A lunar eclipse is coming, and it’s going to be big. The so-called blood moon on Tuesday night will see the moon lit up in a reddish hue during a total lunar eclipse. While it will be a sight to behold, it will also be a sight to photograph. Thankfully, phone cameras were found indeed it’s great over the years – and there’s no reason you can’t take a solid photo with a modern phone.
But capturing something like a lunar eclipse involves more than just opening the camera app and pressing the shutter button — at least if you want reasonably high-quality photos. Here are some tips and tricks to help you take the best lunar eclipse photos you can, in general, and with your specific phone.
General advice for taking photos of a lunar eclipse with your phone
There are a few things you can do to make sure you capture great photos of the lunar eclipse with your phone no matter what model you have. Some things are very simple – clean your camera lens, and if your phone has one, shoot in RAW mode. This allows the device to capture more data than conventional shooting methods. That means you can easily edit photos down the line without losing any image quality. If you are comfortable with the camera settings and post-processing, it is worth using the RAW mode.
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Some things are a little easier but still have to be done to get the best picture. Perhaps the most important thing you can do when photographing a lunar eclipse is to use a tripod, or at the very least, place your phone on a stable surface of some kind. Even the slightest movement and shake will distort the image, making it blurry, especially in the low light conditions you will be shooting in. The movement and motion is so distracting that you should even put your phone in a timed capture mode that allows you to take your hands off the phone, and stop moving, before the picture is taken.
The other things you can do may depend on your phone model a bit. For example, it’s okay to use a telephoto lens if your phone has one built in, but don’t use digital zoom because it will degrade the quality of the image. Instead, consider using a telephoto lens attachment on your phone, which will allow you to zoom further in and out, ensuring you get the best possible shot without losing detail. Additionally, make sure that when you take the picture, you focus on the moon itself. On most phones, you’ll be able to do this with a simple tap on the screen. You’ll want to focus on the edge of the moon, which will direct the camera to a cool line to focus on.
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Finally, you’ll want to experiment with the exposure settings, making sure the image isn’t too dark and that the moon isn’t so bright that it can wash out any color.
Some of these tricks will be slightly different depending on your phone model – so here are some specific tips for taking the best lunar eclipse photos with your phone.
Taking photos of the lunar eclipse with an iPhone
If you have an iPhone, you have a number of great tools available to you for taking great photos. That’s especially true if you have a “Pro” phone, which has a phone camera that you can and should use to take photos of the lunar eclipse.
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On an iPhone, it’s very easy to take photos of a lunar eclipse. If you have an iPhone 12 Pro or a later Pro model, you can switch to shooting in Apple’s ProRAW format by going to Settings > Camera > Formats. Make sure ProRAW is open. Depending on your iPhone model, you will be able to choose a solution. Then, when you’re in the camera app, just click the “RAW,” “ProRAW” or “ProRAW Max” button in the upper right corner.
Some settings are easy to use. On the iPhone, just click on the area you want to focus on, and to adjust the exposure, tap on that area and slide the little sun icon up or down. It’s worth experimenting a bit to find the right settings and the best picture.
Taking photos of the lunar eclipse with a Samsung phone
Samsung phones, especially high-end models like the Galaxy S25 Ultra, come with powerful camera features that can help you get a good picture of the lunar eclipse. If your Samsung phone has a telephoto lens, be sure to use it rather than relying on digital zoom, which can reduce image quality. Samsung’s top phones these days have two telephoto cameras. Use the one with the longest zoom when photographing the lunar eclipse. On the S25 Ultra, this is a 5x zoom phone camera.
If you want to keep things simple, open the Samsung camera app, press the “5x” button to switch to the telephoto camera, and make sure the moon is in focus – and take a photo.
If you want more control, however, you may want to use Samsung Expert RAW. To enable it, open the Camera app, tap “More,” and select “RAW Expert.” When you do this for the first time, the device will install the Raw Professional app, and it will appear as a separate app on your phone, but you’ll still be able to open that app from the main camera app. In Professional RAW, you can try a slower shutter speed and a lower ISO, which can make shots brighter and more detailed without overexposing.
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Google Pixel phones are known for their excellent computer photography, and can handle eclipse photos well with the right settings. If you have the latest Pixel model, Night Vision Mode will be your best friend. Open the Camera app, swipe to Night Vision, and enter your frame.
Pixel phones are actually better than basic Night Sight, with an Astrophotography mode – which should work automatically when the phone is fixed on a tripod, and Night Vision is turned on. You can also enable it manually if it doesn’t seem to be working by going to Night Vision mode (one of the main camera modes), then tapping the little moon icon in the bottom right. This mode will capture a long exposure image with more detail and color. Just make sure to keep your phone completely still while taking the photo, as even the slightest movement can cause blur.
To perfect the shot, tap on the moon to lock focus and adjust the exposure slider to avoid overexposure. You can also enable RAW capture by pressing the camera settings button at the bottom left of the screen, by clicking on the Pro tab, and switching to RAW. Enabling it will allow better processing behind the line.
Other phones
Many other Android phones offer excellent tools for capturing lunar eclipses. Most modern Android devices come with a dedicated Night Mode, which you can access by swiping in the camera modes or selecting it from the menu. Night Mode helps improve low-light shots by increasing exposure time and reducing noise. Thankfully, on most phones, any built-in Night Mode will automatically activate when low light is detected.
Most Android phones also have a RAW capture mode, which allows you to capture large amounts of image data and edit your images without sacrificing quality. You can usually enable RAW mode in the camera settings under the ‘Advanced’ or ‘Pro’ section. If your phone features Pro Mode, it’s worth experimenting with manual settings like ISO and shutter speed to tune your eclipse photos for the best results.
Even without RAW modes, however, simple rules apply – use a tripod, make sure the phone is properly focused on the moon, and set the correct exposure.
