Xiaomi’s modern smartphones have long since ceased to be just call and social media devices, becoming powerful tools for mobile creativity. Many users do not even realize that they have a camera in their pocket that can compete with some mirror models when approached correctly. The key to unlocking this potential is the ability to control shutter speed by hand, which allows you to work real wonders even in poor light.
Standard automatic mode often fails to make night shots noisy and moving objects blurry. Understanding how to set the right exposure time will give you complete control of light. In this article, we will detail the tuning process so that your photos become significantly better and more expressive.
Why you need to manually control exposure time
Smartphone automation works on the principle of "average temperature in the hospital", trying to make the frame as bright and sharp as possible in any environment. However, creative photography often requires the opposite: sometimes you need to deliberately understood the frame to create a dramatic silhouette or, conversely, to accumulate more light for the night landscape, this is where the manual shutter speed comes to the scene, allowing you to ignore the algorithms of artificial intelligence.
When you choose a fraction of a second, you decide how long the matrix will take to collect light. Short values, like 1/1000 or 1/4000, can freeze the moment, allowing you to capture splashes of water or fast running without the slightest lubrication. Long values, like 1/2, 1 second or even 30 seconds, blur the movement, turning the flow of cars into light rivers and water into a smooth silk surface.
⚠️ Note: When using shutter speeds longer 1/60 seconds strongly recommended to use a tripod or stop, otherwise shaking hands will make the frame slurred.
In addition, changing exposure time directly affects ISO sensitivity. By increasing shutter speed, you can keep the ISO at a minimum (usually 100 or 50), which ensures no digital noise and maximum detail of the image, which is especially critical for owners of smartphones with small arrays, where noise becomes noticeable even at average sensitivity values.
Search Pro mode in the camera interface Xiaomi
The interface of the Camera app in the MIUI and HyperOS shells may vary depending on the device model and firmware version. However, the logic of finding professional tools remains the same for the entire Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco ecosystem. You do not need to search for hidden menus or install third-party applications, since all the necessary tools are already built in.
To get to the desired mode, open the camera app and scroll through the bottom bar with shooting modes to the right or left until you find the “More” or the “Pro” button (sometimes denoted as Manual).In some models, such as the flagship Xiaomi 13 or 14 series, this mode can be put into a separate settings menu if it is hidden by default.
Once you activate the mode, you'll see a number of letters on the screen: AF, WB, ISO, S (or T). We're interested in the S (Shutter) parameter, which is responsible for the time the shutter opens, and clicking on this icon will open the adjustment slider.
What if the Pro mode is not on the menu?
Detailed setting of S and ISO parameters
Once you click on the S icon, you'll see a scale with fractional and integers. Fractional values (e.g., 100, 250, 500) represent fractions of a second (1/100, 1/250), and integers (1, 2, 4, 30) represent full seconds. As you move the slider, you'll see how the viewfinder's image changes in real time.
It is important to understand the connection between shutter speed and ISO. If you set a short shutter speed (e.g. 1/1000) for shooting sports, there is little light on the matrix. The camera automatically (or you manually) must raise the ISO to compensate for the lack of light, but this will add noise. Conversely, for night shooting on a tripod, set ISO 50-100 and shutter speed 2-4 seconds for a clean frame.
In professional mode, MF (Manual Focus) is also available. When shooting at long exposure, autofocus can “catch” the wrong thing, so translate the focus to the manual and direct sharpness on the peak (lighting contours) or zoom in on the screen.
☑️ Checklist before shooting on a long exposure
Table of recommended values for different scenes
So to make it easier for you to navigate the vast range of values available, we've compiled a composite table, and remember that these values are the starting points, and the outcome depends on the lighting of the particular scene and the artistic effect you want.
| Screenplay of the shooting | Recommended excerpt | ISO | Equipment required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bright sunny day | 1/1000 - 1/2000 | 50 - 100 | No. |
| Portrait in daylight | 1/250 - 1/500 | 100 - 200 | No. |
| Shooting indoors (without flash) | 1/60 - 1/100 | 400 - 800 | Preferably focus. |
| Light trails of cars (night) | 4 - 15 seconds | 50 - 100 | I'll be sure to tripod |
| Starry Sky (Milky Way) | 15-30 seconds | 1600 - 3200 | Stativ, clear sky |
Using RAW in conjunction with manual shutter speed gives maximum flexibility in subsequent processing. Unlike JPEG, the RAW file stores all the information obtained by the matrix, allowing you to pull shadows and adjust the white balance without loss of quality.
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Tip: To shoot a starry sky, use the 500 rule: divide 500 by the focal length of your lens (for a wide Xiaomi angle, it is about 12-14 mm equivalent) to get the maximum shutter speed before the plumes from the stars appear.
Photography of light trails and long exposure
One of the most spectacular things Xiaomi owners can do is take long exposure photos directly in the app, without having to glue the footage together. You'll need a dark time and a stationary shooting point. Find a traffic spot where the car headlights create bright lines.
Set your phone on a tripod, select Pro mode, and set the shutter speed S for 2, 4, or 8 seconds. The longer the shutter speed, the longer the light lines will be. Remember to lower the ISO to a minimum of 50 or 100 so that the sky stays black instead of gray, and there is no unnecessary noise.
To lower the shutter, it is better to use a timer (for example, 3 seconds) or voice control, so as not to shake the smartphone with your finger when you start exposure. If there are static objects in the frame (buildings, lampposts), they will remain sharp, while the movement of the cars will turn into abstract color flows.
⚠️ Warning: Turn on Power Saving mode or make sure the screen doesn’t go out during long shutter speeds, otherwise the phone may lock in the middle of the shooting process.
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The secret to long shutter speed on a phone is that it's completely immobile, and any vibration, even from a passing truck nearby, can ruin the shot.
Common mistakes and their solution
Beginner photographers often find that the pictures are either too dark or blurry. The most common mistake is to take off your hands at a shutter speed longer than 1/30 of a second. The microscopic tremor of a human hand inevitably leads to a "wiggle." If you don't have a tripod, put your phone against a wall, stone or use a sandbag.
Another problem is digital noise when shooting indoors, where users see a dark frame and automatically spin the ISO slider up to 3200 or 6400, and the best way to do this is to try to extend the shutter speed to 1/15 or 1/10 of a second, elbows into the body, and then increase sensitivity.
It is also worth mentioning ND-If you want to shoot flowing water in the daytime with blurring (silk effect), shutter speeds in the air. 1-2 A second in bright sun will result in a completely white frame. ND-There are no filters in phones, so during the day long shutter speeds are possible only at dusk or using external clip filters.