. Take the time to make yourself familiar with your phone’s Pro/Manual mode for control over shutter speed, ISO, and white balance.

It's impossible to cover everything for every smartphone, but I hope I have made you want to explore and discover the settings in your smartphone camera that are going to help you become a better smartphone photographer.

You can follow me on Instagram and Threads at @smart_phone_photographer_53, and at Mike Young's Photography on Facebook. I have recently launched my new Words and Frames Facebook page, which I would really like you to like.

See you next time.

© Mike Young 2025.