Smartphone News

It's Friday, which is when we like to share some amazing camera tricks we've learned in the past week. Today, here's a video from 5-Minute Crafts with "27 Crazy Smart Photography Tricks" that will make you laugh, shake your head or, possibly, blow your mind.

A smartphone is, in a way, the gateway drug that can lead to a lifelong addiction to photography. For millions of aspiring photographers, these multi-purpose devices are their first introduction to image-making and many smartphone users eventually get hooked on the craft.

Sony offered to loan me an Xperia 1 mobile phone for 30 days. I thought it was a mistake at first. My (first) name is pretty common; I’m not a phone guy. My last cell phone had a rotary dial and a whip antenna. But I heard that the Sony Xperia 1 had some of the most sophisticated camera features around, so I cautiously accepted and approached the product the same way I approach cameras. Here is what I found.

Sharon Stiteler was seven years old when she saw a pileated woodpecker—not in the wild, mind you, but in the pages of a Peterson Field Guide. It was enough. “I was intrigued by the idea that there was a crow-sized woodpecker out there,” she says.

It's Easy Photo Tips Friday when we like to share fun photography how-to videos that you can try out over the weekend. In the below tutorial from 5-Minute Crafts, you'll learn "13 easy photo hacks to make every picture look professional.

Astrophotography apps are almost as indispensable for shooting the night skies as your camera, lens and tripod. But which astrophotography apps are essential?

These days anyone can shoot videos with their smartphone. But can anyone stand to watch them? Too many spontaneously spawned vids shake like a belly dancer on uppers. Here are three surefire ways to hit the brakes on the shakes and improve the quality of your personal small-format movies.