Master wide-lens Android photography

This guide is brought to you by Dan Mold – a Cambridgeshire-based, prize-winning photographer and author with over 13 years of photojournalism experience. Dan is also a former Adobe-certified Photoshop guru, so you know his tips are worth trusting when it comes to getting the most out of your images.

You may have heard of wide-angle photography, but what exactly does it mean, and how can you use it to improve your photos? The camera on your Android smartphone has a zoom calculated by its focal length. The standard focal length is similar to what the human eye can see, which is generally considered to be a focal length of around 50mm on a full-frame camera. So zooming in to get closer to far-away subjects will require a larger focal length of, say, 300mm, while zooming out wider than 50mm, to 24mm, for example, will create a wider view and allow you to squeeze more of your scene into your composition.

Advancements in smartphone technology have made it possible to incorporate several different camera sensors with dedicated lenses. It’s not uncommon for the main camera on smartphones to be a standard wide angle with a wider angle of view than the human eye at around 24mm, though there’s also often another camera with an ultra wide-angle lens you can switch to for an even wider view of the world. But when and why would you need this?

Using a wider angle lets you include more of the scene, making it ideal for expansive landscapes, travel shots such as the Grand Canyon, or large interior spaces like churches or cathedrals. However, ultra wide-angle lenses can introduce barrel distortion, particularly at the edges of the frame. This can cause straight lines – like the edges of buildings – to appear curved or bowed. While this might not be an issue in open landscapes, it’s less flattering for close-up portraits, where distortion can stretch or warp facial features and limbs.

Focal length explained: wide angle vs ultra-wide angle

Focal length plays a key role in how much of a scene you can capture in a photo. On Android smartphones, changing focal length works a bit differently depending on the device, but the core principles are the same. Using a Samsung Galaxy S23 as an example, you can swipe between 0.6x, 1x and 3x zoom levels in the Camera app, or use pinch-to-zoom gestures to adjust the view manually. The 0.6x setting gives you the widest angle.

If you’re using Pro Mode, you’ll see icons marked UW, W and T at the bottom of the screen, representing Ultra-Wide, Wide-Angle and Telephoto lenses. These labels may vary slightly depending on your Android model, but most modern smartphones include a similar interface for changing focal lengths.

It’s worth noting that when you switch to the ultra-wide option, your camera may reduce image resolution and may even prevent RAW photos from being taken. This is because the main sensor – typically the one with the highest megapixel count – is dedicated to the standard wide-angle lens.

On the Galaxy S23, for example, the main 1x camera can capture 50MP images, while the ultra-wide 0.6x lens is limited to 12MP. That’s a reduction of around 76%. So you need to be certain that shooting with the ultra-wide lens is necessary for your image, or whether you could achieve the same composition with the higher resolution standard lens by “zooming with your feet” and moving back a little.

It’s not the end of the world if you shoot wider at 12MP, as this will be more than enough resolution to view well on a phone screen. However, it does hamper your ability to view your images larger, blow them up for printing or even digitally crop in to focus on a far-away subject – so it’s worth keeping in mind before you tap that ultra-wide option.

Shooting panoramas for a wider view

If you need to capture a super-wide scene but want to retain high image quality, panorama mode is a great option. Available on most Android smartphones, this feature allows you to slowly pan across the scene while the camera captures a sequence of images and automatically stitches them together into a wide panoramic photo.

Before starting your panorama, it’s best to select 1x or higher zoom to reduce barrel distortion and make image stitching more accurate. Be cautious of including anything too close to the lens during the pan, as this can lead to parallax errors or unnatural distortion in the final image.

On the Galaxy S23, you can even pan vertically – ideal for photographing tall interiors like cathedrals or grand halls. Try to pan slowly and evenly, keeping the horizon aligned with the on-screen guide. After capturing your panorama, consider cropping it into a clean aspect ratio such as 4:1 or 10:1 for a more polished final result.

Depth of field and image sharpness

Both sensor size and focal length affect how much of your scene appears in focus. Smartphone cameras use small sensors, which naturally result in a deeper depth of field – meaning more of your scene appears sharp. Wide and ultra-wide lenses amplify this effect, making them excellent for capturing crisp, detailed images throughout the frame.

This makes wide-angle lenses a go-to choice for landscapes, architecture, large group shots and documents – basically, any situation where you want everything from foreground to background to be in sharp focus.

Clip-on lens options

It is possible to get clip-on lens adapters for your smartphone and these can transform the lens that they’re attached to. I personally like the 3-in-1 clip on lenses as these come with a variety of ultra-wide and fisheye lens adapters for creative wide-angle effects, plus a third macro lens for you to experiment with close-up photography.

For Android smartphones with a dedicated ultra-wide lens, these are less effective as you already have a very good ultra-wide angle view without the need to bring an accessory with you or degrade image quality by putting additional glass in front of your lens. However, if you’re using a smartphone without an ultra-wide option then it can be a fun addition, and the fisheye lens is definitely worth playing around with as it has a totally distinct look for stills and video.

Tips and tricks

While wide-angle photography is great for travel and landscapes, there are a few things to bear in mind. Avoid getting too close to people when using ultra-wide lenses, especially for headshots – facial features can easily become distorted. For full length portraits you can get some quirky shots that distort limbs and make models look taller – as with everything in life, rules can sometimes be broken.

For shots of buildings and architecture, and even cityscapes and holiday photos, avoid tilting your camera upwards as this makes it likely that the straight lines in buildings will start to bow and lean-in towards the centre of the frame. Instead, shoot at head height or waist-level. If you need a more expansive view, try switching to your ultra-wide lens or shooting a panorama.

Finally, don’t expect a beautifully blurred background when shooting wide-angle. The deep depth of field means most of the scene will remain in focus. This makes wide angle lenses a great choice for travel shots, landscapes, architecture and group shots – as everything in your scene will likely be pin sharp with a deep depth of field. If you’re aiming to isolate your subject with a soft background, it’s better to zoom in to a longer focal length where background blur and subject separation are more pronounced.