Shoot Like a Pro: How to Take Great Ride Pics with your Phone
Whether you’re doing it for Strava or for the ’gram, here’s how to get great photos using your phone while you’re out riding.
Get the light right. Photography is almost entirely about light. Composition is important, and so is a whole bunch of other stuff they teach you at art school, but light always wins. Luckily for us cyclists, we’re often out on the roads and trails at sunrise and sunset, when the light is best. Be most alert for photo opportunities at these moments. When it’s hot and the sun is high, those opportunities tend to dry up.
Safety first! The light might be amazing, but you might be riding along a rocky singletrack… It goes without saying that you should only try and take a photo if you can safely remove one hand from the bar.
Easy access. Make sure you can reach your phone quickly when the golden moment arises. A back pocket always works, as does a cargo pocket on your bibs, or stashed in a handlebar bag. You don’t want to have to fiddle with a waterproof packet or anything like that. Your phone needs to be ready to roll.
Know your camera short cut/s. Most touch-screen phones have a short-cut swipe to open the camera from the lock screen. On an iPhone, for example, you swipe across the screen from right to left. Learn the short cut so you can do it one-handed on the move.
Buttons, baby. On most phones, you can take a photo using a button instead of tapping the screen. In general, for iPhone and Android, either of the two volume buttons will snap a pic. With your phone in one hand while you’re riding, it’s far easier to feel for a button than to have to look at the screen and tap the right spot.
Get close. Robert Capa, a famous war photographer, once said: “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” Unless you’re deliberately trying to show a tiny rider for scale in a vast landscape, pump your pedals a few times and get as close as you can.
Go wide. Give your phone’s wide-angle mode a try. The wider the field of view, the more expansive a landscape becomes – and if you’re close to your subject, this can make for a dramatic effect.
Be creative. Digital photos are free, so experiment. Try taking a photo after dark or before sunrise – it might be a blurry mess, but you might also get an interesting result. Hang your arm down low and shoot upwards, or point behind you and try capturing the peloton of wheel-suckers behind you. Flip to selfie mode, and get your own face in the shot. There are no rules except this one: don’t drop your phone!