iPhone finger auto-exposure trick

I heart my iPhone, and the built-in camera is pretty decent for little snaps, but at times I get the hankering to change the exposure a bit for fancy pants effect or just to lighten things up. Alas, there is no control for the exposure on the iPhone and it usually under-exposes backlit scenes. So here's a trick I discovered. I call it Finger Priority Auto-Exposure.

Compose your shot then slide your extra finger partially over the lens. You'll see the scene brighten up as the auto-exposure tries to compensate. When it looks about right, snap the photo and as soon as you hear the shutter click, remove your finger. Since there is a slight delay between the snap sound and the actual capture, your finger is out of the photo but the auto-exposure hasn't had time to re-adjust yet and you have a brighter photo! It might take a few tries to get the timing and brightness just right, but it works! Check it out:

normal shot without fingerlots of Finger Priority over-exposurea little less over-exposureFinger priority auto exposuremore finger priorityand more finger priority

Comments

[Lora Carr]

You are a genius! I can't wait to experiment with my iPhone. Thanks for sharing.

[anita matejka]

That's awesome ... I was just trying to use my iPhone today at the park and was not liking the exposure I was getting! I can't wait to try this! Thanks for sharing :) Those are cool pictures too!!

[Sean McCormack]

Hi Kevin,
The iPhone photo doesn't take until you remove your finger from the shutter, so you can keep your finger on it until you're ready to snap the shot, which is cool.

[Rob Schultz]

What a great "out of the box" solution to a problem that plagues all of us who use the iPhone to take snapshots.

[lauri]

Okay, that has to be the coolest tip I've heard in a long, long time! TY!