How to make your camera quality better

How do I make my camera quality better?

Tutorial

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Tuesday September 7, 2021

By Jeff Meyer

“How do I make my camera quality better,” is a common refrain from many photographers. Most people likely use their smartphone’s camera for selfies and quick everyday snaps. But when you’re on holiday your phone might become the best travel camera you have. You might find yourself frustrated by grainy or out-of-focus images when shooting in low-light or from afar.

As manufacturers release new smartphones that are capable of ever more amazing things, it’s inevitable to have a bit of gear envy. You might think that your older or budget smartphone isn’t capable of taking nice pictures. But the reality is, when you ask yourself, ‘How do I make my camera quality better,’ there are several simple techniques you can use that are much cheaper than forking out for the latest iPhone.

Your phone may not boast the ultra high-resolution capabilities or the latest portrait mode, but there are ways of getting the very best from what you already have. Some of these will sound obvious. Others will sound familiar. And best of all, if you follow these tips and techniques for making your smartphone camera quality better, they will give you a solid grounding for making the leap into using interchangeable lens cameras.

Ways to make your smartphone camera quality better

01 Avoid digital zoom

Always avoid the digital zoom function on your phone if you can help it. Digital zoom isn’t actually a zoom. Your smartphone camera’s lens isn’t a zoom lens. Digital zoom simply means your camera is cropping into the image.

If you think of a photo in your hand. Now imagine cutting a small section of that photo and stretching it out to the same size as the original print, this is what digital zoom is doing. As a result, the images are very noisy and often soft.

It’s always better to physically move closer to your subject to the extent you can.

02 Use a tripod

We’re not suggesting a massive tripod like those on our best tripods guide. Just get yourself a mini tripod. There are plenty to choose from these days. One of our favourites is the Manfrotto Pixi.

A mini tripod fits nicely in a small bag, and they come with a smartphone mount that accommodate most phone sizes. If you’ve stopped at a landmark or beauty spot, or you’re out with your family at a nice restaurant, mounting your phone on a mini tripod adds extra stability and gives a more professional look to your image.

03 Use Pro, or manual mode

Most smartphones will have a Pro mode where you can take manual control over key exposure settings like shutter speed and ISO. Even if you know nothing about photography, it’s worth experimenting with your phone’s manual settings. Once you see how adjusting them one way or another can impact a scene you’ll remember that you have these settings at your disposal the next time you’re faced with a tricky shot.

Shooting inside a dark cathedral? You might want to increase your ISO setting. Or maybe dial in some exposure compensation. Play around with these on some test subjects and you’ll soon get a feel for what’s possible.

04 Shoot raw, or set the highest image quality

Most smartphone cameras these days will have an option to shoot raw images, or if not it will have the option to choose whether you want high or low quality JPEGs. You can usually find these settings by tapping the cog wheel icon in the top of your camera app.

Raw images are effectively digital negatives. With raw files you have a lot more flexibility in editing to make adjustments to exposure. So if you’re shooting an important image, perhaps the cover for your family’s Christmas card, it’s a good idea to shoot raw or the highest quality JPEG your camera can capture.

06 Use AE/AF Lock

Most smartphone cameras have an AE/AF lock feature, which stands for auto exposure and autofocus. This is a really handy feature for shooting in high-contrast light, or even in low-light conditions.

The process may differ depending on your phone, but essentially tap your screen to focus on your subject as you normally would. Holding your finger on this focal point you should then see an AE/AF Lock icon appear on your screen. This locks your focus and calculates the best exposure from your focal point. Now simply press the shutter button.

It’s important that once you’ve done this you don’t move or reframe your subject. If you do, you’ll need to repeat this process.

07 Set your phone to Natural colours

Most phones produce attractive colours but if you’re viewing them on the phone’s screen in its default setting, they’ll look oversaturated.

