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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> Cell phone Pictures versus Camera
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08/29/2018 12:00:49 AM · #1
I am a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to cell phones. I have a land line, so if you want to call me, then phone me on that. But then I was out of commission for 11
Minutes
that no one could contact me, and father of the kids and kids freaked out,,,,, as they could not contact me for a whole 11 Minutes. I reiterate that point, as it was 11 Minutes out of 7 years, I was getting French Cheese btw) .. They have now provided me with a cell.
phone. Anyways,,,,,,,,,,,

I took some pictures with my camera, and then my son took some pictures on his phone/camera.

His are frigging outstanding (compared to my exact same photo) RAW , dull and not sharp pictures.

So question is (or at least 1 one of them)

Do the cell phones have a built in algorithm that instantly sharpens and brings out colours and filters that make it look edited?

Are the cell phones more advanced that our cameras if they do not have this algorithm?

Or is it that the glass is more advanced than camera's?

And the final question, if there was a challenge for Minimal editing, would cell phone pictures be allowed?

Curious minds abound!

08/29/2018 02:52:07 AM · #2
Depends on your cell phone of course, but yes, there are quite a few apps / plugins for phone cameras that mimic what you can get on your DSLR.

I know my son has taken some outstanding photos with his phone camera (he switches to manual mode and sets the ISO, shutter speed, etc.).

Like anything else that's new to you, practice, practice, practice to figure it out.

As for using your phone camera for challenge entries you just need to be careful with not altering the original exif data - so yes, I'm fairly certain you can use it for 'Minimal' challenge entries.

No doubt we'll have some SC peeps chiming in for confirmation. :-)
08/29/2018 05:59:28 AM · #3
I've been submitting exclusively with cell phone for several years now. Have got some ribbons and had many validated. But I can't speak for all camera models, but sending a test image to the SC should let you know if it has the required exif info
08/29/2018 10:27:05 AM · #4
Originally posted by JulietNN:

I am a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to cell phones. I have a land line, so if you want to call me, then phone me on that. But then I was out of commission for 11
Minutes
that no one could contact me, and father of the kids and kids freaked out,,,,, as they could not contact me for a whole 11 Minutes.

Ya know.... One of the reasons I do *NOT* have Bluetooth for my motorcycle is because I simply want to be out of communication while I recharge myself. This insistence on absolute availability at any moment I find particularly invasive. Leave a message..... I'll get back to you when it suits me.

On topic, I have gotten an HM with my cell. I prefer my brick, but sometimes....
08/29/2018 10:48:16 AM · #5
Yes, admissible in Minimal as long as you don't do anything to the image after the capture.
08/29/2018 10:59:17 AM · #6
Can it be in auto mode?
08/29/2018 11:47:22 AM · #7
Originally posted by Hipychik:

Can it be in auto mode?
Yes. You can also use pro setting to adjust aperture/shutter speed/ISO. You just can't add filters or anything like that. I understand many have uploaded directly from the phone, but I haven't tried.
08/29/2018 01:29:11 PM · #8
To answer Juliet's main question, the phones are applying all sorts of enhancement to the images to make them look crisp and saturated out of the box. Shooting RAW with a DSLR means you have opted to do all those enhancements yourself in post-processing. If you want instant gratification from the DSLR shoot JPG and dial in some pep from your setup options. Or shoot RAW + JPG and get the best of both worlds.
08/29/2018 04:08:10 PM · #9
Our Real Estate Photography business has taken a hit since the innovation of iphone photography. Agents just use their phones to shoot listings and upload them to the MLS eliminating the need for professional photography. The phones have editing capability as does the MLS so editing can be done prior to uploading. Agents also use their iphones to shoot walk-thru videos.
08/29/2018 04:29:00 PM · #10
Originally posted by Bear_Music:

To answer Juliet's main question, the phones are applying all sorts of enhancement to the images to make them look crisp and saturated out of the box. Shooting RAW with a DSLR means you have opted to do all those enhancements yourself in post-processing. If you want instant gratification from the DSLR shoot JPG and dial in some pep from your setup options. Or shoot RAW + JPG and get the best of both worlds.


Hmm, that was my thinking, even when I took a picture of an edited picture with the cell phone, it looked even better than the already edited one. More sharp, clean and more colour. SO was wondering if they did all the tweaking with some program already built in or if it was just amazing optics etc.

Which then lent itself to the 3rd question of whether that would be legal in Minimum.

Interesting answers all around. I know my cell phone camera does not take the best pictures compared to my sons, but it stuns me every time I see a picture and how much you can zoom in and it is still as clear as day.

08/29/2018 04:47:37 PM · #11
Originally posted by JulietNN:

Which then lent itself to the 3rd question of whether that would be legal in Minimum.

The short answer is, you may dial in the pre-exposure settings you want in both dSLR and phone cams and that will be legal in Minimal Editing, BUT... this doesn't apply to "effects" settings and the like: soft-focus, snapseed, a whole laundry list of "enhancements" for phonecams that essentially do in-camera what we at DPC would call "post-processing".

