40 ways to get the best out of your iPhone camera

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Updated February 2025

I love filming with my iPhone. It’s a great little camera.

The iPhone is small, so I can have it with me all the time and put it in unusual positions. It’s discreet, so people don’t pay much attention to it. And in good light, the images are really sharp and the colours are excellent.

But it’s not perfect: it’s not so good in low light or with very contrasty subjects, it’s hard to hold steady, and the built-in microphone isn’t great outdoors.

So here are some workarounds and solutions.

Getting good sound

Find somewhere quiet to film.
Point your device or microphone away from where the sound’s coming from.
Forget live sound, and create the soundtrack later with a voiceover, music and sound effects.
Plug in a directional microphone, a lavalier microphone (the Boya BY-M1 is very affordable) or a wireless mic.
For working outside, fit a furry windshield.
Plug a lavalier mic into a spare iPhone or an audio recorder in actor/presenter’s pocket, and sync the sound when you edit.

Managing light

Shoot away from the light.
Keep your lens clean to avoid flare.
If you want to film towards the light, use your finger (or a business card) to shade the lens.
If you’re using a case or rig with a thread for screw-on lenses, use it to fit a lens hood.
Lock your exposure (touch and hold on the screen, then slide up and down to adjust it) or use exposure compensation.
Get the skin tones right, they’re the most important.
Select ‘Lock White Balance’ in Camera settings, so the colour doesn’t change during a shot.
When you lock focus and exposure, you also lock white balance. For accuracy, set white balance on a folding ‘grey card’ or a sheet of black and white newsprint.
Getting flicker in artificial light? In PAL countries, choose ‘Show PAL options’ in the camera settings, and set your frame rate to 25fps.
Use portable folding reflectors to fill in the shadows.
Use a sheet of white card or a white wall as a reflector.
For full manual control, film with the free BlackMagic Camera app.

Handholding and movement

To avoid camera shake, rest your arms on a table, lean against a wall, or rest the iPhone/iPad itself on something.
Rest your upper arms against your body.
Use a camera clamp or a rig.
Mount your device on a tripod.
Turn on Action Mode on iPhone 14 and later (not SE). In good light, it lets you film smooth camera moves that look as if they were shot on a stabiliser.
Use an electronic gimbal stabiliser like the Osmo Mobile.
If it suits your subject, you could shoot in slow motion (to make camera shake less obvious) or even use a still instead.

Battery

Make sure your iPhone is charged before you start.
To maximise battery life, avoid charging it to 100% or letting it drain completely.
Use AirPlane mode to save power (and avoid interruptions) when you don’t need connectivity.
Carry an external battery pack.

Video takes up a lot of space

Don’t film in 4K or at a high frame rate if you don’t need to.
Make space by deleting any apps, photos, video or music that you definitely don’t need. You can always reinstall apps later.
Take another iPhone or iPad on location with you and AirDrop your files to it, so you can delete the originals and free up space.
Use a plug-in Lightning/USB storage module such as the SanDisk iXpand.

It’s hard to get shallow focus

Get close to the subject and make sure it’s well away from the background.
Fake a wide aperture by filming in Cinematic mode, on iPhone 13 and later models (not the SE).
Use a telephoto lens adapter.

The lens is fixed (unless you have a multi-lens phone)

Turn off video stabilisation (in alternative camera apps like BlackMagic Camera) to get the full wide-angle image.
If your iPhone can shoot 4K but your finished film will be in 1080p, you could shoot in 4K and zoom the image when you edit.
Use wide-angle or telephoto converter lenses.
Shoot stills if it suits your subject. Stills use the full wide-angle image, and they’re higher resolution so they stand up better to cropping. You can use the Ken Burns effect when you edit to apply subtle movement to them.

Learn more about my smartphone film training (for organisations in the UK and Europe).