Fortunately, this is easily resolved. Simply tap the Settings icon and go into your phone’s Display settings. Here you’ll be able to enable Natural tones. Having more natural tones on your display will help you produce better exposures when using your phone’s manual settings.

08 Clean your lens

This might sound a bit obvious, but you’d hate for an otherwise perfect image to be ruined by grease smears on the lens which make it soft. We carry our phones around all day. Our fingers are all over the phone body and undoubtedly grip the lens. Before you take an important shot, give it a quick wipe. Even your shirt will do the job.

09 Use your editing tools

Don’t be afraid to use the editing tools in your phone’s camera app. Some simple tweaks can often go a long way. You might want to crop an unwanted tourist out of your image of a local landmark, for instance. Or you might want to adjust the brightness or add a filter to produce a nice effect.

It’s worth taking the time to experiment with these to see what they can do. When you edit an image and tap the save icon, your phone will also save your edited photo as a new image.

Make some simple edits in your editing app

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How to Make Your Camera Better Quality (in Smartphones)

Have you ever wondered how to make your camera better quality? Well, you have come to the right place! Today, we discuss various steps you can take to improve the camera quality of your smartphone.

Smartphone cameras can take amazing photographs nowadays. But there are a few points to consider to get the most out of your phone’s camera. Different environments need different techniques. And you must choose the best option. Luckily, we give you plenty of suggestions to try out.

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How to Make Your Camera Better Quality (in Smartphones)

Here are 11 tips to achieve the highest picture quality with your phone’s camera. Some of these points are so simple but forgotten daily. By the end of this list, you will have a good idea of how to make the most of smartphone cameras.

1. Clean Your Camera Lens for Best Image Quality

A clean camera lens can greatly improve image quality. All it takes is a simple wipe! It may sound simple, but it is easy to forget to clean your camera lens.

You can also find lens protectors to stick over your camera lens to ensure it doesn’t get scratched. But I wouldn’t recommend this. Cheap glass can worsen your image quality!

If you want to ensure you don’t damage your lens, use a microfiber cloth. Wiping a dirty lens with your clothes or other materials is the easiest option. But be careful. Rough materials can damage your lens. There is even the potential to scratch your lens!

Taking time to clean your lens is worth it. And it is best if you use a lens or glasses cleaning solution, lens cleaning wipes, or a kit.

(Adobe Stock)

2. Use Manual Controls to Maximize Camera Quality

The better you know how to use your camera, the better your photograph will be. Manual camera controls let you override the phone’s default auto mode. This ensures you get the most out of your smartphone’s camera. You can read our article about manual mode on Android phones.

The most important custom control to be aware of is the exposure slider. You can find this on your smartphone by tapping the screen in your camera app. You should see a slider that comes up that looks like a sun. Hold your finger on this icon and move it for more or less light.

Another custom control to be aware of is tapping the screen to lock focus. It is important to ensure your subject is your camera’s main point of focus. Sharpness is the key to unlocking better camera quality.

Tapping on your subject also changes the exposure. So you may need to adjust this manually.

3. Edit Photos on Your Phone for Better Photo Quality

All major smartphones have photo editing options you can apply to photos in your camera roll. Open the image you want to edit and click the Edit button on the phone’s screen. You should see a range of edits you can make to your image. The most important edits for quality are for sharpness and definition.

The Sharpness slider emphasizes the texture of the photograph. Be careful with this. It can easily ruin your photograph. Move this slider the smallest amount possible. Move it to a point where the results aren’t too noticeable in the full image. Use the Definition slider in the same way.

You can find third-party camera apps to perform editing functions. (See 7. below.) They may have filters or settings to improve photo quality automatically. But it’s best to do image editing yourself.

4. Avoid Digital Zoom to Prevent Loss of Quality

Using the zoom function on your phone is a good way to ensure nothing is distracting from your subject. But it is also the number one issue that causes horrible image quality.

The digital zoom function doesn’t function like a regular camera lens zoom. It crops the image and then scales it back up. This means you use a fraction of the camera sensor’s power. So you lose image resolution and image quality.

