How to take a picture of the moon on a Xiaomi phone at night: instructions with examples

Taking pictures of the moon on a smartphone at night is a task that seems impossible without professional technology. However, modern Xiaomi (including the Redmi Note 12 Pro+, Xiaomi 13 Ultra or even the budget Poco X5) can surprise the quality of moonshots with the right approach.

In this article, you will find not only basic exposure and focus settings, but also unique tricks for Xiaomi: from manual ISO control to using hidden camera modes through the engineering menu. We will also discuss what accessories (even homemade ones) will help stabilize shooting, and how to process a picture in MIUI Gallery or Lightroom Mobile to make the moon look volumetric, not flat. If your previous attempts ended in a blurred light circle, here you will learn why this happened and how to fix it.

Why the Moon is blurred or over-lit on Xiaomi

The main problem with shooting the moon on a smartphone is the automatic exposure, which "thinks" the night sky is too dark and overblowns the brightness, which turns the moon into a white spot with no details, and the background becomes noisy.

• 📱 Small matrix size (even flagship models have a sensor ~1/1.3), which is 10 times smaller than SLR cameras.
• 🌕 The lack of optical zoom (digital zoom to 100x in the Xiaomi 13 Ultra is just a snapshot with loss of quality).
• 🤖 Algorithms HDR that automatically blur the contrast between the moon and the sky.

The second enemy of clarity is hand shaking. When you shoot with zoom, even microscopic movements turn into extreme blur, and even if you use a tripod, the vibrations from tapping on the screen or autofocus can spoil the shot.

⚠️ Warning: On Xiaomi with Sony IMX707 cameras (e.g., Xiaomi 12S Ultra) when shooting the moon automatically, a false focus on the clouds can be triggered. Always switch to manual focus!

Preparation of the phone: settings Xiaomi before shooting

Before you go outside, optimize your camera and system settings:

1. Turn off HDR in the camera settings (Settings → Camera → HDR). This mode is useless for the moon and only adds noise.
2. Activate Pro (or Manual) mode, which is available even on budget Redmis. Path: Open the camera → swipe up or click More → Pro.
3. Set 48 MP resolution (if available). In Settings → Camera → Photo resolution, select the maximum value. This will reduce the noise when trimming.
4. Turn off AI Improvement (Settings → Camera → AI- Camera). Xiaomi algorithms try to guess the scene and spoil the moon.

For models with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (e.g. Xiaomi 13 Pro) additionally:

• 🔧 Enable Settings → Additional → Save RAW (if any) This will allow you to adjust the exposure without loss later.
• 📲 Set performance mode in Settings → Battery → Performance modes to Maximum. This will reduce delays when shooting.

HDR and AI- Improvements Disabled

Pro mode (manual settings) is enabled

Maximum permit is established

Battery charge > 30% (to prevent the phone from turning off in the cold)

Cleared memory (minimum 1 GB free)-->

Optimal camera settings for shooting the moon

In manual mode (Pro), set the following settings (relevant to most Xiaomi 2020-2026):

A critical nuance for Xiaomi: if your model has optical zoom (like the 5x in the Mi 11 Ultra), use it, not digital. Xiaomi's digital zoom is implemented through the Super Resolution algorithm, which adds artifacts on monochromatic surfaces (like the Moon).

To check the focus:

1. Point the camera at the moon.
2. Tap the screen to make the focus square appear.
3. Hold your finger on the screen for 2 seconds and the AE/AF Lock will appear.
4. Switch to manual focus and adjust the slider until the craters become clear.

Up to 2x (no optical zoom)

3-5x (e.g. Redmi Note 12 Pro+)

10x and more (flagship models)

I don't know.-->

Accessories for shooting the moon: what really helps

Even with perfect settings without the extra accessories, getting a clear moon is hard. Here's what really works:

• 📸 Tripod (even the cheapest for 300 ₽) Xiaomi Mi Tripod or homemade book and scotch holder, the main thing is hard fixation.
• 🔍 Teleconverter (e.g. Xiaomi Lens 2x) Increases zoom without loss of quality (as opposed to digital).
• 🎛 Remote control (or headphones with a volume button) allows you to take a picture without touching your phone.
• 🔋 Powerbank. Shooting in the cold quickly puts the battery down, and at a discharge below 20%, Xiaomi begins to limit the camera performance.

