Summertime, Summertime, Sum, Sum, Summertime . . .

5 Ways to Elevate Your Summer Photo Lifestyle

We’re out of the summer starting gate. The 1st of June makes it real. Three months, more or less, with the promise of new experiences, renewed friendships, and relief from the daily routine.

Along with that, we’re bound to take more photos. Different photos. Photos to save the summer lifestyle into the wee frigid days of winter. Here are 5 ways to take your photos up a notch or two.

Catch the lifestyle, not just the people.

We’ve all admired old photos of a family cabin. Or friends gathered around a campfire. The corner ice cream stand on a hot summer evening. The people may be familiar, but they aren’t really the point. The moment is. Those pictures move us to remember and to dream.

Someone had to take those pictures, and as you travel and visit and enjoy the summer, you can be that photographer, catching scenes that others might overlook. Life Magazine photographer Slim Aarons made a career of it, catching the ‘beautiful people’ at play in mid-century America and beyond. Your opportunities may not be as exotic, but maybe they are. Either way, photos that capture an experience have the power to transport us whenever we see them.

Be an exceptional guest photographer.

Summer is a natural backdrop for events of all kinds. Weddings, reunions, milestone birthdays, neighborhood parties, and so on. Likely there’s a host or organizer who would love some photos and video that they are too busy to take.

The key word here is “some.” Don’t shoot a phone full of images and dump them all unedited on the host. Be selective so your photos don’t become another post-event task to perform.

Also, if the host has hired a professional photographer, respect their space. Particularly at weddings. Don’t take the same photos that the pros are. Formal shots are their territory. And a sea of upraised iPhones is definitely unwanted. On the other hand, shots of kids playing under a table, a distant relative chatting after dinner, or a pop-up game of horseshoes on the lawn are moments that the pros will never get. But you can.

Night photography.

It sounds weird to feature night photography when there’s more daylight, but warm summers make for being out and about at twilight. The iPhone does a stellar job of capturing images and video in low light situations. Neon-lit street scenes and horizons at dusk add a new dimension to your photo stories.

For some creative fun, play with the Long Exposure option in Live Photo or with a specialty camera app like Slow Shutter to get light trails from passing cars or buildings.

Split second snapshots

Speaking of Live Photo, one of the least known features of the setting is that it can capture a few photos BEFORE (and after) you tap the shutter button. It’s like a get-out-of-jail card for those summer moments that passed by too quickly to catch. Fireworks, baseball, diving in the pool, lightning. With Live Photo turned on, the Camera App is constantly capturing frames in the viewer. When you tap the shutter button, it saves the 1.5 seconds BEFORE you took one and the 1.5 seconds AFTER. A 3 second sampling of the image you took. Then, in edit mode, you can see if one of those other frames is better than the one you took. Live Photo is especially handy for those group shots where where someone blinks or talks at the wrong moment. When you use Live Photo, chances are good that one of the dozen or so images it caught is blink-free. Yes, you have to take a moment to edit it, but it’s worth it.

Your world in motion

Video can expand a moment into an experience. Think transitions. Noise. Movement. Road trips become singalong/crosswords/billboard/guessing-game marathons. A flea market becomes a Moroccan street bazaar. Paddle board lessons go from uncertainty to success.

You’re making a teaser, not an epic. Short clips that you can string together to share the time, place, and emotions of the moment. Clips just long enough to understand. No fluff. Save the sunsets and group shots for your still photos.

For simplicity, keep your format consistent - shoot vertical or landscape with your iPhone - for easier assembly. If you want to post on social media, then vertical fits best. For computer or TV, choose landscape. And you don’t have to fumble for the video setting. If you just press and hold the shutter button the iPhone Camera App will switch to video capture.

The whole point is to have fun with your summer images. In the end, photography is just a way to see our world and curate our memories. Try some new techniques. Capture different things. If you only ever take pictures of people, try landscapes, or location details. Funny signs. Inspiring places. Then go back and take some time reviewing what you did.

Share with friends.

Save the ones that make you pause.

Trash the ones that didn’t.

And build a great summer’s worth of memories to enjoy next winter and beyond.