Instead of using digital zoom, try to get closer to your subject. This is the best way to combat the loss of quality you get from the zoom function. You can also consider buying a telephoto lens for your phone (see 6. below)

Technology has progressed quickly in smartphone cameras. There are smartphone cameras out there with amazing digital, optical, and hybrid zoom. Even though they might be great, they still crop the quality. So for the best quality possible, don’t use zoom.

5. Photograph in Good Light for Highest Image Quality

The best camera quality comes from adequate light coming through the lens. Slower shutter speeds can give all the major lines in your photograph soft edges. And a wide aperture gives you a narrow depth of field. So you may not be able to get your whole image in focus.

The more light in your environment, the higher the shutter speed and smaller the aperture can be. Get in the habit of photographing in good light. That way, you optimize the conditions in which your smartphone camera works best.

But natural light can often not be enough… especially when shooting indoors or after sunset. Your smartphone’s camera flash can combat this if you photograph your subject close-up. But this isn’t the most powerful flash.

Using a strong lamp or light is better. This is for two reasons. First, you can see exactly how the light falls on your subject’s face. Second, you can control the direction of where the light is coming from. Often a flash right by the lens can produce unflattering images.

Look around your environment to see where the brightest spots are. I suggest placing your subject there and playing with your phone camera settings.

6. Buy a Lens to Enhance Camera Quality

You can buy an attachable lens if you want to zoom but keep your camera quality as high as possible. There are lenses like the 58mm Moment Tele Lens. Or there are phone camera lens kits by Selvim or Sevenka. They clip onto your camera phone.

Instead of cropping the camera’s sensor, the lenses extend your view. You can get all kinds of different phone camera lenses. There is everything from telephoto lenses to wide angle and fish eye lenses.

One point to consider? Cheap materials can affect the quality of the photograph. It is best if you take some time to research and look at images taken with the products. There are some very expensive options. But some cheaper ones may be enough to provide you with great camera phone quality.

Having a lens for your smartphone isn’t much of an issue. These lenses are small and can fit in your pocket. It can be an ideal camera setup for travel photography. Your equipment to carry around will be minimal.

7. Get a Camera App to Optimize Camera Quality

Third-party photo editing apps are a simple option. They can give you better picture quality. The third-party apps do not add higher resolution to your phone’s camera. These apps give you further manual controls to make the most out of your phone’s camera.

Dedicated camera apps can now deal with RAW images. And many smartphone cameras support this function. The better file type you use directly impacts the picture quality. That is because some file types can compress your image. This automatically takes quality away from the original image.

The best smartphone camera app you can find is ProCamera for iOS. It is expensive. But it makes a huge difference if you use your iPhone for professional photography work. It’s perfect for influencers, vloggers, and travel photographers. Or those who share their work through social media will find it helpful.

8. Use The Rear Camera for Best Quality Pictures

As you can imagine, the back camera on smartphones is more powerful than the front camera. This makes sense, as the cameras on the rear are considerably bigger than the front camera.

It is also harder to fit a camera sensor around your screen. But the rear camera has plenty of space. It usually has a few more megapixels than the front camera.

The front camera may make certain photos easier to take. But it can be worth not using it if you want better camera quality. The front camera is ideal for a quick and easy photo if you want to take a selfie. But if you want the highest quality image of yourself, get friends or family to take the picture for you!

9. Use an HDR Setting for Top-Quality Exposure

HDR stands for “high dynamic range. ” In your phone’s camera settings, you have the option to shoot HDR photos. This will not technically improve camera quality. But it improves the clarity of your photo.

HDR settings make your camera take multiple exposures of the same image. The phone then automatically stitches the best exposures of each photo section together. This prevents you from losing information in your image’s shadows and highlights.

Apple iPhones automatically come with Smart HDR settings turned on. Smart HDR blends the best parts of separate exposures into one. You can turn this feature off in the smartphone camera settings. But I suggest keeping it on. Other HD cameras and phone apps allow you to create even more in-depth HD photos you can edit.

HDR image. © Pixabay (Pexels.com)

10. Use a Tripod for Sharpest Quality Photos

Another way to ensure your image is as sharp as possible is to invest in and use a tripod. A tripod is the only way to ensure you don’t have any camera shake. You can get small tripods for cheap, like this Sensyne 62-inch tripod.

There are tripods specifically engineered for smartphone photography. These tripods have adjustable legs. You can wrap these legs around almost anything. And they can hold your smartphone steady. Have a look at tripods like the Talk Works Flexible tripod.

Photographing with a tripod slows your shooting down. But this can also be advantageous. A tripod allows you to use the self-timer mode to photograph yourself.

It is also extremely useful when photographing at night. Night photography apps or long exposures need the camera to be as steady as possible. It results in the best-quality images.

11. Avoid Poor Quality Screenshots or Shared App Images

If you screenshot your image, the phone is taking a new photo of your photo. It will have worse quality than the image itself. So always deal with the original picture when you upload or print your photographs.

Also, be cautious about sending or receiving photos through social media or messaging apps. These apps compress your photos and reduce the quality by a huge amount. Again, make sure you are always dealing with the original photographs.

FAQs

These are the more common help requests we get with phone camera quality.

Tell me how to get better camera quality on Android

Android phones allow you to change the resolution of your photographs. Open your camera app and click on Settings in the bottom left corner. Click on Resolutions. Then make sure you have the highest possible quality selected.

Tell me how to make Samsung camera quality better

Use the tips in our article to make your Samsung camera better. And ensure you are shooting in your Samsung camera’s best quality. To do this, open up the camera app. Then click the icon with the different aspect ratios. One of these should have a megapixel (MP) value underneath it. This is the highest resolution your camera can take photos.

Tell me how to make front camera quality better.

Follow our tips that don’t involve using the highest resolution camera. Using better lighting and not zooming are the best things to remember when taking a photo. Then use editing functions after you have taken a photo to make it as sharp as possible.

Tell me how to adjust camera settings on iPhone

The iPhone camera app has a small arrow at the top of the screen. If you click this, some icons appear at the bottom of your screen. These let you change a range of photo settings. You must go into the iPhone camera settings to make more changes.

Conclusion

We hope we’ve answered the question of how to make your camera better quality. You can see that there are many easy techniques to get the best results out of your smartphone camera.

Try to use them all with your smartphone photography. Some of these actions may seem small. But sometimes, a small change can make a huge difference!

JOBY JB01550-BWW TelePod Mobile Tripod

Capture stunning photos and videos with ease using this lightweight and versatile mobile tripod.

Buy from Amazon

JOBY TelePod: Mobile Tripod for Smartphones & Cameras

Amazon

$59.95

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12 Tips for Better Smartphone Photography

April 10, 2014 A photo

Stop covering the imperfections of your photos with filters! We have selected a lot of tips to help you make your photos much better.

Smartphone cameras have come a long way in the last few years. Now, for a good picture, it’s enough to get your favorite gadget and make a couple of taps on the screen. Although, if you look at some photos on Instagram *, you can understand that even this is not possible for everyone. nine0003

In fact, there are many ways to improve the quality of photography, and if you think that you have already reached the maximum professionalism in this, then I have bad news for you. The camera of each smartphone is different from the rest, so sometimes even small changes can dramatically change the picture.

Our colleagues at Lifehacker.com polled a host of photography experts for top tips on how to improve your smartphone photography. Take a look at them, maybe tomorrow you will become a popular instamographer. nine0003

Use Light Properly

This tip applies to all phone models: the subject should be facing the light source, not the camera. The main problem with smartphone cameras is working with a small amount of light. Therefore, our main task is to give the camera the maximum amount of light. You may have to think a little about how to place the object, but you will like the result.

