u/SanCar_red

Hello Redditors! attached photos made with the Galaxy S23 Ultra, in pro or Expert RAW mode; photos in RAW were lightly processed in Lightroom for development. I love the camera of this phone

Most of these photos were taken with the telephoto lenses (3 and 10X, my favorite lenses), with focus adjustments (manual focus, 0.0)

However, some others, the closest macros, I took with the ultra-wide-angle lens, taking advantage of its near-manual focusing capability (variable focus).

I hope you like these pictures as much as I do!

Hello Redditors! I have been preparing this post for the community for a long time; I hope you like it and it will be useful. PS: Since English is not my native language, I have translated it, so if there is something that reads strange, that is why.

ABOUT THIS COURSE

This course is aimed at anyone who owns a Samsung Galaxy phone. It was made using a Galaxy S23 Ultra and S24+, but most of the information (except for a few specific settings) applies to pretty much any Galaxy device.

You’ll be able to get value out of it no matter your current photography knowledge. We’ll start from the basics and gradually move into more advanced camera settings.

BASIC PHOTOGRAPHY FUNDAMENTALS

What is photography?

I like to think of photography as “the art and science of capturing images through the action of light on a camera sensor.”

The word “photography” comes from Greek and literally means “drawing with light” or “writing with light.” That alone tells you how important light is. No light, no photo. We’ll dive deeper into that later.

CORE ELEMENTS OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Every photo is built on a few key elements you need to understand and, with practice, control:

ISO

ISO determines how sensitive your camera sensor is to light.

Higher ISO = more light, but lower image quality. Why? Because increasing ISO introduces noise (that grainy look you sometimes see in dark photos).

Lower ISO = less light, but cleaner image with less noise.

We’ll look at practical examples later.

SHUTTER SPEED

Shutter speed (shown as “S” or “Speed”) controls how long the sensor is exposed to light. It’s measured in fractions of a second or full seconds.

Fast shutter speeds (like 1/2000s) are great for freezing motion, like sports.

Slow shutter speeds (like 10s) let in more light and can create effects like light trails.

Besides motion, shutter speed also affects brightness. The longer the sensor is exposed, the brighter the image, without reducing quality like ISO does.

APERTURE

This one is super important in traditional cameras, but not so much here since phones don’t let you change it.

Just know this: aperture is the size of the opening that lets light into the lens.

Wider aperture (small numbers like f/1.7) = more light.

Narrower aperture (big numbers) = less light.

WHITE BALANCE

White balance (WB) controls how warm or cool your image looks.

It’s measured in Kelvin:

Lower values = cooler (bluish tones)

Higher values = warmer (orange tones)

COMPOSITION

Composition is how elements are arranged in a photo. A good composition can turn a simple scene into something amazing.

Here are two key things:

Rule of thirds

Divide your frame into a 3x3 grid. Place your subject along the lines or at their intersections for a more balanced and appealing image.

Turn on the grid in your camera app: Camera app > settings icon > guide lines.

Horizon line

If the horizon is visible (like in sunsets), keep it straight. Always.

Place it on the lower third if you want to emphasize the sky, or on the upper third if you want to highlight the ground (like mountains or the sea).

Why does all this matter? Because if you understand these concepts, you can control your camera instead of relying on auto mode when it doesn’t match what you see.

CAMERA MODES

Your phone basically has two types of modes:

Automatic (Photo, Night, Portrait, Panorama)

Manual (Pro Mode and, on some devices, Expert RAW)

Auto mode does a decent job most of the time, but it won’t always match what you’re seeing or imagining. That’s where Pro Mode comes in.

PRO MODE

What is it?

Pro Mode turns your Galaxy into a manual camera, letting you control every setting. It’s perfect for experimenting and taking your photos to the next level.

When you open it, you’ll see all the settings we just talked about.

The key is learning how to combine them. This is what’s known as the “exposure triangle”: ISO, shutter speed, and aperture.

Since aperture is fixed on phones, you’ll mainly work with ISO and shutter speed.

There’s also focus. In manual mode, lower values focus closer, higher values focus farther away.

HOW TO COMBINE SETTINGS

Changing one setting affects the others. The right combination depends on the scene.

Daylight photos (lots of light):

Use the lowest ISO possible (50 or 100) to avoid noise. Then adjust shutter speed (usually something fast like 1/2000s) until the exposure looks right.

Night photos (low light):

You need to balance ISO and shutter speed.

Example:

You’re at the beach at night with very little light and no tripod. Hold your phone steady, set ISO around 1600 and shutter speed to 1/4s.

Still too dark? Think about it.

Answer: increase ISO (up to 3200) and try a slightly longer exposure like 1/2s, while keeping the phone as steady as possible.

Action shots (movement):

Use fast shutter speeds to freeze motion. The faster, the better (as long as lighting allows it).

Since fast shutter = less light, you’ll need to increase ISO to compensate.

Same idea applies to pets or kids moving around.

WHITE BALANCE IN PRACTICE

Let’s say you’re shooting a sunset, but auto mode doesn’t capture those warm tones.

Easy fix: increase white balance (7000K or higher).

You can also create silhouettes by lowering ISO and adjusting shutter speed so foreground objects (trees, buildings) go completely dark.

BASIC RULE FOR ISO AND SHUTTER SPEED

If you use a faster shutter speed, you’ll need higher ISO to compensate for less light.

If you lower ISO to reduce noise, you’ll need a slower shutter speed to let in more light.

EXPERT RAW MODE

I only recommend this if you already have some experience.

It saves photos in RAW format, which usually looks flat at first and needs editing in apps like Lightroom.

Use it if:

You already know what you’re doing

You want to edit your photos later

You’re into astrophotography

Guys, theory alone won’t do much. You need to actually go out and shoot.

Feel free to share your results after trying this out. I’d love to see what you come up with.

Below I’ll include some examples taken with different devices and settings so you can see how each parameter affects the final image.

And if you’ve got any questions or feedback, drop them in the comments. I’ll be around.

Now go shoot.