How to take photos at night on Xiaomi: a complete guide for the perfect shots

Night photography on Xiaomi smartphones isn't just about pressing the shutter button.The modern Redmi series models, POCO and flagship Xiaomi 13/14 They're equipped with advanced sensors and algorithms that, when used correctly, can produce images that are as good as SLR cameras, but without knowing the nuances, even top-end technology will produce blurry, noisy or overlit images.

In this guide, we’ll take you through all the steps of night photography, from smartphone preparation and mode selection to post-processing, learn how to work with manual settings, what accessories really help, and why it’s sometimes best not to use a flash, even if it seems like you can’t do without it. Special attention will be paid to the specifics of different Xiaomi models, because the capabilities of the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ Xiaomi 13 Ultra is different.

Spoiler: 90% of success in night photography depends on proper exposure and focusing -- and only 10% on post-processing. POCO X5 It will take better pictures than the flagship on the machine.

1. Preparation of the smartphone: cleanliness of the lens and camera settings

Before you go out for a night shoot, make sure your Xiaomi is ready to go, starting with the basics that many people miss:

• 🧹 Clean the lens - even microscopic dust particles or finger marks scatter light, creating glare and reducing sharpness. Use microfiber (not paper wipes!).
• 🔋 Battery charge – night shooting consumes energy 2-3 times faster due to prolonged exposure and processing%.
• 📱 Update the firmware - in new versions MIUI They often improve the nighttime algorithms. Check the Settings update. → The phone. → Updating the system.
• 📁 Free up your memory — RAW-files and serial images take up a lot of space. Delete unnecessary files or transfer them to a memory card.

Now, let's move on to the camera settings. Open the Camera app and:

1. Activate Night Mode (moon icon) – it is available on all Xiaomi models starting with the Redmi Note 8 Pro.
2. Turn on the grid (Camera settings) → Grid – it will help to align the horizon and observe the rule of thirds.
3. Turn it off. HDR in automatic mode - when shooting at night, it often spoils frames, creating unrealistic transitions of light.
4. Activate the saving in RAW (If you have it in your model, it will give you more options for post-processing.

⚠️ Note: On Xiaomi models with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor (for example, Xiaomi 13 Pro) when shooting in the film RAW Watch the temperature of the case — if the smartphone becomes hot, pause for 5-10 minutes.

2 Night shooting modes: which to choose and when

Xiaomi offers several ways to take photos in the dark, and let’s take a look at each of them, their pros and cons:

For most users, the optimal mode is "Night" in automatic mode, but with manual exposure adjustment.

1. Open the camera and select Photo mode.
2. Touch the icons 🌙 (Night - it's going yellow.
3. Click on the screen in the area where you want to measure the light (for example, on a person’s face or illuminated object).
4. Swipe up/down to adjust the exposure (brightness). For night shots, usually you need to lower it by 0.3-0.7 EV, avoid the light.

If you need more control, switch to Pro mode (More) → Pro, you can put it here manually:

• Excerpt (from) 1/4000 before 32 seconds – the longer, the more light, but the higher the risk of lubrication.
• ISO (Light sensitivity is optimal for Xiaomi, 800-3200. Above, too noisy.
• White balance – often shifted to colder tones at night (3500–4500K).

Clear the lens|Charge your smartphone >70%|Select Pro mode|Install ISO 800–1600|Extract the excerpt 1/10–2 tripod)|Turn off autofocus (if necessary)

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3. Lighting: How to use available light and avoid errors

The main problem with night photography is the lack of light, but that doesn't mean you have to turn on the flash, on the contrary: 90% of the time, a flash on a smartphone spoils the frame, creating hard shadows and knocking out colors, instead, learn to work with the available lighting.

Here are the main light sources that can be used:

• 🌆 Urban lighting -- lights, shop windows, neon signs -- they give you a diffuse light that's good for portraits.
• 🚗 Car headlights – if the shooting takes place outside, try to position the object so that the headlights fall from the side (not from the front!).
• 🕯️ The sources available are candles, flashlights, screens of other smartphones, for example, you can light up the face of a model with a Xiaomi screen, opening a white background on it.
• 🌕 Moonlight – in full moon it is bright enough for landscapes, especially if you use long exposure.