The budget alternative to a teleconverter is a binocular or a telescope. Put the Xiaomi camera lens on the eyepiece of the pipe (no lenses!) and focus manually. You can get zoom to 50x, but it takes a lot of trial frames.

⚠️ Warning: Don't use LED lights to illuminate the moon! Not only is this useless (the distance to the moon is 384,000 km), it will also spoil the exposure. If you want to light up the foreground (for example, trees against the moon background), use a red flashlight with a power of no more than 10 lumens.

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If you don’t have a tripod, put your phone on a stack of books or a window sill, and use a delay timer (3 or 10 seconds) in Pro mode to press the shooting button.

Shooting the Moon in Motion: How to Catch a Sunrise or Eclipse

The moon is moving through the sky at ~0.5° per minute, and Xiaomi will need to capture a sunrise, sunset or lunar eclipse:

1. Use a scheduling app (such as PhotoPills or Stellarium) to calculate the lunar trajectory in your area.
2. Shoot in video format (4K 30fps) with a selection of frames. Xiaomi 13 Pro for this is suitable Pro Video mode with manual settings.
3. Use serial photography (Camera settings → Serial shots) take 10 to 20 frames in a row, and then choose the clearest one.

For the lunar eclipse:

• 🌑 Increase ISO to 800–1600 (the moon is getting 10–100 times darker).
• 🔴 Use a red filter (you can put a piece of red cellophane on the lens). This will increase the contrast.
• ⏱ Shoot at intervals of 5 minutes to capture all phases.

Example of settings for the eclipse on Xiaomi 12T Pro:

Mode: Pro


ISO: 1200




Shutter speed: 1/100 sec




Focus: Manual (∞)




White balance: 4000K (for cold hue)




Format: RAW+JPEG

Image processing of the moon: from RAW to the final result

Raw images of the moon on Xiaomi almost always require processing.

1. In Lightroom Mobile or Snapseed, cut the frame so that the Moon occupies ~ 30-50% of the area, and it will hide the noise of the sky.
2. Exposure adjustment: Reduce shutter speed by 0.3-0.7 stops and increase Contrast by +20.
3. Noise reduction: In Lightroom, use the Noise Reducing Slider (but no more than 30, otherwise craters will blur).
4. Increase sharpness. Apply a field mask (Detail → Sharp → Masking) with a radius of 1.0-1.5 px.

For RAW- files (if your Xiaomi supports them):

• 📊 Use Adobe Camera Raw to fine-tune the white gray point balance (select the neutral portion of the moon).
• 🔍 Increase Clarity by +15-25 to draw craters.

Example of "before and after" processing:

📷 Source: The moon is pale, the sky is gray, craters are not visible.

✨ After treatment: The moon is bright with visible seas (dark spots) and craters, the sky is dark blue.

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The most common processing error is to over-increase contrast, which eats away at details in the shadows and makes the moon look unatural. Optimal contrast for lunar images: +15..+25.

Top-5 errors when shooting the moon on Xiaomi (and how to avoid them)

Even experienced photographers make these mistakes, see if you fall into the traps:

1. Shooting through glass (windows, eyeglass lenses) glass adds glare and reduces sharpness, so you go outside or open the window.
2. Using digital zoom >10x. All the above is just pixel stretching. Solution: take it off without zoom and trim it later.
3. Focus on the clouds: Xiaomi's autofocus often clings to clouds instead of the moon.Solution: manual focus on infinity (∞).
4. Cloudy weather, thin clouds create a matte glass effect. Solution: Check the forecast on Clear Dark Sky.
5. Ignoring the Moon phase: Full Moon is the worst time to shoot: no shadows, no craters visible. Solution: shoot 70-90% (3 days before/after the full moon).

Bonus Lifehack: If the moon is too bright and the sky is dark, double exposure:

1. Take the moon off with the settings from this article.
2. Take a picture of the sky with ISO 3200 and a shutter speed of 2-5 seconds (on a tripod!).
3. Combine the frames in Photoshop or PicsArt with Lighten overlay mode.

FAQ: Frequent questions about shooting the moon on Xiaomi