Thanksgiving is one of our favourite holidays! Not only do we get to give thanks and spend time with loved ones, but we also get to use our smartphones to capture Instagram-worthy turkey dinners and Kodak moments of our friends and family enjoying the feast. To help you capture the holiday, we’ve reached out to a few of our favourite online pals for their smartphone photography tips and tricks. Keeping their advice in mind, we’re sure you’ll capture the moment perfectly this #Thanksgiving.
@CarolAuCourant: I love snapping pics with my smartphone. In fact, most of my frame-worthy pictures were taken on my device using natural lighting. To capture the best possible image, I take my photos from the direction which the light falls on the subject. Afterward, I use apps like AfterLight and Camera+ to filter. The filter you choose – as well as the hue and saturation – can convey the emotion you’re trying to achieve in your photo. For scenes with widely varying contrast (bright and dark areas), High Dynamic Range (HDR) mode is a must!
@JamieKhau: I use my smartphone to capture moments on a daily basis. I love to use VSCOcam – I even take my photos from directly within the app. This is also where I do my editing, including brightening up the original photo and adding a bit of contrast. I like more of a natural look, so I usually avoid using too many filters and prefer to take my photos outside with good lighting. Fun tip – if the lighting isn’t the greatest, I make the photos black and white on Instagram before uploading. I also use my GoPro; it’s great for wide shots, water shots and of course, good old family selfies! 
@NShoreMama: I live for PicTapGo! This app allows you to lighten and brighten even the darkest of situations. You can layer the filters and create ‘recipes’ so you never forget your favourite combination of edits. Another feature I love is being able to export the photo directly to Instagram in different sizes: full, cropped or floating within a white frame. PicTapGo is quick and easy to use, which means I can post and get back to what’s important: enjoying the special moments with family and friends!
@dobbernation: Ever since Instagram introduced video functionality, I’ve been focusing my energy on how to showcase an engaging and authentic experience in 15 seconds or less. The iPhone 6 offers a slick design and plethora of tech specs which make shooting, editing and sharing your experiences easy. I like to slow down life’s fastest moments using the slo-mo feature. You can even record then select the portion you want to slow down, or change which section of your film is in slow motion at any time.
@Eschelle: If you’re in a family of #selfie lovers, having a great app to add some fun elements to your selfies really is a must for the holidays. Personally I love the Candy Camera app that is great for taking simple selfies, making you look amazing and adding a ton of fun if you feel like it with decorations, themes and stickers! It’s not only ideal for teens in your household, but also for anyone who loves a good selfie! Don’t forget to have dinner in a well-lit room. There is nothing worse than having to resort to your flash in poor lighting, as it really diminishes the picture quality.
Have a few of your own smartphone photography tips to share with us? Share them in the comments section. We look forward to seeing your mouth-watering turkey dinner shots on Instagram! Happy Thanksgiving!