Weekly poll: What makes a great camera? Comments
- Anonymous
- sXjt
You should pin your weekly polls to the top of the front page. That way, it's easier for us to find it.
- Simon
- 0xLm
Frankly, I just want a large sensor camera with all of the above, with the most captured detail with the least oversharpening. I chose all of the above except realistic colors. I think I want places and moments captured the way I remember them - and they are always more vivid in my imagination.
- Kangal
- uCXc
Correct Answer: All of the Above.
A phone camera needs to be good in all segments, as they affect photographs in one way or another. However if the choice is limited to ONE answer, then the most important choice is LOW NOISE.
Examples:
- Got a photo that doesn't have lots of detail... its still viewable if there's No Noise/Blur.
- Got a photo that has tremendous detail, more than Nokia's PureView... will look worse than above if the post-processing introduces a lot of Noise.
- Above scenario applies to colour accuracy as well. Just because the colour is slightly warm or slightly cool won't wreck the quality. Besides things can be normalised with filters and tone selection at the slight expense of detail.
- Have a photo that has very realistic colours like a flagship DSLR... will look horrible if theres NOISE that will "wash out" the subjects in the shot.
- It also applies to the contrast (punchy/saturated colours, contrast ratio, wide dynamic range = contrast). You can have pitch black darks, extremely vivid middles, and bright light colours in the same photograph. If there's noise, it will be blurry and none of that extra-contrast will matter. If you have a camera that takes /meh-level contrast photos (ie No HDR+) sure it won't look like a Professional Modelling portrait, but if there's no noise, it can still be pleasurable to look at.
The reason WHY we have noise is because files aren't magic, and the camera needs to use a computer ie/post-processing to piece the photons into pixels. Phone cameras are really limited in size, so they must do with tiny lens, tiny sensor, in a tiny smartphone space. So for it to achieve Digital Zoom, Image Stabilisation, and Wide-colour gamut, it really relies heavily on the processor, cache, drivers, and software.
This is why the Xperia phones take questionable photographs. Without a doubt, the SONY flagship phones usually have the best camera on the market. But the post-processing is so subpar that it loses to rivals. I mean the iPhone has, from a hardware point of view, one of the worst cameras for a flagship. However, the post-processing is so advanced (iOS's drivers?) that the photographs really do not look as bad as you would expect them to be.
Camera hardware is always getting better... camera software is always neglected.
Better Post-Processesing and eliminating NOISE are the key to making the BEST camera.
- zodiacfml
- 3YHy
most people are fine with cameras these days, only to degrade it with filters.
if you ask this question, it would be asking a photography enthusiast. for now, i would like to see the image quality of Nokia's Pureview 808 in today's slim smartphones.
- Anonymous
- MP4J
I think iPhone photos have a pretty bad color reproduction, yellowish and no punch. In my opinion Samsung does a pretty good job in this term. I think colors should be intense but still realistic. Low light performance is also important to me and more than 12MP would be a waste
- sree
- 7tWT
I Need all A lot of fine detail / Low noise levels / Punchy colors /Realistic color reproduction / Wide dynamic range / Great contrast
- Anonymous
- XNkG
Anonymous, 12 Jul 2017I have never seen a photographer say bad things about xperia.
I wonder why ...
Take a pho... moreI have not heard a photographer speak bad things of Samsung, iphones and HTC phone cameras too. So your point is?
Truth is pro photographers use pro cameras for their work and do not even consider smartphone cameras with their tiny-weeny sensors worthy of their criticism.
- gdhbxh
- uERx
"no motion blur" in low light is important but impossible to ois with small cmos um camera
so we see that a big cmos um will be the best option to phones camera
also, plx add a ois switch button on the auto mode panel, mans always want to shot a running girl at night
ois camera auto snap shot only give us a ghost
- Deadpool
- 7M$V
We want something that has Zeiss optics because Zeiss means outstanding.
- Anonymous
- LQvV
mir, 12 Jul 2017And we will not be surprised by how other manufacturers will make better use of Sony's sensor ... moreI have never seen a photographer say bad things about xperia.
I wonder why ...
Take a photo with S7, X Perf, i7+ and htc 10. Print it.
You will see how superior Sony is.
12 MP is cropped less than a 23MP, less crop is less deformation.
So people think it is better..
Imx400 is exclusive and also a patent. None can have RAM inside mobile sensor eithout paying tons of money.
New sensor will have pixels bigger than 3 ( none has more than 1.55 right now) and also keep high resolution.
Sony has found a way to have both without a giant sensor..
Plus f1.2 will be used...
- mir
- sxsX
Children of Corn, 11 Jul 2017Sony will bring imx500 at IFA2018. You all will have a giant surprise.. And we will not be surprised by how other manufacturers will make better use of Sony's sensor than what they can do with their own xperia phones...
- aqours
- tVnE
high dynamic range, punchy color. i would not expect low noise from tiny sensor.
- Anonymous
- MZZW
DC, 11 Jul 2017Is gsmarena kidding, all these things are important for a great camera experience, except punc... moreIt is either that I didn't understand you or you didn't understand the article
They weren't asking which feature is important to a good photograph.
They are asking what feature(s) are preferred to the reader like if someone look for a camera with high dynamic range and don't care about noise or fine detail
- Anonymous
- mY2C
The more realistic the better.
This is what phone manufacturers should pay attention to:
- The fine details are the most important. I hate blurry, oil painting like, washed out photos.
- The fine details are more important than low noise level. Noise reduction in post processing just makes the photo blurry, oil painting, washed out. It removes the fine detail. Phone manufacturers should use a camera with good low light performance which would produce real low noise photos. This is the true way to reduce noise, not the post processing noise filtering.
- Realistic colors and wide dynamic range are also very important.
This is what phone manufacturers actually do:
- they use strong post processing noise filtering which makes the photos blurry oil painting
- they oversaturate the colors
- and sometimes they oversharpen the photos to artifically increase the washed out details
- XXS-iq
- JFja
Samarth N8 808 user, 11 Jul 2017The best approach of all times, I think, has been Nokia 808 Pureview.
Think about it, it had... moreSensor from 808 (Toshiba) 1/1.2" 10:7, 2nd generation (now SONY like all Toshiba sensors) is in Lytro Illum Light Field Digital Camera - 500$, but is not suitable for phones - not suitable for video.
Best photo is from XA-1 almost no post production, worst with XZ same sensor but more post production, on down side you must little crop photos from XA-1 corners.
If You are looking photo on the phone. and not on big TV or big print version, all phones are OK. for use as a scaner for technical documentation on site XA-1 is best, 2nd M5
No RAW from any SONY in 2017.
If you are not photographer buy "not SONY" phone, pictures (samsung, apple LG, ...) are looking better then actual scene. Fake, but looking GOOD
- Children of Corn
- LQvV
Sony will bring imx500 at IFA2018.
You all will have a giant surprise..
- Bebe Rexha
- Kg{v
Anonymous, 11 Jul 2017And make ugly phonesIf you have the will to do it, then you will always find ways to make it possible.
And I feel so sad for humans like you - oh wait, you are a human?!
People back in the days used to buy phones for its capabilities, not the looks.
- Bebe Rexha
- Kg{v
1/1.5" sensor but not 41mp in resolution.
I'd say for that, 24mp would be enough.
Aperture of f1.4, pixel size of 2um, and maybe the presence of OIS could aid both daylight and low light.
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