Owners of Xiaomi smartphones often underestimate the capabilities of the built-in camera, believing that expensive SLR equipment is necessary for professional night or art shooting. This is a deep misconception, because modern flagships and even devices of the middle segment of the Chinese brand are equipped with powerful sensors and advanced software. It is the software processing in conjunction with the “iron” that allows you to work wonders right in your pocket.
Long exposure technology opens the door to the photographer in the world of light, silky water and the sky. Long exposure is a process where the camera matrix is exposed (receiving light) for a long time, from one second to several minutes, in a normal picture, moving objects are blurred, and with the right approach, this becomes an artistic device.
In this article, we will discuss in detail how to activate the necessary modes, what ISO settings and shutter speeds to choose for specific scenes, and the need for additional equipment. You will learn why trembling hands are the main enemy of exposure and how a tripod or even a glass of water can save your frame.
What is a long exposure and why you need it
The idea is to let more light through the lens in one cycle. In low light, smartphone automation typically increases sensor sensitivity, resulting in digital noise and graininess. Expanding exposure time allows ISO to be kept at a minimum, keeping the image clean and detailed.
And it's not just at night, but by day, you can use long exposure to smooth the water surface, turn rough seas into milky mist, or remove people from the scene in busy squares. Neutral gray filters (ND) combined with long exposures allow you to take these images even in bright sun.
But the key to success is that the device is absolutely immobile, and any microscopic movement of the smartphone as it opens the shutter will lubricate the entire frame, not just the moving objects, which is why the first step to mastering the device is fixing the gadget.
- 🌌 Making images of the Milky Way and the starry sky without special equipment.
- 🚗 Drawing with light: fixing tracks from car headlights on city roads.
- 🌊 Turning chaotic waves or waterfalls into a smooth, foggy surface.
- 🏙️ Removing moving people and objects from static architectural landscapes.
⚠️ Note: When shooting with exposure more 1/30 It's almost impossible to get a sharp shot from a handheld second (OIS) Cannot handle hand tremors in a few seconds of exposure.
Equipment required for high-quality photography
The internal stabilization algorithms in Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones work great for video and short exposures, but they are powerless against the prolonged immobility required for night shooting.
The ideal solution is to use a compact tripod with a smartphone mount, and if you don't have a professional tripod, you can use any fixed supports, such as rocks, books, sandbags, or even lean the phone against the wall, pre-positioning the fabric to protect the case, the main thing is to eliminate any vibration when the shutter is lowered.
The second important aspect is descent control. Pressing your finger on the screen creates micro-oscillations that can ruin the frame. Use a self-start timer built into the camera app to minimize the risks, or plug in a Bluetooth button/headset. Many models also use voice control or the Xiaomi Wear app on the watch.
| Type of scene | Recommended excerpt | Required ISO | Equipment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cityscape at Night | 2 - 10 seconds | 50 – 100 | The state is mandatory. |
| Starry Sky (no tracks) | 15-30 seconds | 800 – 3200 | A trip, a remote location |
| Light tracks | 10 to 30 seconds | 50 – 100 | The tripod, ND-filter) |
| Water smoothing (waterfall) | 1/2 - 2 seconds | 50 – 200 | Statue, possibly ND |
Use of Night Mode (Night Mode)
The easiest way to get a long exposure shot on Xiaomi smartphones is to use the automatic Night mode. Unlike the classic long shutter mode, where the shutter is open continuously, this mode takes a series of multiple frames with different exposures and then programmatically combines them. HDR algorithms and noise reduction work magic by pulling details out of the shadows.
To activate, open the Camera app and select Night mode from the bottom menu or in the More section. In this mode setting (three stripes icon or gear), you can often find a slider for exposure duration. When you move it, you tell the camera how long to shoot. Usually, values are available from 2 to 8 seconds.
While this method is great for quick shooting, it has limitations: algorithmic processing can eat up fine details, make the sky unnaturally smooth, or leave artifacts around moving objects. For creative photography, where control of every parameter of light is important, it is better to switch to manual settings.
Set up the manual Pro mode for long shutter speed
To get real control of the process, you need to switch to Pro mode (Professional). In a standard MIUI or HyperOS camera app, it is usually located in the "More" menu, where you get full access to the control of the matrix, simulating the settings of the SLR camera.
The first thing you need to do is fix the focus, switch the focus mode to MF (Manual Focus) and set the value to infinity (mountain icon) with a slider, and if you can't shoot an object in the dark, light it up with another phone's flashlight for initial tipping, then switch to manual focus, removing the light.
The key is shutter speed (S.S.) in this mode, it is represented by a fraction or an integer of seconds. 1/50 means 1/50 of a second. To get a long shutter speed, spin the tuning wheel down the denominator (up to 1) and then toward whole seconds (2, 4, 8, 16, 32). The larger the number of seconds, the more light will hit the matrix.
