Mobile Phone Photography

dancook

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Dan
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People rave about mobile phone quality, I have the Sony Xperia Z1, I was playing around with it to see what the appeal was..

2015%2B-%2B1


Oops! :p maybe it just needs a clean..

But seriously I want a better camera phone, one that I could use for street photography from time to time. Something that won't take ages to autofocus on moving targets at close range.

Does anyone use a mobile phone that is very responsive in a demanding environment?
 
I've no problem with images taken on a cell phone.

Actually I have a greater problem with people who call themselves a photographer when they're just someone with a camera :-)
 

I had a play with a 1020 today, you take a photo - the image freezes, then a moment later it freezes again - the second 'freeze' is the photo it actually takes. Which is annoying when the first freeze was the better image :)

If the 1020 is the pinnacle of mobile cameras, then I might as well give up my search now because it's obvious I want something that doesn't exist.

Is it possible to set one up as zone focus?

Colleague has a Nokia 1020 which you can setup manual focus - I don't think it gives distance but you can prefocus and use that - far from ideal though.
 
I've no problem with images taken on a cell phone.

Actually I have a greater problem with people who call themselves a photographer when they're just someone with a camera :)

That's great, in case I missed something, was that in relation to anything already said - or just a random comment?
 
That's great, in case I missed something, was that in relation to anything already said - or just a random comment?

Well it's written in English so you decide.
 
Well it's written in English so you decide.

Ok sure, correct me if I'm wrong

You took offence to my mocking of the capability of my mobile phone camera - so you decided to accuse me of being a moron with a camera who hasn't a clue?
 
Hey Dan :) Quite a few of my candid shots on flickr have been with my Nokia 1020.. I've always been more than impressed with the quality from it :thumbs:

When I got the 1020 about 18mths ago I did quite a lot of research and came to the conclusion that this was probably the best quality at the time you could get from a mobile..

I'm due to upgrade again in November but kind of torn between keeping this or moving to iPhone for the wider selection of Apps you get with iOS.. Still a tough call I think lol
 
Hey Dan :) Quite a few of my candid shots on flickr have been with my Nokia 1020.. I've always been more than impressed with the quality from it (y)

When I got the 1020 about 18mths ago I did quite a lot of research and came to the conclusion that this was probably the best quality at the time you could get from a mobile..

I'm due to upgrade again in November but kind of torn between keeping this or moving to iPhone for the wider selection of Apps you get with iOS.. Still a tough call I think lol

Hi Marcus, I don't doubt the quality of it. i have seen comparison shots, and it looks noticeably better than other mobile phones. However I am probably more interested in the speed of af and having no shutter lag. This information doesn't seemed to be easily available for comparison.
 
Sorry, convenient for happy snaps, but that's just about all they are fit for. Don't get me started on advertising BS that manufacturers spout...:bat:
 
Sorry, convenient for happy snaps, but that's just about all they are fit for. Don't get me started on advertising BS that manufacturers spout...:bat:

Yes, i do get the impression no mobile camera will satisfy my desire, but new ones are coming out all the time. I have heard the iPhone 6 May have less shutter lag than its predecessors, still room for improvement I believe. Xperia z4 is out soon, who knows..
 
The s6 has some form of AF enhancement but not sure what it does or if it works. A guy at work has one I'll have a play tomorrow and see if its any good.
 
I've never tried it, but I've read a few times that the Sony Z3 has a very good camera, and was the best out of the phone cameras.
Maybe the Z4 will be even better
 
Ok sure, correct me if I'm wrong

You took offence to my mocking of the capability of my mobile phone camera - so you decided to accuse me of being a moron with a camera who hasn't a clue?

Then you got completely the wrong end of the stick!

If I'd been offended I'd have said so, and if my post had been directed at you I'd have quoted you.

But I stand by my comment. There are plenty if people who xall themselves photographers simply because they have some very nice equipment and can activate the shutter.
That's like me picking up a wrench and calling myself a plumber.
 
Yes, i do get the impression no mobile camera will satisfy my desire, but new ones are coming out all the time. I have heard the iPhone 6 May have less shutter lag than its predecessors, still room for improvement I believe. Xperia z4 is out soon, who knows..

I've a iPhone 6 Plus coming this morning from work to replace my 5s which has given up the ghost. Supposedly it may have even more lag based on one of the sites I read, even if it does have much faster focus, but I'll find out soon enough and post back.
 
