Absolutely disappointed with the camera - Verizon Galaxy S 5 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

is anyone else? i came from a G2 hoping for a much better camera, as I preferred the GS4 camera to my G2...yeah, well I get my GS5, and i'm sitting here looking at the pics i've taken, and good god they're awful. they just look horrible compared to what the G2 shoots.
and low light? FORGET IT. if you can even get it to focus without the flash on (which it won't, at all, after numerous attempts of me trying with even lights on behind me) it's going to look like garbage anyway.
now i'm sitting here wondering if I should return it or not. I spent full price on the damn thing (after selling a GS4 and a Gnex) and i'm really wondering if it's even worth it to keep because i was honestly expecting a good camera, especially from all of the raving about it i've seen.

Camera looks great here
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terrible. it can't even focus on something with lighting in the room...and the outdoors pic? is this phone for real?

There were some reviews about the galaxy s 5 camera, the reviewers seemed to not like the camera.
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Maybe stating the obvious, but did you remove the plastic film over the lens?
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JBeXX said:
Maybe stating the obvious, but did you remove the plastic film over the lens?
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yep, first thing i did. if ya notice, the plastic doesn't cover the sensor itself..only the outer portion.
oh well, i gave up on the S5. on top of build quality issues (the creaking/shifting body that Samsung is known for..) and that crappy camera, I just went and returned it tonight. had to pay a $35 restocking fee, but whatever. got my $600 back.
wish you guys the best!

jayochs said:
yep, first thing i did. if ya notice, the plastic doesn't cover the sensor itself..only the outer portion.
oh well, i gave up on the S5. on top of build quality issues (the creaking/shifting body that Samsung is known for..) and that crappy camera, I just went and returned it tonight. had to pay a $35 restocking fee, but whatever. got my $600 back.
wish you guys the best!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You got a dud. That's too bad. it happens. My pictures are nothing like yours.
Untitled by Mechatricity, on Flickr
Untitled by Mechatricity, on Flickr
Untitled by Mechatricity, on Flickr

S5 has abandoned Sony sensors right? That would explain OP. Maybe new Samsung sensors are just not as good as Sony's. We all know megapixel is secondary anyway....

My cam is fine...I posted a pic in other thread. You got a bad phone. Exchange it. Those pics you posted aren't good.

I'm happy with the cam as well. Haven't tried any outdoor shots yet but it looks at least as good as my s4 so far. I like the new options and cleaner access. Just snapped this on a whim...
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I'll second this. Not near as bad as Jayochs, but not any better than the S4, and worse, IMHO, in bright outdoor shots where the S4 was incredible. Medium to low-light is improved only because you can see the images more - but if you don't use stabilization mode, they're horribly noisy. If you do use stabilization mode, they look better, but then a LOT of your indoor shots, even if they're not low light, will end up asking you to hold still for 3-4 seconds.
And I don't know about y'all, but my camera is relatively slow to load. Keeping in mind I'm comparing to a 5S and M8. So far the laggier camera experience and not-as-great-as-they-said-it-would-be images have me liking the M8's camera more... it's just so darn fast, and consistent and focusable and can take medium-lit shots quickly.
Edit: full disclaimer... I'm a nitpicky phone camera snob!

Put me down as another who is disappointed in the camera. Outdoor shots are great for me, but indoor shots are extremely lackluster. Even with stability on, they're disappointing. The indoor capabilities of the iPhone 5S blow this one out of the water. Given the pixel size, I didn't expect it to be better at indoor shots than the 5S or the M8, but I was definitely hoping that it would be better than it is.
I'm going to give it a few more days, but this is potentially a deal breaker for me. That's very disappointing, especially since there's very little else that I dislike about the phone.

bsweetness said:
Put me down as another who is disappointed in the camera. Outdoor shots are great for me, but indoor shots are extremely lackluster. Even with stability on, they're disappointing. The indoor capabilities of the iPhone 5S blow this one out of the water. Given the pixel size, I didn't expect it to be better at indoor shots than the 5S or the M8, but I was definitely hoping that it would be better than it is.
I'm going to give it a few more days, but this is potentially a deal breaker for me. That's very disappointing, especially since there's very little else that I dislike about the phone.
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Click to collapse
Yep, same here. Though others have said their camera loads up quite fast - my experience is it's pretty laggy moving in and out of it. But I also love just about everything else about it, so if I can get used to the camera, or maybe figure out what I'm missing (if anything??), it'll be good. If not, it'll be the M8 for me likely... though I don't like how slippery / heavy it is.
I hate to say it (ok I don't really hate it), but after all of the devices I've used, I still feel like the 5S is still the best all around mobile camera experience when you combine the usability with image quality. The M8 is on par when it comes to speed and usability - heck it might even be faster. But image quality is still better on the 5S.
And good to see you b! I've been pretty forum-inactive for awhile...

jntdroid said:
Yep, same here. Though others have said their camera loads up quite fast - my experience is it's pretty laggy moving in and out of it. But I also love just about everything else about it, so if I can get used to the camera, or maybe figure out what I'm missing (if anything??), it'll be good. If not, it'll be the M8 for me likely... though I don't like how slippery / heavy it is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt you're missing anything. I've gone through every setting and tried a host of things to get better pictures out of it to no avail. I spent quite a bit of time yesterday taking the exact same shots with the S5, Note 3, and iPhone 5S. Outdoors during the day, the S5 reigned supreme, with both the Note 3 and 5S close behind. Outdoors at night, the 5S was the clear winner with the S5 and the Note 3 providing similar results (with the S5 coming out slightly ahead between the two). Indoors, the 5S came out on top again in every lighting situation, both without a flash and with a flash. The S5 was slightly better than the Note 3 indoors, but really not by much.
Given that the overall image quality between the S5 and the Note 3 isn't a huge difference, I'm leaning towards returning the S5 and just keeping the Note 3 for now.
jntdroid said:
I hate to say it (ok I don't really hate it), but after all of the devices I've used, I still feel like the 5S is still the best all around mobile camera experience when you combine the usability with image quality. The M8 is on par when it comes to speed and usability - heck it might even be faster. But image quality is still better on the 5S.
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Agreed. The 5S that I use for work is just solid all around when it comes to the camera, providing really great shots in almost all lighting conditions. The only phone I've used that's better is the Lumia 1040, but it doesn't have the speed that the 5S does. Apple really nailed the camera for the 5S.
The S5 has officially been approved as a device we can use for work, so I was hoping to replace both my Note 3 and my 5S with it and only have to carry one device for personal and business use. But so far, the camera on the S5 makes that impossible.
jntdroid said:
And good to see you b! I've been pretty forum-inactive for awhile...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. I've been out of the country for work for an extended period, often in places with little to no internet service. I'm back in the States for a little bit, so I'll be popping up a little more often.

