iPhone Photography Tips: How to Shoot an Overhead Picture

By Leanne Hays Updated 10/29/2019

Some of my favorite features of the iPhone are the Camera and the Photos app, though I haven't fully utilized all their features. I'd like to learn more photography tips so I can fully utilize my smartphone to take great pictures, or at least good ones! But how to take good pictures on my iPhone when I've never been much of a photographer? Luckily Apple shares lots of photography tips and tricks, and here's one I want to pass on to you; how to take an overhead shot on your iPhone. Let's get started!

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Overhead photography is excellent for taking shots of items where you want to show maximum detail. Food photography, of course, but also snapshots of drawings or even another photo where you'd like to preserve the perspective of the original artist. Believe it or not, your first step to taking a great overhead pics is not opening the Camera app, that comes later. First, you'll need to to enable the Grid in your Camera settings:

Open the Settings app.
Scroll down and tap on Camera.
Toggle on Grid.

Now you can start thinking about the lighting for your shot. One important tip is to avoid overhead lighting as it will cast the shadow of your hand and camera into your shot.
Open the Camera app.
Get your subject into view.
Slightly move and tilt your iPhone until the two plus symbols on your display line up and turn yellow, this indicates that your iPhone is level.
It's useful to keep your elbows by your sides, and your feet braced apart for stability. Also, slowly releasing your breath before you take your photo helps prevent wiggling. Tap the shutter release button to snap your picture when you're ready.

Don't be afraid to take many photos so you have lots to choose from; you can always delete the ones that didn't work out well!

Top image credit: Bangprikphoto / Shutterstock.com

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Author Details

Leanne Hays

Leanne Hays is an SEO Content Strategist and Feature Writer at iPhone Life, and has written hundreds of in-depth how-to and troubleshooting articles. She's a former Associate Editor for iPhone Life magazine, and has written for the Iowa Source, as well as web content for education marketing. Leanne has an associate's degree in education, with a focus on curriculum development, as well as a bachelor's degree in science. She has over nine years of experience with SEO, social media management, and web development and writing. Despite years of web work, Leanne is by no means an early adapter; she's only owned a smartphone for five years, which makes her highly sympathetic to the learning curve of new iPhone owners. She enjoys making reader's lives easier and putting her education experience to work by walking them through the most practical ways to use Apple devices, step-by-step.

In off-work hours, Leanne is a mother of two, homesteader, audiobook fanatic, musician, and learning enthusiast.

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