Get interesting iPhone shots by shooting straight up into the rain.

You'll have to literally save this one for a rainy day. This little trick requires one of my favorite iPhone apps, Slow Shutter Cam (iTunes link), and an evening rain shower.

Make sure you set the camera to capture in "Light Trail" mode, set the Sensitivity (shutter speed) to 1 or 1/2 a second, and turn your LED flash on.

Oh and be smart... bring something to dry yourself and your phone off. Both you and it are going to get soaked.

abstractions: no.4

the feeling on the mountain reminded me of the beach as a kid... my head on the blanket, studying the sand. shot with a detached lens.

No. 203 - From a shoot in front of a brush fire.

I have to say, sunsets are harsh. High-contrast yellows, oranges, reds... for someone who tends to shoot natural light in storms or fog, it's not something i'm entirely comfortable shooting or editing. Throw in a raging brush fire? Alright, we'll adapt.

Racing the sun, we parked and sprinted up this rather steep hill with about 30 lbs of equipment. To get everything in focus and to compensate for the incredible amount of light hitting the sensor, i promptly stopped all the way down to F10. An aperture that small blows your depth of field wide open so you're sure to get some detail in both the foreground & background. It also creates a lovely star burst when you're pointed directly at the sun, which Siskel and Ebert give two thumbs up.

Additionally, with most of the light coming from behind the model, I had to use a flash fill to expose her face and the forground. Otherwise, we're just seeing a pretty silhouette.

aaaaand... CLICK.

(Fun Fact: I destroyed a brand new an air mattress and tore a foot long rip in my pant leg in the 15 minutes we were on the hill. The air mattress was used for some earlier falling shots. Did i mention it was raining burning embers?)

In post, it took a while to find the right colors and treatment for this shot. Turns out the trick was to desaturate the colors a bit, compensate for the high-contrast with some milkier tones, and fight the fiery reds with subtle blues and magentas.

Above is the end result.

Model: the amazing Kayla Varley

Use your sunglasses to give your iPhone photos some extra flare.

Here's an easy trick - just hold your sunglasses at an angle in front of your iPhone lens so that they catch the reflection of your surroundings. Not only will your iPhone look and feel stylish, it'll take an interesting photo or two.

Here are two examples using the reflections of the forest canopy above to fill in the shadows and compensate for the high-contrast sunlight breaking through the trees. The photos were then put through the Cross Process app. Easy peasy.

two souls

the result of a shoot in front of a raging brush fire, sparked by a plane crash that claimed two lives. twelve houses were destroyed as tens of thousands of acres burned over three days.

model: kayla varley (http://www.flickr.com/photos/photokayla/)

abstractions: no.3

north of mono lake

wouldn't mind this as a backyard...

How to take long-exposure photos with your iPhone

It's true, tiny pocket robots are becoming more powerful.

You'll need three things:

1. The right app - I'm currently using the Slow Shutter Cam app for iPhone. Sure there are other apps, but as of right now, this one's by far the best. Easy to use. Great design.
2. A steady phone - Highly recommend the Glif tripod mount. You can also try balancing your phone on something solid, but it might limit your ability to frame the photo, let alone tap the screen without moving it.
3. Patience - Rocks excel at this. Girlfriends being attacked by gnats do not. Though, as you'll see, she did a top notch job standing still considering the circumstances.

It may also take a bit of pride-swallowing while your dinky phone sits atop a huge tripod. But the result's probably worth it:

Now compare those to this behind-the-scenes shot, taken at normal exposure with your standard point-n-shoot...

madras, oregon

cinder cone