In parallel with shutter speed, you need to adjust your ISO. For nighttime urban landscapes, try to keep your ISO at a minimum (50 or 100), making up for the lack of light by increasing exposure time. If you raise your ISO too high, you will see color noise in the photo. The optimal balance is selected experimentally for each scene.
- 📉 Install. ISO minimally (50-100) for maximum frame clarity.
- ⏱️ Select shutter speed S in the range of 2 to 32 seconds depending on the lighting.
- 🔒 Block the white balance (WB), So that the colors do not dance during the long exposure.
- 🎯 Use manual focusing (MF) and peak focusing (Peaking), if available.
⚠️ Note: When using a shutter speed of more than 4 seconds in Pro mode, the standard camera app can automatically apply noise cancellation after shooting. This process can take time equal to the duration of the shooting itself, blocking the operation of the phone.
☑️ Checklist before shooting in Pro-mode
Shooting the starry sky and light tracks
Shooting stars takes a different approach. The Earth rotates, so if you shut down too long, stars will turn into short tracks. To capture them as dots, use the rule of 500: divide 500 by the focal length of your lens (for the main module of a smartphone, it is about 24-26 mm), the result is the maximum shutter speed in seconds, usually 15-25 seconds.
In contrast, you need to take the longest possible time to capture light tracks from cars. Find the elevation above the road, set the phone on a tripod and set the shutter speed of 10-30 seconds. Keep the ISO at 50-100. If the frame is too bright (overlit), and you can't reduce the shutter speed (the tracks disappear), you'll need a darkener filter.
In a bright city or at sunset, even a minimal ISO 50 can be a lot for 10 seconds of exposure, in which case the image will be white. ND-For smartphones, there are clips with a set of glasses of different density that work like “sunglasses” for the lens, allowing you to do long exposure even during the day.
The Secret of Clear Sky
Problems with focus and stabilization
One of the common problems with manual adjustments is losing focus in the dark. Autofocus starts to probe without contrasting boundaries. Solution one: manual MF. The screen will show a focus scale. Point the camera at the brightest object (light, star) and smoothly move the slider until a clear image appears.
Image stabilization is the second stumbling block. In Pro mode, optical stabilization (OIS) may not work properly to compensate for non-existent movements, leading to grease. Some experts recommend gently sealing the floating lens of the camera module with a piece of paper when mounted on a hard tripod to mechanically block its progress, although modern algorithms often realize that the phone is fixed.
And the wind is also worth considering. If you're shooting in nature, even a slight breeze can rock the grass or the leaves of trees, creating a long exposure effect of "ghosts" or blurring. This can be both an artistic device and a marriage. Control the composition of the frame, eliminating strongly moving objects in the foreground, if you want to keep them clear.
- 🔍 Use the zoom function when manually focusing to fine-tune sharpness on fine details.
- 🛑 Turn off electronic stabilization (EIS) In the video settings, if shooting in hybrid modes.
- 🌬️ Consider the direction of the wind when choosing a composition for photographing vegetation.
- 🧱 Use a heavy tripod or weighting device (backpack with stones) when shooting in the wind.
Processing and saving results
Once the frame is taken, the photographer's job doesn't end. The RAW (DNG) images that support Xiaomi's Pro cameras look pale and contrasting right on the screen. That's OK. RAW stores all the information from the matrix without compression and processing, giving a huge margin for editing.
To develop these files, use mobile editors like Lightroom Mobile or Snapseed, which can pull shadows, add clarity, adjust color balance and remove noise, and noise cancellation works especially well on long shutter speed frames taken at low ISO.
Save the original files. Compression algorithms. JPEG They can destroy the fine gradients of the sky that you get from long exposures, and if you're going to print photos or upload them in high quality, the chain is going to be very good «RAW -> Editorial -> TIFF/JPEG High Quality is mandatory.
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Tip: Shoot in RAW + JPEG format. JPEG will quickly go to the social network, and RAW will remain in the archive for future high-quality processing as you master the new techniques of retouching.
Alternative applications for advanced users
The Xiaomi camera app is functional but sometimes limited. If the built-in Pro mode does not provide the necessary flexibility (for example, shutter speed is limited to 32 seconds, and you need more), you should turn to third-party software. Apps like ProCam X, Manual Camera: DSLR or Open Camera can unlock the hidden potential of the sensor.
Some applications allow you to do Bullb shooting, where the shutter is open as long as you hold your finger on the button (or up to the timer signal), which theoretically gives unlimited shutter speed. However, this is where the limitations of the sensor itself and the image processing processor (ISP) come into play, which can start generating noise with very long work.
When installing third-party cameras, be sure to give all the permissions you request. It’s also worth checking if your particular Camera2 device supports the API in full, as it depends on access to manual settings in third-party apps. On most modern Xiaomi, this feature is active by default.
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The best result is a combination of tripod, minimum ISO, manual focus and shooting in RAW format with subsequent processing.