Anyone know why it's so bad? I don't understand how some are getting great pics and others are getting not so good. I'm in the not so good group. Some pics I feel like my rezound takes just as good. Lol
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jagrave said:
Anyone know why it's so bad? I don't understand how some are getting great pics and others are getting not so good. I'm in the not so good group. Some pics I feel like my rezound takes just as good. Lol
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It can take great pics, don't get me wrong - though even when it's great, I'm not convinced it's better than the S4.
I think it's a combination of a new sensor, a new "style" of auto-focus, and post-processing issues.

jntdroid said:
It can take great pics, don't get me wrong - though even when it's great, I'm not convinced it's better than the S4.
I think it's a combination of a new sensor, a new "style" of auto-focus, and post-processing issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that's one of the biggest problems. Even in well-lit situations, sometimes things - like people and animals - can come out looking like an oil painting. That's one of the biggest problems with indoor shots as well. Turning off the stabilization helps a little with that, but not as much as one would think. I've tried all of the major third-party camera apps, and none of them give much better results. For indoor shots, the sensor just isn't big enough to let in the amount of light that's needed to take an above average picture.
I think some of the discrepancies in what various people are reporting with the quality comes down to photo quality preferences, what different people are used to with the phones in their cameras, and at times a more discerning eye for quality. The S5 camera is certainly no slouch, and I'd place it above pretty much all other Android phones right now as far as being an all around shooter (there are others that do certain things better, but not everything), but it's not the big step forward that I really wanted it to be.
I'm going to be returning it and going back to my Note 3 for the time being.

bsweetness said:
I think that's one of the biggest problems. Even in well-lit situations, sometimes things - like people and animals - can come out looking like an oil painting. That's one of the biggest problems with indoor shots as well. Turning off the stabilization helps a little with that, but not as much as one would think. I've tried all of the major third-party camera apps, and none of them give much better results. For indoor shots, the sensor just isn't big enough to let in the amount of light that's needed to take an above average picture.
I think some of the discrepancies in what various people are reporting with the quality comes down to photo quality preferences, what different people are used to with the phones in their cameras, and at times a more discerning eye for quality. The S5 camera is certainly no slouch, and I'd place it above pretty much all other Android phones right now as far as being an all around shooter (there are others that do certain things better, but not everything), but it's not the big step forward that I really wanted it to be.
I'm going to be returning it and going back to my Note 3 for the time being.
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Click to collapse
What about the note 3 do you like better? And how does the note 3 camera compare?
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jagrave said:
What about the note 3 do you like better? And how does the note 3 camera compare?
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I typed up a little summary of the comparison I did between the cameras a few posts up.
bsweetness said:
I doubt you're missing anything. I've gone through every setting and tried a host of things to get better pictures out of it to no avail. I spent quite a bit of time yesterday taking the exact same shots with the S5, Note 3, and iPhone 5S. Outdoors during the day, the S5 reigned supreme, with both the Note 3 and 5S close behind. Outdoors at night, the 5S was the clear winner with the S5 and the Note 3 providing similar results (with the S5 coming out slightly ahead between the two). Indoors, the 5S came out on top again in every lighting situation, both without a flash and with a flash. The S5 was slightly better than the Note 3 indoors, but really not by much.
Given that the overall image quality between the S5 and the Note 3 isn't a huge difference, I'm leaning towards returning the S5 and just keeping the Note 3 for now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In short, the S5 is an improvement, but not a big one. The differences were pretty marginal in most cases.
As for what I like better about the Note 3 it really comes down to two things - the size of the screen and the S-Pen.

jayochs said:
if ya notice, the plastic doesn't cover the sensor itself..only the outer portion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ahem.....it most certainly DOES cover the entire lense.
Best find a girl with a sharp fingernail and pay her to scrape it off for you.
!edit!
BTW, mine is fast, and sharp, and works nearly as well as my Canon camera.

Related

Camera Comparison of DOOM (Warning: if you have bandwidth caps, steer clear)

OK so here it is. I took some time this evening with an old Galaxy S, a new(ish) Galaxy S2, a shiny new Galaxy S3, and an iPhone 4S (for good measure).
Problem statement: Samsung has been accused of equipping some versions of the Galaxy S3 with an inferior image sensor, providing degraded low light sensitivity when compared to the Galaxy S2 and other top phones. This is bad because customers expect to be purchasing a tested and true level of quality with their new device, not buying into a game of chance "which sensor do you get with your $200 and two year contract?"
Background: Samsung, like most large companies, has a limited supply chain. Many times with a product launch such as large as this, they will take shortcuts. Usually, these shortcuts are not major problems. Apple does this all the time, they use memory modules from different manufactures, capacitors from different places, etc. Samsung does this as well. It only becomes a problem when something major, such as the camera/battery/glass/etc is enough different to change the user experience. It has been proven that on the Galaxy S2 and Galaxy S3 samsung has sourced their image sensor from two locations:
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Methods: Well, this is no lab test. I tested these phones side by side, one at a time. I took at least 3 pictures for each image shown and selected my favorite. The first images use auto everything because that is going to be the most common setting (and in the case of the iPhone, the ONLY setting, minus HDR mode). Following this I enabled night mode on the androids and took another set of images. Pictures were selected with 100% bias towards what I thought looked nice overall, nothing more. No tripod was used, but I tried to keep each phone as steady as possible. It's my job to perform microsurgery (on occasion) so I think I'm qualified to hold the phone still enough. No other settings were messed with.
I did not try to find good angles for the phones, instead I placed them in situations where the lighting was poor/hellish. The pictures were all taken indoors with few/no lights on, with ambient light messing up the shots, and no flash (which would have made all of these shots 10000x better). It was overcast and late in the evening.
First off, camera firmware for the S2 and S3
The iPhone should be shaking with all this epicness in front of it
In this set, the iphone would autofocus both outside and inside so both images are shown. No matter where I tapped to focus with the Galaxy's, I could not get the chair to come out clear. I could have adjusted the settings manually I guess. I re-sized the S1 image here accidentally (it's 5MP not 8MP). The iPhone, S1 and S3 all did well, with the edge going to the iPhone and S1 (surprisingly)... the S2 and S3 were very temperamental.
This set threw in some motion. I wouldn't try to quantify it, however. When that dog gets excited there isn't a camera anywhere fast enough to avoid motion blur. The framing was difficult as I was trying to keep the dog in the picture, but anyway, the S3 on auto had my favorite results overall. With night mode enabled
the S2 and S3 both looked good, I feel the S2 took the best shot with night mode.
In this set, the S3 night mode and HDR beat everything else hands down. The S2 looked good, but I had issues keeping it still, the S3 was very sharp each time despite the increased exposure.
