5 accessories to help you get better mobile photographs

By Karan Bajaj

Mobile photography has come a long way with multiple lenses and higher megapixels, but you can always take things to the next level with the right accessories.

ET Wealth checks out the best add-ons.

• Selfie ring light

This ring light provides even coverage and is excellent for taking selfies or shooting selfie videos. You can choose from 11 brightness levels as per your requirements, plus you can also change the light temperature between white, warm yellow, or a combo of yellow + white light. It can also be used as a fill light for taking portraits or shooting /live streaming videos.

The light offers free angle adjustment and is powered by USB so you can use it with a portable power bank on the move. The light is available in various sizes ranging up to an 18-inch circle as well as a compact portable version that gets fixed on your smartphone itself. You can get one from Rs 199 onwards, depending on the size you need.

• Add-on lenses

While some smartphones now offer telephoto, wide-angle and macro lenses, these features are not available for everyone. The easiest way to get these features and more is to use add-on lenses for your smartphone. There are clip-on lenses available that give you super wide-angle, fish-eye, 20x macro lenses, 14x zoom, and so on.

You also have the option to add effects like star filter, CPL, kaleidoscope, radial, etc. Just make sure that you opt for lenses made of metal and not plastic. Prices start Rs 499 onwards.

• Gimbal

With the rise of video sharing platforms like Tiktok, more and more people have started using their smartphones for shooting videos. However, one big issue with handheld videos is of visible shake. You can choose to use a tripod, but that limits your movement. If you like to move around while shooting videos and still want excellent stabilization, you should opt for a gimbal.

There are compact foldable gimbals available from Rs 5,000 onwards that offer 3-axis stabilisation for a smooth stabilised image. Some gimbals like the DJI Osmo 3 also provide features such as active tracking, hyperlapse, sports mode, etc.

• Flexible tripod

Have you ever been in a situation where you want to take a shot using your tripod, but can't find enough space to prop it up? A solution to this problem is opting for a tripod with flexible legs. The adjustable legs can be twisted around any pole/tree to prop up at the angle of your choice— giving you a lot more freedom to shoot photos and videos from creative angles.

The best part is that its lightweight, and we recommend that you get one that has rubberised feet for superior stability on rough surfaces. Combine it with a Bluetooth shutter remote for ease of use.

• External microphone

A significant issue with smartphone videos is poor audio recording. Some phones offer features like Audio Zoom that let you focus on a point for audio recording. However, it's on limited premium phones, so for the other devices the best option is to go for an external microphone.

You can go for a lavalier microphone for as little as Rs 199, but we recommend the one from Boya that is a clip-on mic with an omnidirectional condenser mic. It takes good quality audio and connects to your phone via the 3.5mm audio jack.