New Pokémon Snap: tips for perfect shots

New Pokémon Snap

It took twenty years, but in the end Nintendo decided to resume a spin-off that ... should never have even come out, as we told you in ours a few weeks ago. New Pokémon Snap is certainly a divisive title, especially since today, compared to 1999, the photo mode is much more widespread in video games. However, the title developed by Bandai Namco has its own why. As we explained in our review, it is a product designed for those looking for a few minutes of relaxation and escapism. Obviously you have to be a pokémon fan, and in that case the colorful Lentil region offers many opportunities and views to photograph. Professor Speculux, however, will rigorously evaluate your every shot, so here are some tips for getting perfect shots.

The Score

Don't underestimate Professor Speculux's advice. At the beginning of the game, in the tutorial phase, the good professor and his assistant Rita will explain how to use the Camera Search and what are the parameters that you will have to keep an eye on every time you take a photo: they will be the same that Speculux will evaluate for each photo at the end of the tour. Make sure you always center the subject of your photo, using the on-screen interface, and try to shoot it while it is facing the lens. Its size matters, so use the zoom to capture it better, especially if there are other pokémon in the frame: even those will be worth points, but the important thing is that they don't steal the space from the real protagonist of the shot. Try to shoot a beautiful scenery in the background and take the picture with good lighting: of course, at night it will be difficult in some cases, but that's also why Lumina Spheres exist.

Poses and tools

New Pokémon Snap: Dodrio loves fluffy apples. Professor Speculux will assign a score to your photos which will be used to level up the path where you took them. As you unlock more and more paths and levels, the professor will discover the secrets of Lentil and invent new ways and tools to help you in your work as a photographer. You will start with the Radar, a gadget that will point out the points of interest around you. Fluffy Apples are a delicious fruit of Lentil that many pokémon adore: throw them, and they will rush to eat them. A photo of a pokémon having a snack is worth a lot of points; one of the parameters that Speculux rewards the most, in fact, is the pose. You will have to try to photograph the pokémon while they behave in a particular way, perhaps while they eat, fight or play, and the tools at your disposal will do just that. The Radar, for example, emits an impulse to which some pokémon will react, and in this way you could make those who are hiding underground come to the surface.

New Pokémon Snap: Dancing Bellossom. Not all pokémon are greedy for apples, but the fruits do not pass through the monsters: it is a bit of a boor, but if you throw apples at the head of the pokémon, they will often turn towards you, and you can take the opportunity to take a photos while they are facing in your direction. Apples will also allow you to wake them up when they are asleep, and in some cases they will even make them fight or play. The Lumina Spheres do not just make pokémon shine: sometimes the monsters will take special poses or behave in a particular way precisely because they are under the effect of the Lumina phenomenon. Try using them on the Crystals in the paths to affect the whole scenario. And the Melody will make some pokémon dance, giving you the chance to take really great photos. Each gadget has multiple functions that change depending on the pokémon and the paths in which you use them, so ...

... experiment!

New Pokémon Snap: the NEO-UNO. Most of the paths exist in multiple versions - for example, day and night - and have multiple levels, in which different pokémon appear in different circumstances. If you really want to squeeze New Pokémon Snap to the max and discover all that Lentil's pokémon can do, you will have to experiment with gadgets and play and replay the courses many times. Combine the various gadgets: you could throw a soft Apple to bring a monster closer and then play the Melody, who knows if it doesn't start dancing. Many times the scenario hides small secrets, so throw Apples and Lentil Spheres in the suspicious points, maybe something strange could happen ... for example, the NEO-UNO could deviate towards a new area of ​​the path, in which pokémon of which you did not suspect existence. Keep your eyes peeled and try to interact with the pokémon in any way possible. Of course, there are so many potential variables, and it could be very difficult to find out what circumstances you need to take a rare three or four star photo, but that's also why Mini Challenges exist.

The Mini Challenges

New Pokémon Snap: Opuleo's coral reef. At some point in the game, but practically at the beginning, you will unlock a page full of Minisfides. We could also call them suggestions, if we wanted to, because they are above all this. In practice, Speculux, Rita and the others will ask you for photos that portray the pokémon in particular circumstances: by carefully reading these little tips, which are always accompanied by small photos, and especially if you know Nintendo monsters well, you will be able to deduce where and at what time you should have the Research Chamber ready.

New Pokémon Snap: A Wailord emerges to the surface. In most cases, taking these photos will be fairly straightforward. For example, in one of the first Mini Challenges you will have to portray Quagsire diving, and you know that there are a couple of Quagsire at the waterfall on the jungle path: you just have to go back on the path at the right level and beware of the very short moment in which the Quagsire takes the leap. In other cases, however, you will have to put your wits in motion and use gadgets to meet the requirements of the Mini Challenge. On the one hand, the Mini Challenges represent an extra milestone to achieve in the game, and on the other hand they will give you clues about the best photos you can take.

The Laboratory

New Pokémon Snap: Exeggutor on the beach. At the end of each path, you will be able to choose only one photo per pokémon to submit to Professor Speculux's evaluation. We suggest you prefer the rarer shots, which could be worth many more exploration points than the others. New Pokémon Snap, however, also allows you to ... cheat, so to speak, because after you have obtained the rating of the photos, you can also refine them: it will be a bit like going back in time, to the moment of the shot, and you can dramatically retouch the lighting, framing, and other aspects of the photo you took. Obviously Speculux won't evaluate it a second time, but you can show it off in your album or upload it online in even better conditions. In this sense, the Laboratory will serve you not only to consult your progress and the Fotodex in which you have captured ... that is, immortalized the pokémon, but also to modify the photos you have saved, applying filters, altering various parameters and maybe applying stickers, frames and comments that will make them even more beautiful. Will you be able to earn Golden Apples and climb the online leaderboard?

New Pokémon Snap: A Pikachu. Have you noticed any errors?