Getting into pure darkness without a flash (who does this???), I only compared the S2 and S3. The S1 did surprisingly well here... but it's old tech so nobody cares. The iPhone was just black screen, nothing to compare. As for my take on these... yes, the S3 is REALLY red. That means the S3 has a crappy IR filter. But all hope is not lost... anybody that knows anything about night vision knows that IR and near-IR light is the most valuable. The fact that the sensor is able to collect this much IR really helps it "see" in the dark, even if it's primarily one color. While this may cause some minor problems at normal light levels (very minor, since this light is hardly present, remember the lights are almost totally off here), by passing the S3 image through some very minor filters in photoshop the image comes out beautiful. The third image looks almost identical to how the scene looked to my own eyes, slightly yellow hue from the dim lights, redish wood table. IMO at least.
Moving into some real situations, here is a macro shot of the S1 and S3
And in finale, my dirty car. The S1/2/3 all had good color reproduction, with the S2/3 having more detail, and the S3 the best overall. The iPhone kept trying to focus on the wheel (It either thought it was a face, or Siri was getting hot for the rims) which was the cause for the bad white balance.
In conclusion, in three generations of camera's, the biggest change is in detail. In all of the S1 images, noise is present in much higher amounts, although it held in WAY better than I expected for its age. As for the S3 being worse than the S2, for at least these tests I do not believe this to be the case. If anything they are very comparable. While some see the excess near-IR on night shots as a bad thing, remember it is always a tradeoff. Less IR (red) makes the shot more balanced naturally, but since the other wavelengths will be so sparse you will have little (or no) detail. At least with the red, you can regain vasts amounts of detail, and post process a little bit later to get a very nice picture. On a side note, I noticed the S3 compresses its pictures more than both the S2 and the iPhone4S. The only phone with smaller images was the S1, and it has a 5mp camera. This may not be a factor for anything, but I did find it interesting.
To not offend any apple fans, considering the fact they have zero control over the functioning of the camera, it did pretty well. Had the flash been used (like they should have been), I believe the S3 and iPhone would have been pretty much tied. I don't like apple, but I did try my best to be fair and take good pictures with all phones.
I do apologize for not having the GDxxxx firmware S3, as many were looking forward to seeing it in this comparison. I hope this helps somebody out there regardless. Lastly, unadulterated pictures can be found https://picasaweb.google.com/117440914475223218617/CameraComparison?authuser=0&feat=directlink with all the exif data you could ever need if you can sort through them.
hmm, looks like not many images are showing up... i'll add links instead
*edit* gotta give it lots of time to load
Nice review
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thank you for taking the time to put this together, excellent job!
Great comparison shots. Thanks! :good:
How do you enable night mode? I looked in camera settings and I do not see it, I'm using the AT&T version.
newtoandroid99 said:
How do you enable night mode? I looked in camera settings and I do not see it, I'm using the AT&T version.
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Click to collapse
Camera - > settings - > scene mode - > Night
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do you think there's a difference between the Samsung and Sony image sensor for the S3? If so which is better?
I don't believe that has been determined yet, but hopefully it will be soon. It seems like the general consensus is the Sony sensor has better low light performance and may have less blooming in bright light, but we are still trying to get a direct comparison so anything anybody says right now is just a guess. Hopefully I will be able to make a quick comparison this weekend if I can get away from my work for a while. Personally, I am happy with the samsung sensors performance as it is very good, but it's always nice to know which sensor is the king.
So how do I determine which Image sensor my S3 has?
Nice comparison. I feel like my wife's 4S takes better photos sometimes.
Thanks for taking the time
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georgei11 said:
Nice comparison. I feel like my wife's 4S takes better photos sometimes.
Thanks for taking the time
Sent from my SGH-T999
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Yup same here, some pictures look better in my wife phone. Sad thing is that iPhone 4s came out last year, now iPhone 5 will probably have even better camera this year, but I'm fine with the gs3 I only use the pictures for Facebook and mms
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jdpdata said:
So how do I determine which Image sensor my S3 has?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
type *#34971539# in the dialer, then click Phone/CAM FW Ver Check at the top.
If the string of numbers at the bottom starts with a ZDxxxx you have a samsung it is believed, while a prefix of
GDxxxx is believed to be the Sony image sensor.
It doesn't surprise me that the iPhone4S takes better pictures in normal conditions for many, the camera, audio chip and video processor are the best designed pieces on the 4S imo and remain the bar. The camera app is totally automated and does a lot of processing in the background invisible to the user. These pictures were mainly set up to compare the cameras in situations that small cameras innately struggle with. I mostly put the 4S in as a type of standard/control since I felt a real camera would make them all look silly, and many are familiar with the 4S.
Comparing the 4S to the S2/S3/OneX in typical lighting situations is something that has been beaten into the ground by many, with everything from tripods to image analysis software with no obvious winner (depending on who you ask). The only things I feel comfortable saying are that the 4S is easier to take good pictures with, while our phone takes practice and skill due to many more options, and that the 4S is utterly useless in darkness while our phones are only somewhat useless. Anyway I'm no photographer, just a science nerd with some fancy phones
I posted this over on the international, but for anyone concerned about the camera. I'm going to attempt to swap out the camera for the other module. My Pebble Blue AT&T has the Metal Housing that people talk about along with the ZD firmware. I took my phone apart and checked, it's super easy. I went on Ebay and found what appears to be the Sony module based on pictures from the International forum and the iFixit page. The cameras, parts and the way these phones come apart are essentially identical. There were even some labels on the inside that said GT-I9300. I'll let you guys know when I get the parts.
duowing said:
I posted this over on the international, but for anyone concerned about the camera. I'm going to attempt to swap out the camera for the other module. My Pebble Blue AT&T has the Metal Housing that people talk about along with the ZD firmware. I took my phone apart and checked, it's super easy. I went on Ebay and found what appears to be the Sony module based on pictures from the International forum and the iFixit page. The cameras, parts and the way these phones come apart are essentially identical. There were even some labels on the inside that said GT-I9300. I'll let you guys know when I get the parts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a 32gb blue Sprint version with the ZD firmware and im pretty upset about it. I exchanged it and got another one with a ZD firmware. I'm beginning to think that the GD Firmware (sony) modules are only in the 16gb versions. Are there any folks out there with 32gb blue's that have gd firmware?
spydc said:
I have a 32gb blue Sprint version with the ZD firmware and im pretty upset about it. I exchanged it and got another one with a ZD firmware. I'm beginning to think that the GD Firmware (sony) modules are only in the 16gb versions. Are there any folks out there with 32gb blue's that have gd firmware?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have 16gb claro panama blue and it ZD version. chill, there is not a huge difference in quality both are BSI
and ZD is only firmware, u may still ahve sony imx 175 bsi sensor

First full day with my Moto-x and Iphone pic comparision

I purchased a moto-x yesterday out of contract to give it a "road test" and If I liked it I would return it and order 32gb as my Iphone 5 replacement. I had to make a trip to NYC today. My train ride into Penn station is typically 1 hr 10 minutes and today I waited another 10 at the platform. I started out at 100% and started streaming Spotify over LTE and sat on reddit and google chrome for most of the way along with a few games of solitaire and burnt it down to 65%. I fared about the same with my Iphone 5 while making the same run pre-IOS7 however expect worse performance after the update. I was in battery park for the most of the day and lost another ~10% in the subway roaming/intermittent streaming. By the time I got on the train 7 hours later I was at 35%, I used the navigation for about 10 minutes to get some food (awesome btw).
Things I like about the phone.
The screen size is nicer than the Iphone 5 however may not be "as bright" I assume this has to do with the OLED screen.
The Active notifications has to be my favorite feature. It really is quite nice and I dread going back to my Iphone 5 without it.
The active feature while driving is nice however I haven't given it the full test yet.
Google Hangouts is amazing, it really is and I am going to force my girlfriend to use it on her iphone.
Android feels like a smart phone that wants to "help you". I'm sure that doesn't make sense. It just has some mystical google type power IMO.
Things I don't like.
I was hoping battery life would be a little better based on reviews, however I find it good enough.
The camera however this is an AT&T phone without the latest update. The camera will make or break this phone for me as I have a room full of fishing pictures, most are really good and taken with smartphone camera's (Iphone's.)
Also I tried to scan a barcode and it was just NOT happening while on the train, something the iphone did no problem (using myfitnesspal)
It also doesn't charge as fast as my iphone, however that may be because of the larger battery?
Also, when I return this phone this weekend, is there A way I can have everything backed up, so when I get my new phone I won't have to set everything up again and download all these apps over?
Here is the pic comparison, done side by side. http://imgur.com/a/tywmw
I'm actually having trouble making my picture look as bad off as you did and I am not able to reproduce it.
The color in my photos is spectacular, way better than my HTC One. I just took this of my salt water fish tank and it's way more than close... It's impeccably accurate.
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Doing photo comparisons at this point is a waste of time. Att is going to have the update out very soon so why bother. The camera is great after the fix.
Compare then.
To answer your question you have the option to back up ur apps through your Google account. They redownload as soon as you log in on the next phone
osiris355 said:
Doing photo comparisons at this point is a waste of time. Att is going to have the update out very soon so why bother. The camera is great after the fix.
Compare then.
To answer your question you have the option to back up ur apps through your Google account. They redownload as soon as you log in on the next phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yesterday... i have just flash the tmo firmware on my unlock bootloader rogers version... and update ! my wife now want the white moto x ! pictures quality is just like the day and night... equal or better to the iphone 5... equal to the sg4 ...
... mmm i have say the tmobile firmware is excellent ... no brand no bloat ( retail en us on the about ) ...
Would you say the battery life is pretty similar for both phones? also how much thicker is the moto x?
mhsbrian said:
I'm actually having trouble making my picture look as bad off as you did and I am not able to reproduce it.
The color in my photos is spectacular, way better than my HTC One. I just took this of my salt water fish tank and it's way more than close... It's impeccably accurate.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't think i'm dissing the phone, I like it more than the iphone5
I'm just waiting for the update.
People tend to like the over saturated photos that the iPhone and Samsung produces... The Moto X creates pictures closer to real life colors.
Its the same with DSLR's, Canon processes photos with colors close to real life but the Nikon gives it more saturation - newcomers tend to go Nikon for this reason.
I prefer the real life colors, and I'll add saturation if needed later on.
Edited.
rman18 said:
People tend to like the over saturated photos that the iPhone and Samsung produces... The Moto X creates pictures closer to real life colors.
Its the same with DSLR's, Canon processes photos with colors close to real life but the Nokia gives it more saturation - newcomers tend to go Nokia for this reason.
I prefer the real life colors, and I'll add saturation if needed later on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree 100 percent, iPhone photos always bleed colors and it's especially seen in very detailed things.
In terms of Nikon and canon, I shoot with a Canon and only would buy an older Nokia if I was to but one myself.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
mhsbrian said:
Agree 100 percent, iPhone photos always bleed colors and it's especially seen in very detailed things.
In terms of Nokia and canon, I shoot with a Canon and only would buy an older Nokia if I was to but one myself.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
-_- Nokia? I think you mean Nikon.
mentose457 said:
-_- Nokia? I think you mean Nikon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SwiftKey filled it in for me lol
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
rman18 said:
People tend to like the over saturated photos that the iPhone and Samsung produces... The Moto X creates pictures closer to real life colors.
Its the same with DSLR's, Canon processes photos with colors close to real life but the Nokia gives it more saturation - newcomers tend to go Nokia for this reason.
I prefer the real life colors, and I'll add saturation if needed later on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again I think you mean NIKON. I never experienced excessive saturation on any of Nikon DSLRs. I never used retard mode or full retard mode on them though. If you are using those modes on your Canon, well, congratulations.
mentose457 said:
Again I think you mean NIKON. I never experienced excessive saturation on any of Nikon DSLRs. I never used retard mode or full retard mode on them though. If you are using those modes on your Canon, well, congratulations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NIKON, as you say.. Makes great cameras I don't see what your point here is besides starting a war that's been waged since the dawn of personal photography.
On another note, my main camera is a pentax k-5, that doesn't mean it shoots way better photos. But it's weather resistant and takes the best night pictures of any camera I've ever owned.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
mhsbrian said:
NIKON, as you say.. Makes great cameras I don't see what your point here is besides starting a war that's been waged since the dawn of personal photography.
On another note, my main camera is a pentax k-5, that doesn't mean it shoots way better photos. But it's weather resistant and takes the best night pictures of any camera I've ever owned.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just pointing out that any camera that has manual control can be adjusted to take life like colors. IMO comparing auto modes on manual cameras is stupid.
My boss shoots a k-5, its an attractive camera. I like that the image stabilization is in the camera not the lens.
mentose457 said:
Just pointing out that any camera that has manual control can be adjusted to take life like colors. IMO comparing auto modes on manual cameras is stupid.
My boss shoots a k-5, its an attractive camera. I like that the image stabilization is in the camera not the lens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, it's a fantastic camera... The biggest turn on for me was the Iso noise is tremendously low even at very high Iso ranges.
Sent from my XT1056 using Tapatalk 2

Camera produces cold photos - very disappointed! Can it be fixed? White balance?

I just bought this phone, and I'm extremely disappointed in the camera. My wife has a note4 which takes great photos, which I've been using pretty much every day as we recently had a child (our first). My main reason for buying a new phone was to always have a good camera on hand for taking photos of our son. I hate big phones though, hence why I didn't buy the note4.
Anyway, after buying the z3c, it turns out that I hate the photos it takes They are all completely lifeless and cold. When I take a photo with the note4, what I see on the screen is pretty much exactly what I see in real life. With the z3c I can clearly see the difference right away (and it's not just the phone screen). I've tried experimenting with settings in manual mode as well, but I'm not having much luck. Granted I'm not claiming to know much about these things. I don't care if it's not the highest resolution or the sharpest details (or not at this stage at least), I just want some colors that looks like what I'm seeing with my eyes. I've gone back to using the camera from my wifes phone again despite my own phone only being a week old, which is a bit sad.
Is there anything I can do about this? I feel like there should be a simple adjustment somewhere, but I can't find it. The colors on the screen were horrid as well, but I've adjusted those by using the "white balance" settings (where I significantly increased red and green while leaving blue at 0). Is there a similar setting for the camera or is there a different app I can download where I can make this adjustment?
I just want to be able to use my camera...
Here is an example. I took two photos, one after the other, using the z3c and the note4. He moved a little bit so they are not identical, but zoom in on his face and you'll see what I mean. One of the photos has got some color and in the other he looks pale and lifeless. The color in the first photo seem to match what I am seeing in real life (he is half asian, so somewhat yellow skin tone) It's a bit hard to show, but you'll just have to trust me that the photo which has more yellow in it is significantly more accurate. This is not even the worst photo either, this one is probably passable if looked at in isolation, but just one example I quickly snapped just now. They are all like this (or often worse) and it has led me to not wanting to use my camera at all.
EDIT: as a new user I was not able to add a link, but as this is just to dropbox, I hope it's OK that I present it like this. You will have to piece it together if you want to view it:
www dropbox com/sh/vb68vqquykxj13m/AAArXwsdSZHKdJCzz25Tu3Qxa?dl=0
Any suggestions on how I can fix this without having to manually post process the photos are much appreciated. I should note that I really love the phone in all other aspects so far, but the main reason I bought it was for the camera as mentioned.
EDIT: sorry, maybe this belongs in the questions forum. If so I apologize and feel free to move it.
EDIT: to clarify, I found what looks like a white balance setting, but it's only 4 preset modes. But maybe that is all we've got. I'll try and experiment with them and see if any produces better result than wb auto.
EDIT: those settings above seems to seriously mess with the colors, at least in current low light room I'm in. Despite loving the phone, I'm considering cutting my losses while it's still current and try to sell it In which case i would probably pick up a Samsung galaxy s6 instead, which should have an equivalent camera to the note 4. It's much bigger than I prefer though, and inflated price due to hype and being a new model as well
The s6 has a better camera in most conditions. That said the difference isnt that bad. On my screen both photos look very similar.
Anyway the usual thing, try in manual mode 8mp, slightly lower expo, multi, and adda tiny bit of clarity in google photos - seems to give best results on average
bilboa1 said:
The s6 has a better camera in most conditions. That said the difference isnt that bad. On my screen both photos look very similar.
Anyway the usual thing, try in manual mode 8mp, slightly lower expo, multi, and adda tiny bit of clarity in google photos - seems to give best results on average
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not the best example, you probably have to zoom in on face to see the difference. I might try and take a better example photo, but basically I lose all yellow in his skin tone and all I get is white and red.
I'll try your suggestions as well. Thanks.
You'll see from my camera thread and others that the Z3 is simply a poor performing camera indoors. There's little you can do to fix it.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact
PuffDaddy_d said:
You'll see from my camera thread and others that the Z3 is simply a poor performing camera indoors. There's little you can do to fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've read your thread now, and it doesn't paint a very positive picture. I still don't understand why it's so bad though, especially since the hardware seems good. From my point of view, I would be OK if pictures are not sharp enough or not capturing as much details as they could, but the poor color replication is a deal breaker.
Do you know if there is any sign that they are working on improving the software? Maybe with the release of z4/z3+ they might release a software update applicable to z3 as well? I know I'm grasping at straws, but still. You'd think they'd try and fix it. If nothing else, it's embarrassing that all competitors are significantly better despite using sonys sensor. This should be their absolute strongest point, their ace card, and instead they are getting destroyed.
White balance is the key for my photos... Auto WB always produces unatractive photos. Cloudy, and sunny settings add some warmth to the photo.
tompab said:
I've read your thread now, and it doesn't paint a very positive picture. I still don't understand why it's so bad though, especially since the hardware seems good. From my point of view, I would be OK if pictures are not sharp enough or not capturing as much details as they could, but the poor color replication is a deal breaker.
Do you know if there is any sign that they are working on improving the software? Maybe with the release of z4/z3+ they might release a software update applicable to z3 as well? I know I'm grasping at straws, but still. You'd think they'd try and fix it. If nothing else, it's embarrassing that all competitors are significantly better despite using sonys sensor. This should be their absolute strongest point, their ace card, and instead they are getting destroyed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I couldn't agree with you more. I read an article where someone managed to compare the display of the Z3 vs the Z3+ and noticed that the plus has a warmer tone. Probably still to early to know is the camera software has improved any though. Sadly, I've started to use filters on the shots that look too cold to help earn them up a bit... More of a workaround than a solution.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact
tompab said:
I just bought this phone, and I'm extremely disappointed in the camera. My wife has a note4 which takes great photos, which I've been using pretty much every day as we recently had a child (our first). My main reason for buying a new phone was to always have a good camera on hand for taking photos of our son. I hate big phones though, hence why I didn't buy the note4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've got a Z1c(not Z3c) and S6 but I think I can share you some ideas here. Sony tends to like cold WB while S6 produces warm WB. Indeed, they both got pros and cons in my experiences bcoz Samsung is also easy to produce over-warm coast and sometimes not real good, it is just too warm, though in your case I admit this time warm WB got real better result.