I've a iPhone 6 Plus coming this morning from work to replace my 5s which has given up the ghost. Supposedly it may have even more lag based on one of the sites I read, even if it does have much faster focus, but I'll find out soon enough and post back.
Initial feedback on the 6 Plus -

On the 'shutter lag' itself (ie. pressing the button to the shot being taken in my terminology) it's very short, to pretty much instant, same as the 5s. The compares with the visibly obvious shutter lag on my wife's Samsung Galaxy for example.

What is different is between the 5s and the 6 plus though is the rate at which you can take shots; if we ignore the burst mode for a moment, and just repeatedly bash the 'take picture' button, in the time I was able to take 16 shots on the iPhone 5s, I was only able to take 8 shots on the iPhone 6 plus. Obviously this doesn't apply to the bust mode (where you hold down the button and it will take shedloads of images in fast succession - both took exactly the same number of shots in the same time when I tried this).

Focussing is extremely fast on the iPhone 6 plus, much better than the 5s which was no slouch, and low level light performance is much improved too, presumably down to the optical stabiliser (only on 6 plus, not the 6)

So in summary, it isn't more laggy than the 5s, indeed with the faster focussing and ability to work in lower light levels if feels a lot more responsive. Just remember to use burst mode for the fast action shots rather then repeatedly stab at the button :-)
 
Hey Dan. As I smashed my iphone 6+ I used it as an excuse to get something temporarily until I found the time to get it repaired.

I ended up with a Lumia 930, the camera is rather awesome compared to the iphone in my opinion. And the iphone was one of the best about.

I haven't done street with it yet, but if the weather holds ill walk along Southbank next week and use it for that purpose.

And yes with the awesome Lumia camera app there is full manual control as well. And the ability to save in raw.
 
JP, do you still have the iPhone you killed? If so, do you want to dispose of it for repurposing?

Dan, IIRC there's a Samsung camera with a phone built in and it seems to have a faster press/take time than most phone cams. Don't know what model it is I'm afraid.
 
Nod, I'm not sure yet. I will get it fixed as it is the 128GB version of the six plus. Just need to find the time. While I really like windows phone, I installed the replacement windows 10 phone on Friday night and that is such a retrograde step. Basically in short I'm undecided for now. It is locked to Vodafone, I got my 6+ with my contract as an upgrade.
 
JP, I have to confess that I was planning on using it screen down as a side stand pad for my bikes (to stop the end of the stand sinking into soft ground/tarmac)! Any iPhone/Pad would do. :whistling:
 
I must admit on quite a few occasions I've thought to myself saying "doesn't matter, I've got my phone". That's mainly when I'm just out for a wander about and not bothered about "good quality" images. Although I must say camera phones are improving.

This is the only one I have on my flickr from when I finished painting my bike. Not bad for a Galaxy S5. For landscapes I find it pretty good, as long as you don;t zoom in and pixel peep. Perfectly fine for 10x8 prints.
20150417_140742[1] by paul, on Flickr
 
I tried a Lumia 640 and very pleased with the shots from it. Well happy
 
Really want to focus on speed, although image quality is ImportanT. without speed it is of no use to me
 
Really want to focus on speed, although image quality is ImportanT. without speed it is of no use to me
Pretty pleased with the galaxy S5 for speed as long as you focus first. If you hold the shutter button down it takes loads of burst shots, 30fps I think. Also you can take sequence shots without the hassle of processing in photoshop after, it does it for you. Slow motion video as well which is a bonus.
 
After doing some research I am torn between iPhone 6 plus and Galaxy S6

Leaning towards iPhone 6 .. but hard to be sure of the decision...
 
OK decision made, ordered the iphone 6 + it'll be here tomorrow :D
 
It is a lovely phone. Battery life is especially good.
 
This thread needs more photos. Here are a few snaps from my dog walk tonight in our 'back garden'. The way the Lumia works is that a small jpeg gets saved as well as the full sized raw.



View attachment 37576 View attachment 37577 View attachment 37578 View attachment 37579
Damn, these uploaded versions look rubbish...No comparison to what was taken at all....

Here's a photo :) one I just took

iPhone 6 Plus by dancook1982, on Flickr

Aren't you supposed to take photos with it opposed to off it :P
 
Damn, these uploaded versions look rubbish...No comparison to what was taken at all....



Aren't you supposed to take photos with it opposed to off it :p

It's rainy outside :) tomorrow I will take it into Guildford and give it a proper workout.
 
It's rainy outside :) tomorrow I will take it into Guildford and give it a proper workout.
Likewise...I was going to walk back from Vauxhall to Blackfriars...but its too wet for my liking....
 
You two are as bad as the people who were supposed to be on a course with me this morning! It's only a drop of rain
 
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