If you still have to use a flash, follow these rules:

• 💡 Never point it directly at an object – light should fall at an angle of 30-45 degrees.
• 📱 Cover the flash with a napkin or a thin cloth - this will soften the light.
• 🔄 Take multiple frames with different flash power (adjusted in Pro mode).

⚠️ Note: When shooting people with a flash at a distance of closer than 1.5 meters on Xiaomi models with dual LED-The flash (for example, Redmi Note 11 Pro)+) To avoid this, ask the model to close his eyes for a second before shooting or use an external light source.

For creatives, experiment with light painting.

1. Install the smartphone on a tripod or put on a stable surface.
2. Select Pro mode and set the shutter speed of 5-10 seconds.
3. In the dark, “draw” in the air with a flashlight or laser pointer while shooting.

💡

If you're shooting indoors, use reflected light: point a flashlight or flash at a ceiling or wall, and this will create soft, uniform lighting without sharp shadows.

4. Stabilization: How to avoid lubricated personnel

Hand shaking is the main reason for bad night photos, even microscopic movements during long exposure lead to blurring.

1.Stand or improvised support

• 📷 The ideal option is a mini-statue (e.g. Xiaomi Mi Pocket Tripod) that is lightweight and fits in your pocket.
• 🪨 In extreme cases, use improvised means: put your smartphone on a parapet, bench or lean against a tree.
• 🧲 To attach to metal surfaces (for example, railings) a magnetic ring for a smartphone will fit.

2.Timer or remote

Even tapping the screen can displace the smartphone.

• ⏱️ Use shutter delay (3 or 10 seconds) in Pro mode.
• 🎮 Connect a wireless remote (such as Xiaomi Bluetooth Remote) or use volume button headphones as a trigger.

Programme stabilization

Xiaomi models with a gyroscope (all flagships and most mid-budget models) are electronically stabilized to activate them:

1. Go to Camera Settings → Stabilization.
2. Enable the option of Improved Stabilization or Super Anti-Shake (name depends on the model).
3. In Video mode, activate HyperLapse for smooth timelapses.

⚠️ Note: On Xiaomi smartphones with a telephoto lens (for example, Xiaomi 13 Ultra) when shooting at night on zoom >5x It turns on digital zoom, which is very degraded, so you better take a shot on the main camera, and then crop it in the editor.

5. Specificity of shooting different objects at night

Night photography is not just landscapes, different objects require different approaches, and we'll look at the most popular scenarios.

🌃 Urban landscapes

• Use shutter speeds of 1-4 seconds to capture the movement of cars (light tracks).
• Close the diaphragm until f/2.0–f/2.8 (if there is manual adjustment) for greater depth of field.
• You're shooting in a format. RAW, to adjust the white balance later (city lighting often gives a yellow or green hue).

👤 Portraits of people

• Place the model at an angle of 45° to a light source (e.g. a flashlight) to avoid hard shadows.
• Use portrait mode with Night on, but turn off background blur if it looks unnatural.
• For moving objects (e.g. dancers) set ISO 3200–6400 and endurance 1/30–1/60.

🌌 Starry sky

• Take it down. RAW 15-30 seconds shutter speed (maximum for Xiaomi without root).
• Use manual focusing to infinity (move the focus slider to the right).
• Apply noise reduction in post-processing (e.g. Lightroom or Topaz Denoise).

🎆 Fireworks and fireworks

• Set the shutter speed for 2-5 seconds and ISO 100-400 (to avoid the overlight).
• Shoot in serial mode (Camera settings) → Serial shooting to avoid missing the peak moment.
• Use manual focusing on the area where the charges will explode.

💡

To shoot stars on Xiaomi, be sure to turn off autofocus and set the focus to infinity. Otherwise, the camera will constantly “catch” the focus on noise, and the frame will be blurred.

