Maine’s breathtaking landscapes offer endless opportunities for stunning photographs, and the best camera is often the one you already have in your pocket: your smartphone! Forget the myth that you can’t take a bad picture here. This summer, let’s move beyond “good enough” and dive into techniques that will help you capture truly exceptional and unique images. Ready to unlock the full potential of your smartphone camera? Let’s explore how understanding focus and playing with light can transform your photography.

1. Focus like a pro: Creating depth and drama

Ever wonder how some photos have that dreamy, blurred background that makes the subject pop? That’s the power of controlling your depth of field, the area of your image that appears sharp. Your smartphone camera, while often automatic, gives you the power to manipulate this!

Look for a square (on iPhones) or a circle/square (on many Androids) that appears when you tap your screen. This is your focus control! Experiment by tapping on different parts of your scene. Notice how the square or circle adjusts, and the area around it sharpens while other areas blur.

Imagine you’re at Sebago Lake and those vibrant cattails along the shore catch your eye. Instead of letting your phone focus on the middle ground, tap directly on the cattails. Watch as they snap into sharp focus, their textures and colors becoming incredibly vivid, while the background of the lake softens into a beautiful, non-distracting blur. This simple tap transforms a nice snapshot into a captivating image with a clear subject.

Beyond the tap: Exploring portrait mode

Many newer smartphones boast a Portrait Mode, a fantastic feature that automatically creates that sought-after blurred background, making your subject stand out. While perfect for portraits of people, don’t limit its potential! Think about using Portrait Mode to emphasize the delicate details of a wildflower you find on a hike or to make your furry friend the undeniable star as they bound across a sandy beach or woodsy trail. The automatic background blur will draw the viewer’s eye directly to what matters most.

2. Chasing the light: Mastering the magic of time

Have you heard photographers talk about the golden hour and the blue hour? These aren’t just fancy terms; they refer to specific times of day when the light transforms ordinary scenes into extraordinary photographs.

The golden hours: Right after sunrise and just before sunset, the light is softer, warmer and casts beautiful, elongated shadows. This “golden glow” happens because the sunlight has to travel through more of the Earth’s atmosphere, filtering out the cooler blue wavelengths and allowing the rich reds and yellows to dominate. This creates a magical ambiance in your photos, perfect for capturing stunning sunrises and sunsets over Maine’s coastline or highlighting the textures of a weathered barn. Don’t be afraid to set that early alarm — the sunrise around 4:30 a.m. this time of year can yield truly spectacular results!

The blue hours: For a completely different mood, explore the blue hour. This occurs in the twilight periods — just before sunrise and after the sun has dipped below the horizon. The sky takes on a soft, ethereal blue hue, lending a sense of serenity to your images. Many photographers find this light particularly captivating for landscapes and cityscapes. Embrace the stillness of these moments to create unique and atmospheric photographs.

Don’t forget the night: Think the photographic fun ends when the sun goes down? Think again! Modern smartphone cameras often have impressive night-mode features. While you’ll need to keep your phone steady for longer exposures, this mode can reveal details you wouldn’t normally see in the dark. Experiment in your own backyard or along a dimly lit path. Look for objects that might reflect the flash — pale-colored flowers, for instance, can look strikingly beautiful against the dark surroundings, their colors popping with unexpected vibrancy.

The more you experiment with your smartphone’s focus and the way light interacts with your subjects at different times of day, the more you’ll move beyond simply documenting moments. You’ll start to craft images with intention, capturing the unique atmosphere and beauty of Maine in ways you never thought possible. So get out there, play with your phone’s camera and, most importantly, have fun discovering your own photographic vision!

(For those wanting to delve deeper, BoomerTECH Adventures offers fantastic courses on smartphone photography and editing, especially for iPhones! Check them out at boomertechadventures.com/courses/.)

A bit of transparency here: We at BoomerTECH Adventures have been experimenting with AI. I had Google Gemini revise my original content to make it more appealing to folks with smartphone cameras who want to use their camera more effectively. Although the content is mine, I do think Gemini made the column more appealing to read with changes in vocabulary and emphasis. It also added some original material that I Googled to make sure I was not plagiarizing. The process also provided me with some approaches to incorporate into future writings — a mini-course in creative writing. As a retired teacher, going through this process makes me wonder how AI would impact my teaching if I was still in the classroom!

BoomerTECH Adventures (boomertechadventures.com) helps boomers and older adults navigate the digital world with confidence and competence. Active boomers themselves, they use their backgrounds as Maine teachers to support individuals and groups with online courses through Maine Adult Education (tinyurl.com/BTAclasses) articles, videos and presentations to organizations upon request.