If you want a smaller phone, you can consider the upcoming S6 mini(SM-G9198) with 4.6" 720P, s808, 2GB ram, 16GB rom, NFC, 16MP rear camera, 5MP front camera. Sony focus is just all bad(actually the image quality isn't bad though you can't compete it with Note4/S6) and Samsung is like 10 times better when you talking about the speed and focus part.
TheEndHK said:
I've got a Z1c(not Z3c) and S6 but I think I can share you some ideas here. Sony tends to like cold WB while S6 produces warm WB. Indeed, they both got pros and cons in my experiences bcoz Samsung is also easy to produce over-warm coast and sometimes not real good, it is just too warm, though in your case I admit this time warm WB got real better result.
If you want a smaller phone, you can consider the upcoming S6 mini(SM-G9198) with 4.6" 720P, s808, 2GB ram, 16GB rom, NFC, 16MP rear camera, 5MP front camera. Sony focus is just all bad(actually the image quality isn't bad though you can't compete it with Note4/S6) and Samsung is like 10 times better when you talking about the speed and focus part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will be very interested to see how that 16mp cam performs, if its anything like the S5 or S6 I may very well convert. Especially if they get the nicer build of the S6 in too, Just please no glass back.
S6 build also means glass back. I have no problems with glass. I'm not too fond of the diplay, Pentile matrix means less subpixels (=less sharpness) and effective resolution similar to qHD. It's clearly visible (rubbih harpness/dottiness) and just bad for the money.
PuffDaddy_d said:
I couldn't agree with you more. I read an article where someone managed to compare the display of the Z3 vs the Z3+ and noticed that the plus has a warmer tone. Probably still to early to know is the camera software has improved any though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Z3+ takes warmer pictures indeed but there's even more digital noise reduction:
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majaczos said:
S6 build also means glass back. I have no problems with glass. I'm not too fond of the diplay, Pentile matrix means less subpixels (=less sharpness) and effective resolution similar to qHD. It's clearly visible (rubbih harpness/dottiness) and just bad for the money.
Z3+ takes warmer pictures indeed but there's even more digital noise reduction:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly, I can't even see the difference in color tone between these photos. At most, I see that the plus didn't focus properly in this shot.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact
PuffDaddy_d said:
Honestly, I can't even see the difference in color tone between these photos. At most, I see that the plus didn't focus properly in this shot.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here... its splitting hairs to say there is any difference in color tone. That could easily be randomness with the Z3 being warm in the next shot.
Look at the concrete. It's much warmer. Another pictures (from gsmarena):
Z3:
http://cdn.gsmarena.com/vv/reviewsimg/sony-xperia-z3/camera/gsmarena_015.jpg
Z3+:
http://cdn.gsmarena.com/vv/reviewsimg/sony-xperia-z3plus/camera/gsmarena_102.jpg
majaczos said:
Look at the concrete. It's much warmer. Another pictures (from gsmarena):
Z3:
http://cdn.gsmarena.com/vv/reviewsimg/sony-xperia-z3/camera/gsmarena_015.jpg
Z3+:
http://cdn.gsmarena.com/vv/reviewsimg/sony-xperia-z3plus/camera/gsmarena_102.jpg
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, yeah, the concrete does look warmer with the plus, but these are very obvious. Though, I question why it appears that so much time passed between shots. The sky is clear in one photo but is cloudy in the next. Overcast conditions will affect the white balance as well. Still a bit too soon for me to judge.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact
Cronis said:
I will be very interested to see how that 16mp cam performs, if its anything like the S5 or S6 I may very well convert. Especially if they get the nicer build of the S6 in too, Just please no glass back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no much info yet so I can't tell about S6 Compact but we can make some safe guess here and probably quite close to the true specification.
1. Probably used the new ISOCell 16MP to save cost. We all know that S6 got two sensors which is Sony IMX240 and Samsung ISOCell. This time the ISOCell is improved and better than the one on S5, so it is a 2nd gen. It got better color during at low light while IMX240 got more details. On day time, both sensors are almost identical. Mine S6 got IMX240.
2. OIS is removed for cost.
3. Aperture down to f/2.2 or f/2.4 depending the price strategic
If Samsung willing to give it a f/2.2 then it is safe to say it is a killer for Z3c though Z3c will still own some advantages like waterproof and best battery life. Not sure about microSD card thing. Consider it got a powerful s808 so as a small flagship, very possible to own a f/2.2 aperture.
https://shopmeenova.appspot.com/st/p/mrg2.html
I use this otg to solve my storage problem on S6.
Aperture eans nothing without sensor's size. Z3 can have higher aperture because IMX220 one of the biggest sensors on the (mobile) market right now.
We know nothing about the S6 mini, SM-G9198 sounds like SM-G9098's replacement:
http://gadgets.ndtv.com/samsung-sm-g9098-1608
majaczos said:
Aperture eans nothing without sensor's size. Z3 can have higher aperture because IMX220 one of the biggest sensors on the (mobile) market right now.
We know nothing about the S6 mini, SM-G9198 sounds like SM-G9098's replacement:
http://gadgets.ndtv.com/samsung-sm-g9098-1608
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it is impossible to be the next G9098 bcoz it got only 3.7" size while G9198 is 4.6" with such powerful s808 cpu, they are in total different market segment.
Aperture is real meaningful in any size bcoz my One S(8MP 1/3.2") got f/2.0 so I know about it and Iphone 5s/6/6+ got only 8MP 1/3" f/2.2 but they are doing very well at low light too.
TheEndHK said:
I think it is impossible to be the next G9098 bcoz it got only 3.7" size while G9198 is 4.6" with such powerful s808 cpu, they are in total different market segment.
Aperture is real meaningful in any size bcoz my One S(8MP 1/3.2") got f/2.0 so I know about it and Iphone 5s/6/6+ got only 8MP 1/3" f/2.2 but they are doing very well at low light too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe they want to reduce bezels? Or make it bigger? SM-G9098 has very powerful CPU as well, actually it was the most powerful back in 2014..
They're ok in low light situations (partially thanks to decent image processing) but you can't trick physics.
majaczos said:
Maybe they want to reduce bezels? Or make it bigger? SM-G9098 has very powerful CPU as well, actually it was the most powerful back in 2014..
They're ok in low light situations (partially thanks to decent image processing) but you can't trick physics.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
G9098 is 3.7" size while G9198 is 4.6", the different is big enough because there is no 4.6" size flip phone becoz when you put a 4.6" screen together with a physical keyboard, the phone will be very fat and large and customer will end up prefer to get a Note4/5 instead with similar size. But I like the good old day flip phone style, actually I want to see more coming out.
Thanks for all the help guys. Just thought I'd give an update if anyone is interested.
I still really dislike the z3c camera and was considering selling the phone and picking up a galaxy s6. I do however like the other aspects of the z3c, so I ended up buying a proper camera instead. I can use my wife's note4 for a quick snap if I don't have my camera nearby. It's a compromise, but I think it made more sense.

