The developers at Naughty Dog have just given players some helpful tips for taking the best pictures in The Last Of Us Part II. This year's follow-up to the 2013 post-apocalyptic action-adventure title proved divisive among fans when it came out back in June, but that hasn't stopped people from having fun snapping and sharing images using the game's Photo Mode, which was added as a surprise Day One patch shortly after it hit stores.

The Last Of Us Part II is hardly the first or last game to include a Photo Mode, as titles like God Of War and Marvel’s Spider-Man have been giving players the tools to create and share their own special images using in-game graphics and special filters. Fans can have Spider-Man take selfies while swinging across New York City, capture the thrill of Ghost of Tsushima’s protagonist Jin Sakai as he rides on horseback amidst the falling autumn leaves, and even transform Kratos’ brutal battles against the creatures of Midgard into comedy gold by giving the Ghost of Sparta a goofy facial expression. Still, there’s a considerable learning curve to using these tools, and luckily some of the talented minds at Naughty Dog are on hand to give eager players a few helpful pointers.            

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In a recent blog post on PlayStation.com, a handful of top Naughty Dog staff members shared their tips and tricks for getting great shots in The Last Of Us Part II’s Photo Mode. Art director John Sweeney advises players to keep the “Depth of Field (DOF) and Motion Blur […] in tandem around 10%” and adjusting them based on the given in-game environment, and turning on the game’s Slow-Motion options to make it easier to catch facial expressions. QA and dev support staffer Ashleigh Dale says that fans should “let the lighting do the work,” framing the camera around silhouettes and other products of The Last Of Us Part II’s gorgeous god-rays and moody lighting” to create some truly striking visuals. Cinematographer Matt Neapolitan describes how he used Motion Blur effects to give a sense of speed and motion to a shot of a rider on horseback. All of these tips and more were posted following a The Last Of Us Part II Photo Mode contest, in which fans posted their best screenshots for the chance to win a special edition of the game and a Limited Edition DualShock 4 controller.

The Last Of Us 2 Photo Mode Horseback

Naughty Dog has provided fans with a look at the creation of its latest narrative-based, action-adventure title in the past, such as showing off how the animation team used motion capture to bring the game’s frightening Rat King monster to life. The studio’s hard work paid off, as The Last Of Us Part II quickly became one of the highest-selling PlayStation exclusives of all time, even in the face of a content leak a month before the game was set to launch and a nasty wave of online backlash over the game’s plot that escalated into staff members and voice actors receiving death threats on social media.

Still, it’s always nice to see game developers like Naughty Dog engaging with the gaming community like this, and the tips the studio's staffers provide could be helpful in getting the most out of The Last Of Us Part II’s Photo Mode. The level of detail and enthusiasm shared by developers illustrates just how dedicated they are to their newest creation, which has taken its place as one of the defining titles of the PlayStation 4 generation.

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Source: PlayStation.com