We can't be more specific than that because there are so darned many apps to modify pictures, and if we specified the ones that aren't legal then folks would assume unlisted apps ARE legal, and who could keep up? So you need to bear in mind the spirit Minimal Editing: it's designed to generate straight-from-the-camera, unedited imagery such as you'd get in the old days using color slide film.
08/29/2018 05:35:23 PM · #12
Well, I think you are all safe from me using a cell phone picture . Half the time I can even hang up the phone as I am pressing the wrong button.
08/29/2018 05:43:40 PM · #13
Juliet, did you try to look at your son's phone photos on a computer screen? What I found with my Samsung S7 phone photos, they often look great on the phone, but look heavily processed and plasticky on a computer. Perhaps they use algorithms that are specially designed for phone viewing...?

Message edited by author 2018-08-29 17:45:26.
08/29/2018 06:21:34 PM · #14
Originally posted by LevT:

Juliet, did you try to look at your son's phone photos on a computer screen? What I found with my Samsung S7 phone photos, they often look great on the phone, but look heavily processed and plasticky on a computer. Perhaps they use algorithms that are specially designed for phone viewing...?


I haven't actually, I will have a look. It is all new to me, didn't even know you could do ISO or any of that stuff.
08/29/2018 08:00:01 PM · #15
I've occasionally entered a phone cam shot when I didn't have a real camera with me and ran across something good. One was even taken with a cheap clip-on wideangle and it did an acceptable with-the-pack finish.
08/30/2018 10:23:26 AM · #16
Here are a couple of cell phone pictures my son took, no editing. I know I could never get this clarity, without a tripod (and macro?), even I think in Jpeg or this close. (probably cus I would be internally screaming my head off)

Ridge Nosed Rattlesnake jut a few weeks old

and

Carolina Wolf Spider taken with a headlight

Message edited by author 2018-08-30 10:26:22.
08/30/2018 11:16:36 AM · #17
[quote=JulietNN] Here are a couple of cell phone pictures my son took, no editing. I know I could never get this clarity, without a tripod (and macro?), even I think in Jpeg or this close. (probably cus I would be internally screaming my head off)

My first thought was about youth having steady hands, and boys often being less squeamish about spiders and snakes (although one of my daughters has the same inclinations, so that is not a gender-specific trait).

Perhaps more likely, low and close images can be done with cell phone edge against the ground (or against the glass of an enclosure) to lend steadiness similar to tripod effect. Actual adaptors are available for attaching cell phone to tripod, but kind of eliminates ability to put entire kit in pocket.

Go the "equipment" tab in DPC header, navigate to cell phone pages, look at high scores and ribbons achieved with phone photography.
08/30/2018 01:35:25 PM · #18
Originally posted by digifotojo:

Our Real Estate Photography business has taken a hit since the innovation of iphone photography. Agents just use their phones to shoot listings and upload them to the MLS eliminating the need for professional photography. The phones have editing capability as does the MLS so editing can be done prior to uploading. Agents also use their iphones to shoot walk-thru videos.

Realtors around here have discovered HDR. It's almost funny how atrociously heavy-handed they are with them, too.

It's downright false advertising. I look at them and can tell they look nothing like the actual building.

08/30/2018 08:15:46 PM · #19
to answer one of your questions, the DSLR has better glass than the phone just like a Leica lens from 50 years ago has better glass than your DSLR.

Glass hasn't changed. Take comfort in that.
08/30/2018 10:05:12 PM · #20
Originally posted by JulietNN:

Here are a couple of cell phone pictures my son took, no editing. I know I could never get this clarity, without a tripod (and macro?), even I think in Jpeg or this close. (probably cus I would be internally screaming my head off)

Ridge Nosed Rattlesnake jut a few weeks old

and

Carolina Wolf Spider taken with a headlight


Very nice shots. I don't think you would be at a safe distance shooting a rattlesnake closeup with a cell phone...maybe the baby snake was safer, but I wouldn't have done it!

Remember, there's only one lens (or two), and no zoom lens!
08/30/2018 10:57:28 PM · #21
The ridge nose, is particularly venomous. It had been caught in the rain and very low temperatures that night. So very docile. So could get closer to that particular one and it is one that is not on the endangered list (Mexican Ridge Nose Rattlesnake, Crotalus willardi). But last night, there was about 5-6 Western Diamondback's whilst herping, the largest being about 3.5 feet that was taken off a road for being notorious for drag racing. The other day, we had a Diamonand Back at around 5.5 feet sunning itself on the track and looked like he had eaten about 6 chicken eggs, so fat! We have tons of pictures from herping, from coatimundi, scorpions, snakes, camel spiders, all the venomous spiders, tree frogs, toads, tarantulas nearly all the endangered snakes in South, but not yet had the privilege of the Arizona Black Rattlesnake, (Crotalus cerberus). Did get the Ring-necked Snake (Diadophis punctatus) though, that was totally cool and so colourful.

The kids have been herping and handling since they where about 4 years old, then 2 docents in the family from the Desert Museum teaching them with over 60 years experience between them.

I have to say I am glad of the phone's camera's none of the shots we have, would have been possible to set up really in the wild like this. And from all your explanations, I am understanding a bit more about cell phone and cell camera's and how they work. It really is abotu education and learning things and you guys are the best with all the varied answers and explanations.
So

THANK YOU!!!!!!

Rambling a bit there, okay kinda a lot, sorry.
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