Mate 9 camera... AMAAAAZING!!!!

Just got my Mate 9, and I chose it for a number of reasons over the competition (Samsung S8+) and one of those reasons was the camera.
Yes of course the S8+ will have a better camera in many ways but the one thing no smartphone can do properly in moving targets like children (the reason I wanted it) is bokeh.
So of course the first thing I tried when I got it was wide aperture mode to see how good it actually is - is it a gimmick? a novelty? not that good? is the rest of the camera so awful that it negates this?
The answer is it is ABSOLUTELY BLOODY BRILLIANT. I have an expensive DSLR with an expensive lens to get those nice wide aperture shots but oh my God this thing is in a different league! We went down to the lake yesterday with our daughter and I was snapping away in wide aperture mode. Got back home and spent an hour or so with my wife going through all the shots altering the bokeh effect RETROSPECTIVELY. The results are purely STUNNING - like my DLSR if not better. But the real clincher is the fact that you can alter the bokeh effect as you wish, chaneg the amount, change what is in focus... print out two photos of the same scene but with different bokeh focus.... all of this done RETROSPECTIVELY, something I can never do with the DSLR.
I jsut don't see the need to take my big ehavy DSLR out anymore now I have this. AMAZING!
Yes the low light performance of the smallish aperture is not amazing, but then no smartphone I've come across is good enough in this regard anyway for me... and it's a small price to pay really for this amazing effect.
It really should be marketed more!
I'll do a proper review at some point I guess, but it's also worth mentioning that whilst colour reproduction isn't brilliant, the screen is phenomenally crisp and bright and looks sharper and clearer than my quad HD.
And the fingerprint sensor - OH MY GOD this is the quickest most amazing sensor EVER. I soppted usign the sensor on my old phone as too unreliable but this is like some sort of voodoo magic. AMAZING!
The feel - the most premium phone I have EVER had the pleasure of holding. EVER. Beats any Samsung or iPhone hands down. It's like the Bentley of phones in your hand.
Battery - I've not charged it in two days despite having everything on and taking photos and editing them loads. Does it run on magic?
Huawei in my mind have blown the competition out of the water with this phone. NOTHING can come close. I just look forward to the next gen which will hopefully have larger aperture cameras for the low light performance then it will pretty much be the perfect phone (if they sort out the sports GPS issue).
Welcome to the big league Huawei!!!
Thank you for sharing!
Maybe you should make a "the Huawei mate 9 camera and how to use it" tutorial or ebook (ebook if you want to earn some money)
I am not the pro, so a tutorial would be helpful (better a video) how to use the camera up to 100%!
On my Note 3 I have installed 20-25 camera apps and picture apps, here on my new Mate 9 I don't know if any other app works?
I have the feeling that any other app for the camera is just 10 steps backwards!
Again thank you for sharing this story!
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FootSlave said:
Thank you for sharing!
Maybe you should make a "the Huawei mate 9 camera and how to use it" tutorial or ebook (ebook if you want to earn some money)
I am not the pro, so a tutorial would be helpful (better a video) how to use the camera up to 100%!
On my Note 3 I have installed 20-25 camera apps and picture apps, here on my new Mate 9 I don't know if any other app works?
I have the feeling that any other app for the camera is just 10 steps backwards!
Again thank you for sharing this story!
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks FS and you're very welcome.
I'm the most novice of users when it comes to cameras so I'm in no position to do any tutorials but that raises a good point because if someone as novice as me can use it so well it just further goes to show how incredible this thing is!
Press the aperture button and then all shots you take can be bokeh'd afterwards. So elegant it's unbelievable. Good old German engineering! :good:
Yeah, I'm from Germany and KNOW Leica
Even found a Article (in german) named something like: "Huawei Mate 9: So you get everything out of the Camera"
Link: http://www.giga.de/smartphones/huaw...te-9-so-holst-du-alles-aus-der-kamera-heraus/
I think there should also be a really good one in english to follow it!
https://youtu.be/93_2TbuM6Ew
You may like this OP
Very very comprehensive
It's an excellent phone.
Very heavy in the hand though... like you said... Bentley
Sent from my MHA-L29 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
FootSlave said:
Yeah, I'm from Germany and KNOW Leica
Even found a Article (in german) named something like: "Huawei Mate 9: So you get everything out of the Camera"
Link: http://www.giga.de/smartphones/huaw...te-9-so-holst-du-alles-aus-der-kamera-heraus/
thanks.... and google traslates the article to english ...
I think there should also be a really good one in english to follow it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hanks.... and google translates the article to english ...
Interesting... I bought the mate 9 because of the camera but i am totally disappointed. Horrible photo quality, totally oversharpened and things which are wide away or in the corner of the pic completely blurred.
Before the 700€ mate 9 i had a 350€ allview x2 xtreme (blu pure xl) which had a much much better camera. So for photos i use my old phone again because i just HATE the look of the mate 9 photos, they hurt in my eyes.
Good to hear other viewpoints about that!
In my case I just can say that no other camera impressed me like this one!
Maybe it help you if you also read that article (translated) or search for a tutorial on how to get everything out of that Camera?
Or maybe the "Standard" Settings aren't that good as they say, and you (we) should start to use the PRO Modus?
Hi, looks like you're a professional. Is it possible if you share some of your shots using the Mate 9? I'd like to see the photos from someone who understands photography: D
The camera hw and sw on the Mate 9 is really amazing. It gives perfect control about the exposure, focus and shutter release are fast. Additionally there are some nice filters to choose from. Pictures get sharp and have good dynamic range for a smartphone camera. Bear in mind that this is a 12 MP sensor, I think it has pretty good low light performance but lacks some resolution. I see it as advantage.
If the results are really disappointing, you can try to delete data and cache of the camera app to reset the settings - or contact service.
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The overall look of the photos ist good, but if you zoom in, the photos from my mate 9 are just total ****, like from a normal cheap chinese 200€ phone camera. Really dissapointing.
And i DO understand something about photography. I also set focus manually before every shot because if i just press the camera button the photos are completely trash. But as you see, even with manual focus, it's not very good.
I have attached some shots I made on a walk on Poel Island, Timmendorf harbour.
Edit: As I see now, the images seem to get compressed massively during / after upload so attaching them here results in a hefty loss of quality.
Edit2: I decided not to leave them here, shrinked to 256kb each, as they do no justice to the Mate 9. Sorry.
NikiFue said:
Interesting... I bought the mate 9 because of the camera but i am totally disappointed. Horrible photo quality, totally oversharpened and things which are wide away or in the corner of the pic completely blurred.
Before the 700€ mate 9 i had a 350€ allview x2 xtreme (blu pure xl) which had a much much better camera. So for photos i use my old phone again because i just HATE the look of the mate 9 photos, they hurt in my eyes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess it depends on your expectations. I researched a lot too and realised its low light limitations and how the s7 or s8 would be better in that regard and technically some other cams on phones may take better photos. However I felt the difference in quality between different phones was minimal compared to phones and a real camera. Bit sharper here, better colour there, low light slightly better etc etc. Im not fussed.
But the thing that set this camera apart head and shoulders above any phone camera without any argument is the INCREDIBLE bokeh effect. Unlike other pathetic attempts by other phones this uses its two lenses elegantly and ingeniously. Everyone ive showed picture to has been mesmerised by the quality saying stuff like "this looks professional" "this is like a poster" etc without knowing why. Then i explain bokeh. And the fact that you can adjust bokeh AFTER the shot has been taken, well that's just a dream. Its exactly what i bought this thing for and it's delivered beautifully. To me it doesn't just blast phone competition out the water it beats my DSLR too because of this retrospective editing.
If i was expecting a good standard camera sure i might be a little disappointed but i knew what i wanted this for. The standard cam is id say above average. But the bokeh is simply genius. I've never had soooo many professional phenomenal photos of my baby daughter and ive only haf it 3 days! My wife even said last night "its a shame we didn't have this from when she was born."
applehater00 said:
I guess it depends on your expectations. I researched a lot too and realised its low light limitations and how the s7 or s8 would be better in that regard and technically some other cams on phones may take better photos. However I felt the difference in quality between different phones was minimal compared to phones and a real camera. Bit sharper here, better colour there, low light slightly better etc etc. Im not fussed.
But the thing that set this camera apart head and shoulders above any phone camera without any argument is the INCREDIBLE bokeh effect. Unlike other pathetic attempts by other phones this uses its two lenses elegantly and ingeniously. Everyone ive showed picture to has been mesmerised by the quality saying stuff like "this looks professional" "this is like a poster" etc without knowing why. Then i explain bokeh. And the fact that you can adjust bokeh AFTER the shot has been taken, well that's just a dream. Its exactly what i bought this thing for and it's delivered beautifully. To me it doesn't just blast phone competition out the water it beats my DSLR too because of this retrospective editing.
If i was expecting a good standard camera sure i might be a little disappointed but i knew what i wanted this for. The standard cam is id say above average. But the bokeh is simply genius. I've never had soooo many professional phenomenal photos of my baby daughter and ive only haf it 3 days! My wife even said last night "its a shame we didn't have this from when she was born."
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You're right, macro shots and the bokeh effect are great but they are irrelevant for me, i don't use it. I only use my phone camera for normal photos from landscapes, cities, buildings, streets... If i had known that the mate 9 camera is only good for bokeh effect photos and normal photos are only average, i wouldn't have bought that phone and this annoys me now. So much waste of money for a camera which is only specialised on features i do not use anyway.
NikiFue said:
You're right, macro shots and the bokeh effect are great but they are irrelevant for me, i don't use it. I only use my phone camera for normal photos from landscapes, cities, buildings, streets... If i had known that the mate 9 camera is only good for bokeh effect photos and normal photos are only average, i wouldn't have bought that phone and this annoys me now. So much waste of money for a camera which is only specialised on features i do not use anyway.
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Yeah that makes sense mate.
According to pro reviewers you really need to use pro mode to get the most out of the cam and then you get pretty good results, regardless of bokeh. But I'm not interested in that (yet)
The wide aperture lens pics I get with this phone are unreal. People have also asked me if I am a professional photographer and I laugh. Just as novice as the next guy.
Also in the right lighting it takes outstanding pics on normal settings. Way better than my s7edge.
Now in low light or certain lighting, it's not that good. My s7edge auto adjusts and focuses way faster and produces a better image. Even my note 5 is better. I tend not to take photos during those moments if I can.
Also any camera phone will lose qaility when you zoom way in. Invest in a Dslr if you are worried about that.
Camera is outstanding overall and I was skeptical at 1st, but when in the right lighting.... Just Wow!
Sent from my MHA-L29 using Tapatalk
Just bought mine and fell in love instantly with it. Altough I think Moto X-Force has the best camera EVER, Mate 9 isn't far behind.
Went to a rock concert a few days ago and took excelent photos from the stage (10x zoom) and some videos as well.
Still haven´t tried landscapes or nature, but so far, so good!
ChrisFrenzel said:
Just bought mine and fell in love instantly with it. Altough I think Moto X-Force has the best camera EVER, Mate 9 isn't far behind.
Went to a rock concert a few days ago and took excelent photos from the stage (10x zoom) and some videos as well.
Still haven´t tried landscapes or nature, but so far, so good!
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Click to collapse
what about sound in video recordings?
Excellent as well...
I had just bought the phone and didnt know the possibilities.´ - there is an 'enhance audio' option, very useful!

