Is a Phone Camera Enough? A Davao Dad Answers Beginner Photography Questions

Last night, the youngest was standing there holding a banana cue in each hand, grinning with sugar smeared all around the mouth, and by the time I pulled out my phone to capture the moment, it was already too late. The kid had run off, and all that was left in my gallery was a blurry shot from behind. This kind of thing happens three or four times a day!

Whenever people around me say, "Why are you always taking pictures with your phone?" I tell them I'm honestly still learning. I don't have any professional gear — all I've got is one smartphone. Still, after more than three years of documenting daily life with three kids, I've picked up answers to some questions along the way, so today I'm putting them all together.

"My kid's photos always come out blurry"

This is the question I get the most. Honestly, half of mine still come out blurry too! Kids never stay still. The method I use is simple: keep burst mode on as a habit. You know, that feature where you hold the shutter button down and it takes a rapid series of shots. I consider it a win if I get one or two keepers out of ten. If you aim for one perfect shot, you'll miss the timing entirely.

And getting down to your child's eye level makes a bigger difference than you'd think. If you stand and shoot looking down, all you get is a big head, but if you kneel down, the facial expressions come to life. It does hurt the knees a bit, though. The concrete floors of Davao show no mercy!

"How do you make street food look good in photos?"

Every time I go to the Roxas Night Market, I want to capture the smoke rising from the grill, but the results always come out dark and yellowish. Obviously — it's nighttime! What I figured out is that if you shoot right under the food stall's light bulb, warm light falls naturally on the food. Turn off the flash. If you use the flash, it only highlights the greasy shine and kills the atmosphere completely.

I don't overthink composition. Look down at the plate from a slight angle, and place a sauce cup or a spoon along one edge — that becomes the focal point. Last week, when I was shooting a bowl of sinuglaw, I just placed a calamansi half beside it and it looked so much better.

"Every day looks the same — what is there to photograph?"

This is the question I've asked myself the most! Home, the yard, the kitchen, the neighborhood sari-sari store — the backdrop is always the same, so it can feel boring. But when the light is different, the same place changes. Around 7 a.m., there's a moment when the light coming through the window casts stripes across the rice bowls on the dining table. That's my favorite timing. Whether a kid is sitting there holding a spoon or the cat has climbed onto the table, everything looks good under that light.

Just thinking once, "Where is the light today?" — that's all there is to it. It's not some grand technique.

How much editing should you do?

I bump up the brightness with the phone's built-in editor, add a touch of warm tone, and call it done. That's it! I used to mess around with all sorts of filters, but after my kid's skin turned some weird colour and I got an earful from my wife, I keep edits to a minimum now. Occasionally I use the Snapseed app for partial brightness adjustments. Buying a 200-peso tripod and setting a timer for family group photos has also been pretty useful.

I've come to feel that even without an expensive camera or expert knowledge, the desire to capture the moments in front of you is enough. Today, I got water splashed on my phone trying to photograph the oldest throwing water balloons in the yard — but that photo turned out pretty good!

Next time, I'll talk about shooting video. Until then, just grab your phone and get outside!

Stay golden, friends!