Wipe the lens

Silly? And here it is not. By wiping the lens before shooting, you will save yourself from photos with subtle, but unpleasant spots and dots. If you like to touch the phone with greasy hands, then this tip will come in handy. nine0003

Avoid zoom

Use physical zoom. How? It's very simple: if you need to zoom in on an object, walk up to it. That's all. As a last resort, if you cannot approach the object, you can simply crop (crop) the photo in the editor. Thus, you will achieve the same result without losing anything. And a photo taken with digital zoom will be ruined forever.

Flash

Most photographers recommend turning off the flash on your smartphone altogether and using it only as a flashlight. However, in a situation where you need to take a photo in the dark, a flash can still come in handy. Just put it in the "Auto" mode and the smartphone will decide when it needs to be turned on. nine0003

If a situation arises in which you doubt whether a flash is needed, then the best choice is to take two photographs: one with a flash, the other without, and only then figure out which one turned out better.

Get familiar with the settings

Of course, if you're a lucky iPhone owner, the only setting available to you is to turn the grid on/off. However, if you're using an Android device or a third-party app, the sheer amount of settings can be tiring. But they will have to be figured out, especially if you want to improve the quality of your photos. nine0003

Check the resolution

Most smartphones allow you to select the resolution of your photos. Needless to say, for the best quality it should be maximum?

Turn on image stabilization

When you press the button to take a photo, you move the phone a little. This also applies to breathing and various involuntary gestures, which can also blur and ruin a photo. Therefore, if you are not a sniper who knows how to control your breathing, then you should look in the settings for image stabilization and turn it on. nine0003

Adjust the white balance

In most cases, modern cameras determine the white balance themselves. And, quite well. But in low light situations, even they can mess up and turn your shot into something ugly and only good for Instagram friends*. Sometimes it takes a few seconds for the camera to determine the amount of light. For example, if you abruptly entered the room from the street or vice versa. Giving her those few seconds will reduce the chance of taking a bad photo. nine0003

Adjust exposure

Exposure determines the amount of light that enters the lens. This setting is worth fiddling with on your own, as it is highly case dependent. The greater the exposure, the more light enters the lens, and the photo becomes brighter and lighter.

Adjust color reproduction

If white balance and exposure do not give the desired results, you can try adjusting color reproduction. For example, in GIMP on a computer or in a smartphone application. nine0003

Android Apps

iOS Apps

Make your photo black and white

If all else fails, then you will have to be like the hipsters and make your photo black and white. In most cases, this filter hides major flaws in a photo and makes it more interesting.

Some smartphones support real-time filters, and you can immediately take a picture of the subject in black and white. We do not advise you to do this, as there will be no way back. nine0003

Make your photo look less mediocre with filters

We've saved this tip for last so you'll try the rest first and only use this one when absolutely necessary. Some filters really make the photo unusual and beautiful. But you don’t chew bad breath with chewing gum in the morning, do you?

Don't apply all of these tips to every shot. With a little experimentation, you'll find your style and tips that work best with your photos. If you have your own tips that we forgot about, share them in the comments! nine0003

*Activities of Meta Platforms Inc. and its social networks Facebook and Instagram are prohibited in the territory of the Russian Federation.

How to improve the quality of video from a surveillance camera

Reading time: 5 minute(s)

Technical support calls begin after the video surveillance system is installed and the camera recorded the incident. Everything would be fine, but the footage does not show any faces or numbers of cars. nine0003

The problem of how to improve the quality of video from a surveillance camera is solved in two ways. In most cases, they first try to make the settings themselves. Well, if the attempt was successful. Another option is to immediately call the service company to the tuners.

Contents of the article

1 What determines the quality of the video and can it be changed?
2 How to improve video quality from CCTV cameras?
- 2.1 Looking at the details frame by frame
- 2.2 General improvement of video recording with software

What determines video quality and can it be changed?

A typical error - the camera shows well, but nothing can be parsed in the archive. Poor quality on freeze-frames, everything is blurry - there is no sense in recording.