It might be impossible to fix this one Galaxy S20 Ultra autofocus issue

The Galaxy S20 Ultra’s ambitious camera system has been marred by autofocus issues ever since it was released, and while the company has largely addressed this with early firmware updates, one particular issue might not be as easy to fix.
Taking photos of close objects with the Galaxy S20 Ultra can lead to mixed results, and in the worst case scenarios, the camera fails to autofocus, leading to blurry shots. A Samsung moderator on Samsung members recently talked about this problem in a post on the Korean forums and revealed that it might not be possible to fix it with a firmware update.
The focal length is determined by the lens specifications
According to the Samsung moderator, the increased size of the S20 Ultra’s sensor results in a shallow depth of field and longer focal length of 10cm or more, therefore, it may fail to focus when photographing objects up-close. More importantly, because the focal length is determined by the lens specifications, this shortcoming is difficult to correct with software.
In other words, autofocus should no longer be an issue for the Galaxy S20 Ultra in general applications, but loss of focus can still occur at close range due to the focal length being longer than usual (the Galaxy S20 and S20+ have a slightly shorter focal length as they use a different main camera sensor). Basically, it’s a physical characteristic of the Galaxy S20 Ultra’s 108MP camera that owners of the device will have to live with.
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How do you think about this ? :crying:
Bad lens ?? why xiaomi not have this issue ?
Does Samsung call back S20 ultra ?
https://www.sammobile.com/news/impossible-fix-one-galaxy-s20-ultra-autofocus-issue/
Yeah I read it. I'm really disappointed with Samsung now, spent tons of money and we get this "engineering problem".
Will Note 20 have the same issue?!
stygi4n said:
Yeah I read it. I'm really disappointed with Samsung now, spent tons of money and we get this "engineering problem".
Will Note 20 have the same issue?!
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don't be disappoiinted, samsung don't talk about autofocus there, but about shooting close object like macro shot.
why don't people realized that the S20 ultra is not nuild to macro shot?
all devices with special lens for macro have macro mod in the photo software.
the main sensor is bigger than usual on phone device and like DSLR it's hard to make macro shot
Such a misleading title , surprised to see that from sammobile !! the moderator on the sourced forum is clearly talking about macro focus or narrow field of view on closer subjects , and sammobile stupidly understood it for autofocus.
Don’t worry. Samsung will be on fire with massive updates.
And no one is stupid here.
Plz correct if aim wrong. Term Autofocus is it not applicable for macro mode?
On S20/s20+, why Samsung use 12mp as primary camera?
Even on S20 if we use 64mp we have auto focus issue.
Do u see users blaming S20 for auto focus problem?
Defending is not correct. If there is a mistake, let that be pointed out. So at least mistake will not be repeated.
This is flagship device & the most expensive phone as of. Such mistakes are not acceptable.
More over if it could have been fix by software. Why it has not been addressed yet.
bala_gamer said:
Such a misleading title , surprised to see that from sammobile !! the moderator on the sourced forum is clearly talking about macro focus or narrow field of view on closer subjects , and sammobile stupidly understood it for autofocus.
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It's misleading. Yes there is focal length for lens but not sensor.
Mayb there is a translation error there, focal length has nothing to do with sensor.
Sent from my SM-G985F using Tapatalk
Whats misleading?
As an user i dont need to understand the physics. no one is interested. we need end result.
Auto focus can it be fixed or not?
VRaju said:
Whats misleading?
As an user i dont need to understand the physics. no one is interested. we need end result.
Auto focus can it be fixed or not?
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Auto focus is not the issue when it comes to macro shooting. Try opening your eyes wide open and place an object up close to them. It will be blurry. That is how the main sensor is set up. There isn't an issue with it. There was a reason the camera on the Ultra is different from the s20 and the plus. Those are geared more toward the average consumer. There are lenses the cost thousands of dollars that do exactly what the Ultra's does. It is the user's job to do some research before purchasing a product. If you like taking macro shots, the Ultra may not be the phone for you.
For a phone that was sold like a camera revolution and situated as the most expensive phone in the market and you can't compare it not even with a phone that cost have of his money ( Google Pixel 4XL is £750) is such dissapointing. I payed so much money ob this phone and I'm forced to take my old Pixel 3XL with me whenever I'm going out .. After the Note7 Saga I'm again dissapointed by Samsung for delivering such a poor professionalism regarding the release of their products.
VRaju said:
Whats misleading?
As an user i dont need to understand the physics. no one is interested. we need end result.
Auto focus can it be fixed or not?
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Click to collapse
The S20U takes very pleasant pictures, as mentioned the lens is supposed to work like that, since it has a fixed aperture. AF was indeed bad at the beginning but it has improved a lot. I am no Sammy fan, just my honest opinion, people should understand how physics of aperture and minimum focus distance
works.
I am very pleased with my phone and the pictures it takes. I am coming from an Xperia 1 and S8, for me the quality is absolutely amazing with recent updates.
VRaju said:
Whats misleading?
As an user i dont need to understand the physics. no one is interested. we need end result.
Auto focus can it be fixed or not?
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Click to collapse
no it cant be fixed just with software its a hardware issue 108 mp lense
Is taking a picture of a Check considered a Macro shot? Because if so I don't have any problems direct depositing checks to my bank with the phone camera. If your hands are not steady it will take an out of focus picture. But if you hold the camera still until after the picture is taken it comes out fine for me. But I am on the U.S. Snap Dragon version.
So u mean to say people must study and understand physics before they buy s20u. I dint know there was such criteria to buy phones these days...
All ur saying is don’t judge by the spec given by manufacturers. Users must be educated to buy phone. Haha
Even i like Samsung devices.given choice bw op8 pro and s20p..ill still go for s20p. But I don’t expect Samsung to deceive users with such crabs.
cletusindia said:
The S20U takes very pleasant pictures, as mentioned the lens is supposed to work like that, since it has a fixed aperture. AF was indeed bad at the beginning but it has improved a lot. I am no Sammy fan, just my honest opinion, people should understand how physics of aperture and minimum focus distance
works.
I am very pleased with my phone and the pictures it takes. I am coming from an Xperia 1 and S8, for me the quality is absolutely amazing with recent updates.
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Here is my take on this situation assuming it really can't be fixed.
I have been a loyal Samsung fan since the very first Galaxy S phone. I remember they had a promotion where i ended up getting the Avatar movie on an SD Card and i have been upgrading every year since then. The way i see it based on personal usuage, the problem is really with Close up pic or Macro shot. Besides that i really dont have an autofocus issue when it comes to taking regular pictures. It did had a focus hunting issue in video at launch but that has been fixed. Having said that this phone is everything i would want with a $1,400 price tag, great battery life, massive screen, crazy good display, smoothness etc. It still has an overall very good camera.
Yes, of course I would be happy if it had no issue whatsoever but i wont be like those we keep complaining about a very situational issue. Unless you have a hobby of taking macro shots like all the time, i really dont see the point of all of the complaints. As for me who dont take macro, i am still happily enjoying my device everyday.
Djapatos said:
Here is my take on this situation assuming it really can't be fixed.
I have been a loyal Samsung fan since the very first Galaxy S phone. I remember they had a promotion where i ended up getting the Avatar movie on an SD Card and i have been upgrading every year since then. The way i see it based on personal usuage, the problem is really with Close up pic or Macro shot. Besides that i really dont have an autofocus issue when it comes to taking regular pictures. It did had a focus hunting issue in video at launch but that has been fixed. Having said that this phone is everything i would want with a $1,400 price tag, great battery life, massive screen, crazy good display, smoothness etc. It still has an overall very good camera.
Yes, of course I would be happy if it had no issue whatsoever but i wont be like those we keep complaining about a very situational issue. Unless you have a hobby of taking macro shots like all the time, i really dont see the point of all of the complaints. As for me who dont take macro, i am still happily enjoying my device everyday.
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Well said, I find using pro mode, setting manual focus all the way down (flower icon) and then moving phone back and forth from subject until it's sharp works best for me. The peaking highlights (green) aren't always spot on so need to do some trial and error to get it where it works best for your case.
First Sorry for my bad English
1 , shoot a near subject (distance 3-10cm) is not marco shot.
Ss need to notify to customer about this feature ( or engineering problems ) before i bought this phone.
Loock at iphone 11 pro,huawei p40 pro, oppo find x2 pro,... it shoot well every distance even day light or low light picture are same quality with s20u.
2. Some people say buy gaming phone for play game .
Look at iphone and other phones again. Many phones do well everthing not like s20u
When i play pubg after 4- 5 round my phone is too hot, the phone very lagging than first round . why 1400$ phone can like that ?
Iphone 11 pro have 4000mah and it has battery onscreen longer than s20u 5000 mah
Samsung has problems and we need to tell samsung fix it and don't do that again. No one have many free time to tell "i have problems" when they don't have problems.
Sorry for my bad English.
Well said.
buy a ferrair car and get it pulled by manual car.
Couz many believe it was meant to be used like that.
Very strange comments & really hard to digest.
cpufrost said:
Well said, I find using pro mode, setting manual focus all the way down (flower icon) and then moving phone back and forth from subject until it's sharp works best for me. The peaking highlights (green) aren't always spot on so need to do some trial and error to get it where it works best for your case.
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Click to collapse
truonglam said:
First Sorry for my bad English
1 , shoot a near subject (distance 3-10cm) is not marco shot.
Ss need to notify to customer about this feature ( or engineering problems ) before i bought this phone.
Loock at iphone 11 pro,huawei p40 pro, oppo find x2 pro,... it shoot well every distance even day light or low light picture are same quality with s20u.
2. Some people say buy gaming phone for play game .
Look at iphone and other phones again. Many phones do well everthing not like s20u
When i play pubg after 4- 5 round my phone is too hot, the phone very lagging than first round . why 1400$ phone can like that ?
Iphone 11 pro have 4000mah and it has battery onscreen longer than s20u 5000 mah
Samsung has problems and we need to tell samsung fix it and don't do that again. No one have many free time to tell "i have problems" when they don't have problems.
Sorry for my bad English.
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Please define the distance of a macro shot.
Show us pictures made from 50 mm distance made by iPhone 11 pro,then magnify this picture 10x
I will be very surprised if the results are good.
Attached pics are made from 100,50 and 40 mm.
The only good result is the 100 mm picture,since even after 10x magnification the result is good .
All pics were made under identical conditions,
Phone on small wooden blocks of 40,50 and 100 mm thickness.
I think 100mm distance is the nearest distance you can make high quality photo's with any smartphone.
I don't even see this as an ultra issue. I have the S20 (non ultra, non +) and I swear none of my pictures are ever in focus. They all seem *just* out of focus and makes them all look terrible. It is really disappointing me.
jdubya42 said:
I don't even see this as an ultra issue. I have the S20 (non ultra, non +) and I swear none of my pictures are ever in focus. They all seem *just* out of focus and makes them all look terrible. It is really disappointing me.
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Click to collapse
can you try to clean your phone app data and wype cache?

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