6 Post-processing: How to save night photos

Even a perfectly made night shot often requires refinement. Here are the basic steps to process in Lightroom Mobile or Snapseed:

1. Exposure correction: Raise shadow areas (Shadows) +50–70, To show you the details, reduce the lights. -20–30, if the sky or light sources are over-lit.
2. Noise reduction: In Lightroom, use the Noise Reduction slider (optimally 30–50). In Snapseed, select the Details tool → Noise suppression.
3. Color correction: Reduce temperature by -5–15 To remove the yellow from the lights, add the shade (Tint) towards the green (+5–10), if the frame is dominated by purple noise.
4. Sharpness: Use Masking in Lightroom to avoid making noise. In Snapseed, use Selective Correction to locally increase sharpness.

For quick processing directly on the smartphone suitable:

• 📱 Lightroom Mobile – the best balance of features and convenience.
• 🎨 Snapseed is free and powerful, especially for local edits.
• 🌙 NightCap Camera (only for iOS, but there are analogues on Android) – specialized for night shots.
• 🤖 Google Photos – Automatic Improvement Often Dos Better Than Manual Processing.

If you're filming in RAW, Process the file in Adobe Camera Raw or Darktable on PC – this will give you more control over noise and colors.

⚠️ Note: When processing night photos on Xiaomi, don’t use high contrast filters (like “Clarity” in Lightroom).They amplify noise and make the shot unnatural. Instead, work with curves for smooth correction.

7. Accessories for night shooting: what you really need

While Xiaomi’s smartphone is capable of a lot of things out of the box, some accessories are a huge extension of the options.

Some accessories can be replaced by improvised means:

• 🧲 Magnetic fastening – instead of a tripod, use a metal surface (such as a bridge railing) and a magnetic ring for a smartphone.
• 📦 Shoe box – cut through the lens hole and use as a light box to shoot small objects.
• 🧦 Socks or fabric - pull on the flash to scatter light.

If you are serious about night photography, consider buying an external microphone (e.g., Boya). BY-M1) — It is useful for recording sound to timelapses or video.

8 Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Even experienced photographers sometimes make mistakes in night photography, and here are the most common ones and ways to fix them:

❌ Mistake 1: Too high ISO

Many people think that the higher the ISO, But it actually leads to colored noise that's hard to remove in post-processing:

• Redmi Note 12 Pro+: ISO 800–2000
• Xiaomi 13/14: ISO 800–3200
• POCO F5 Pro: ISO 1000–2500

❌ Mistake 2: The Wrong White Balance

Automatic white balance (AWB) At night, he often makes mistakes, giving the frame a yellow or green hue:

• Manually set the temperature to 3,500–4000K town-scenes.
• Use a gray card or white sheet of paper for calibration.
• In post-processing, adjust the shade (Tint) towards green if purple noise prevails.

❌ Mistake 3: Ignoring the histogram

The histogram shows the distribution of light and shadows in the frame. If it is pressed to the left edge, the frame is underlit, the right is overlit. On Xiaomi, the histogram can be turned on in Pro mode (Settings). → histogram).

❌ Mistake 4: Shooting in JPEG instead RAW

Format RAW It saves more data, which is critical for a nighttime photograph:

• RAW takes 20–50 MB per frame (versus 3–8 MB per frame) JPEG).
• Not all Xiaomi models support all of them. RAW night mode (check in the settings).
• For processing RAW You need a powerful editor (Lightroom, Capture One).

❌ Mistake 5: Neglecting the composition

In the dark, it's easy to forget the rules of composition.

• Use lines (roads, railings, shadows) to direct your eyes.
• Place the main object according to the rule of thirds.
• Add contrast – a dark silhouette on a light background or vice versa.

💡

The most common mistake in late-night shooting on Xiaomi is using digital zoom. 2x zoom on most models (except flagships) results in loss of detail.Always shoot on the main camera and crop the frame later.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions