Camera-Phone Photos

[LEE]

Samsung Galaxy S5


Crop

Crop

Crop


It's getting pretty remarkable now (though conditions were ideal) that you can crop into a photo from a Phone so much.

[Ian H]

My aging Xperia.

[Ian H]

And this little flower.

[noisycrank]

Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum) ^ ^ ^

[LEE]

My Mum's best ever photo.  Taken with her iPhone 5s (which she repeatedly demonstrates she can't use).

[Ruthie]

Galaxy Ace 4, simultaneously recording Strava.

After work bike ride 130716 by Ruth Irving, on Flickr

After work bike ride 130716 by Ruth Irving, on Flickr
I used the Zoom function for this one, as we prickly balls of fear like our personal space and I totally get that.  The loss of definition is striking.

After work bike ride 130716 by Ruth Irving, on Flickr

[pcolbeck]

Is zoom not pointless on a phone since its a fixed lens. You might just as well take the picture without zoom then crop the result.

[Ruthie]

Is zoom not pointless on a phone since its a fixed lens. You might just as well take the picture without zoom then crop the result.

Well, yes, exactly 

[LEE]

Samsung Galaxy S5



I'd be happy to have a 10x8 of that on the wall (except that I have a similar image, taken with my Canon S120, that knocks spots off it).

[hellymedic]

That is indeed a very pleasing image!

[T42]

That would work well as a metal print.

[LEE]

Is zoom not pointless on a phone since its a fixed lens. You might just as well take the picture without zoom then crop the result.

Depending on how the phone sensor crops the image you may get better results cropping later from the full-size image.


Better still.... get closer to the Hog.

[Cudzoziemiec]

These woke me up yesterday morning:

[LEE]

Samsung Galaxy S5 (with all sorts of cropping and Google filters).

[David Martin]

Is zoom not pointless on a phone since its a fixed lens. You might just as well take the picture without zoom then crop the result.

Not necessarily. The digital zoom will be happening before conversion to JPEG and the loss of resolution that goes with that, so better to do in camera. You could of course test this theory

[LEE]

Just seen examples of the iPhone 7 Plus camera(s).

It has 2 cameras mounted next to each other and thus can do all sorts of DoF wizardry.  The way it simulates a shallow depth of field, for portraits and still-life, is pretty astounding.  I have to say I'm really impressed.

Images also seem pin-sharp.  It has optical zoom to an equivalent of 56mm (I think) which is also not such a bad FL for Portraits and should put an end to the dreadful wide-angle Selfie.

So, another nail in the coffin of consumer cameras?  Yes I have to say so.  Phone-cameras (or are they camera-phones?) have killed off the compact camera market and are making inroads into the "Pro-sumer" market as well.

However... it's worth remembering that the iPhone 7 Plus is >£700.  That still buys a serious amount of "real" camera, especially if you buy used.

I suppose that it suggests that phones with twin-cameras, and similar features, will be ubiquitous in 3-4 years time and the big camera manufacturers will be struggling to shift anything but high-end equipment.

It's an amazing technological progression really.  It used to be the Kodak 110 "Instamatic" that democratised photography but now it's the phone, with "DSLR like Quality" (Apple's words).

I still need to go out and test my Wife's Samsung Galaxy S7 "Edge". 

[Oscar's dad]

A smart phone with a decent camera might well cost the same as a good quality "real" camera but you can do Facebook and make phone calls onna "real" camera 

[LEE]

A smart phone with a decent camera might well cost the same as a good quality "real" camera but you can do Facebook and make phone calls onna "real" camera 

True, and that's why the consumer camera market is almost dead.

However... £100 gets you a pretty good Smartphone with a decent camera (Motorola MOTO G) and £200 gets you a bloody good pocket camera. 
That still leaves you £420 for Beer rather than buy an iPhone 7 Plus.

Fairly compelling.

I mean, we all perhaps need to step back and take a breath.  £720 for a phone!  We may be getting carried away.

[Oscar's dad]

I suppose it's how you value stuff. My iPhone 6s cost over £600 in January and I love it. Super smartphone and amazing camera. Value for money in my book. Once I've had it two years I'll sell it on and upgrade to the latest model.

[Kim]

I mean, we all perhaps need to step back and take a breath.  £720 for a phone!  We may be getting carried away.

£720 for a pocket supercomputer/tricorder that can take photos, make phone calls, tell you where you are, access the combined knowledge of humanity and play pokemon.

The only reason not to buy one is that a £150 pocket supercomputer can do most of that almost as well.


TBH, we should stop pretending they're phones, and call them 'handhelds' like FOREIGNS and science fiction writers have been doing for decades.

[LEE]

TBH, we should stop pretending they're phones

But I made a phone call on mine last month...or was it the month before?

[LEE]

Samsung Galaxy S5



BIGGER

I still can't get my head around the fact that the camera lens is about 2mm in diameter. The level of detail, when you start pixel-peeping, is extraordinary.

[LEE]

Same spot with the new Galaxy S7 Edge



BIGGER

It deals with details in the shadows better but, in these "ideal" conditions, almost any camera would do a decent job.

I need to test the S7 in more testing conditions.  It can shoot RAW files so I may see what it can do with some difficult backlight shots.

You could get a high quality 16x10" print off either camera though, something you couldn't say about any 110 Instamatic camera (not even the Pentax 110).

[Jaded]

[LEE]

Crop from a Samsung Galaxy S5



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