The effect is especially noticeable at night.

The Sutter parameter determines the period of time during which the matrix is illuminated.

In camcorders, this is the charge accumulation time. nine0003

If the illumination is insufficient, the exposure time can be increased automatically. The Sutter parameter is set in fractions of a second.

To improve the video, pay attention to the following points:

The condition of the cable products. Even minor damage to the cable leads to distortion on the screen. If one of the cores is frayed and touches metal structures, the cable from the metal and the antenna collects interference and displays it on the screen;
Supply voltage. Basically, cameras are powered from 12 V. Reducing the voltage even to 11.8 volts can cause poor quality; nine0102
Condensation inside the chamber. The water that collects inside the chamber first distorts visibility, and subsequently the equipment fails.

You can make a high-quality video recording, but you need to understand that each case is individual.

Poor video quality can be caused by aperture ratio, wire size, power, noise (graininess).

Parameters are different everywhere. To find the cause, they analyze and act on the basis of the situation.

How to improve video quality from CCTV cameras?

Looking at details frame by frame

Video analytics starts with looking at details frame by frame. The video is divided into frames using graphic editors.

There are many useful ways on the Internet to edit video frames.

Instructions for zooming, adjusting clarity using Movavi as an example:

Editing is done after launch in the "Video Editing" field. nine0102
Click on the icon in the upper left corner and upload the video for processing.

To improve the quality of the video, a color correction tool is used.

Moving the slider reveals dark frames.

Visibility becomes brighter and clearer

Noise interference is eliminated by fine tuning.

In the manual setting, the video is improved by pressing the left mouse button on the "Manual correction" button. By moving the sliders, frames are smoothed as much as possible. nine0003

Changes appear immediately in the preview window.

Select the format, quality, fps, save folder and file name before saving.

General improvement of video recording using programs

If the camera records too small a picture, you can improve the quality of video from a surveillance camera using programs, video editors and auxiliary tools. Everyone finds the best link for themselves.

Adobe Premiere
Each version improves, gains speed and performance. nine0003
Premier handles a variety of file formats. The most popular professional video editor with rich functionality. 64 bit support speeds up performance.

Access to plugin settings is opened on a rectangular icon in the Effect Controls panel.

In automatic mode, the plug-in works in the area of 128x128 pixels. It is highlighted with a square and informs about the configuration. Normal result from 70%.

If there are no configuration conditions and there is not enough space, a warning pop-up window appears. nine0003
- Need to close settings window,
- find a matching fragment with a homogeneous area
- and go back to the Neat video settings and generate an autoprofile.
- select Noise Filter Setting in the filter settings,
- click in turn clip preset—>advanced—->remove only half of weaker noise (keep more detail).
A gentle video enhancement preset is selected. Small images appear and sound interference is removed. nine0003
You can apply the S_Glow effect with a value of Brightness to further enhance the video from a CCTV camera.

Hardware works on ordinary computers, compatible with popular operating systems.

Professional converters also include Correct, Diamant, PFClean, Digital Vision, Cinecure and others.
Vegas Pro
Highly functional editor enjoys well-deserved popularity, has an unlimited number of tracks. nine0003
Unprocessed areas are saved in the exported file without recompression and loss of quality. Supports different formats, processes the format in real time.

Pre-calculation of transitions and processed sections of video material is not required by default.
Edius

Handles various video formats well. Supplied with editing and broadcasting complexes.

Works stably and quickly without special hardware and freezing on fast scrolling. nine0003
Preview is implemented better than in other editors. Has support for multi-layer mounting. On the same timeline, it can combine different formats and resolutions (video).

Supports uncompressed real-time video processing. Qualitatively improves recording from surveillance cameras.
Improving video quality by properly setting the exposure tool in automatic mode:
- In order to recognize objects, it is recommended to limit the time to 1/100 second or less, depending on the speed of objects in the observed scene.
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