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Post by zx9 on May 17, 2023 11:19:42 GMT
I love the fact that my phone can take pictures, it fills the place that was occupied most recently by my Canon G11 and previously by a zone focus / program exposure film compact.
It is small, easy to use, has ultra wide, wide and standard lenses and will easily produce an A3 image to hang on the wall or usable HD video. It is a visual pocket note book for me to scribble in.
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Post by andy on May 17, 2023 17:35:49 GMT
I love the fact that my phone can take pictures, it fills the place that was occupied most recently by my Canon G11 and previously by a zone focus / program exposure film compact. It is small, easy to use, has ultra wide, wide and standard lenses and will easily produce an A3 image to hang on the wall or usable HD video. It is a visual pocket note book for me to scribble in. I tend to use my phone instead of a compact these days too. It has 4 lenses; ultra wide, standard, macro and a soft focus lens which seems to be activated by portrait mode. It allows manual control and has a tilt level that you can line up with a grid in the "pro" mode.
Recently I've been playing about with an AI mode on it where it shoots a ten second video then produces a number of video clips and still images from it. It can pick the decisive moment, crop and add filters. Trying to time action shots with a phone can be very difficult but the AI seems to be able to do a pretty good job if it just by keeping the camera vaguely in the direction of the subject.  It also has a fun mode for silly snap chat filters and I really like the slow-mo modes too. |
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Post by Chester PB on May 17, 2023 20:58:28 GMT
Many people love their smartphones that takes pictures of good enough quality for their needs, without needing any knowledge of photography.
Convenience and ease of use are probably the most important things, not cost (a decent second hand camera costs less than the phone) or an image quality that allows large prints to be produced. A few years ago a work colleague of mine went on a trip to Venice, and the only photographs she could show me were on her mobile (with which they had been taken) and when I suggested one or two might be printed and framed she told me that 'nobody has prints anymore', they just share images on their mobiles or social media websites.
Even the National Trust, whose volunteers used to enforce a 'no photography' rule inside buildings, have now given up because prevention of the use of mobile telephones is impossible and any attempt to do so would probably soon get violent. Like Covid 19, mobiles are everywhere and we have to learn to ignore them as much as possible.
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Post by andy on May 17, 2023 21:44:06 GMT
Convenience and ease of use are probably the most important things.... They are certainly critical to making photography fun and gratifying for many but I think the way it makes us feel is the real driving factor. Even with a mobile phone taking pictures can be enjoyable, satisfying and bring joy to others. |
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Post by JohnY on May 18, 2023 12:16:16 GMT
Since getting a Pixel Pro (silly name)phone I have not been frustrated by not carrying my macro lens for the Nikon camera. Got any samples? I've been tempted to try a Pixel when considering the last couple of "upgrades". The macro camera on my current Samsung doesn't seem much better than having to use the main camera on the previous one. I noticed your post yesterday. The examples I had were adequate for identification of slime moulds but not really as good as the phone can produce. I took a few snaps in the garden today. The flowers in the shot below are about 13mm overall diameterThe first is a crop of the second one at 100%. Edit The first image was 744x888 but has been reduced by the forum software to 168 x 200. You can still see a lot of pollen. In bright light it is difficult to see the focussing area on the screen. I prefer to use my macro lens on my Nikon D500, however the phone camera (Pixel Pro 7) is good enough for making i.d.shots.
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Post by andy on May 18, 2023 13:09:11 GMT
Got any samples? I've been tempted to try a Pixel when considering the last couple of "upgrades". The macro camera on my current Samsung doesn't seem much better than having to use the main camera on the previous one. I noticed your post yesterday. The examples I had were adequate for identification of slime moulds but not really as good as the phone can produce. I took a few snaps in the garden today. The flowers in the shot below are about 13mm overall diameterThe first is a crop of the second one at 100%. Edit The first image was 744x888 but has been reduced by the forum software to 168 x 200. You can still see a lot of pollen. In bright light it is difficult to see the focussing area on the screen. I prefer to use my macro lens on my Nikon D500, however the phone camera (Pixel Pro 7) is good enough for making i.d.shots.
Thanks. Looks about as good as I've seen from phones. Not sure what recent Sonys are like though...I had one a few phones ago that could focus down to something like 1cm.
Macro mode might be a bit meh on mine but I've been surprised at the level of detail the main camera can record. First pic full pic resized, second pic crop resized.   |
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Post by mark101 on May 18, 2023 20:07:58 GMT
There was a time, not too long ago, when you had to have a fair amount of disposable income to own a camera, have the film processed & printed. My first exposure (pardon the pun) to cameras was my Dad's Box Brownie, and at the age of 8 I was given a Kodak Instamatic 126. Even at that time D&P was expensive and for the results from the 126 I doubt it was worth it and few pictures were taken. The real boom in the industry I think started in the 70's when there was more cash about, and mass produced cameras with lower unit costs driven by mass use and hi tech made the whole business cheaper for the consumer. I use my phone camera sometimes, when I don't access to a real camera, or just to record a snapshot. It does have a degree of manual control, if I wish to use it, but it's very much a case of point and shoot.
I believe there is still far more choice of cameras than in the 50s & 60s and I can see further reduction in brand line-ups and perhaps even less brands. But then again, whatever is used and can record a decent image is a useful tool,so perhaps growing up in the last sixty years has made us spoilt brats who just desire more and better toys.
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Post by Chester PB on May 19, 2023 16:31:01 GMT
so perhaps growing up in the last sixty years has made us spoilt brats who just desire more and better toys. of us perhaps, with the funds to indulge their desires. The rest learn to get the very best performance possible from something a few years old and still working perfectly, that they know is more than adequate for their needs. It's the knowing that many people find difficult. |
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Post by peterob on May 19, 2023 18:41:49 GMT
so perhaps growing up in the last sixty years has made us spoilt brats who just desire more and better toys. I used to want (=desire perhaps) things much more when I couldn't afford them. Now that I can, I can't get too excited about stuff. Either I can make good use of it or not. It is a needs-based elective decision not an impulsive one. Two generations down though, the "Iwantitis" is still going strong. I think it is more difficult now for youngsters because consumerism is much more rife and "have it now" rather than "save up for Christmas" is the expectation. |
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Post by JohnY on May 19, 2023 19:46:33 GMT
so perhaps growing up in the last sixty years has made us spoilt brats who just desire more and better toys. I used to want (=desire perhaps) things much more when I couldn't afford them. Now that I can, I can't get too excited about stuff. Either I can make good use of it or not. It is a needs-based elective decision not an impulsive one. Two generations down though, the "Iwantitis" is still going strong. I think it is more difficult now for youngsters because consumerism is much more rife and "have it now" rather than "save up for Christmas" is the expectation. People who have more money than sense put a lot of good kit into the second hand market. You may be jealous of their new acquisitions but provided that they recycle not hoard then everyone is better off. Incidently I am not a youngster, don't need to save up, am suffering from GAS and might splash some cash very shortly. |
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Post by nickr on Jun 1, 2023 8:19:26 GMT
I've been away for most of May, left the country right at the start to avoid the coronation (well OK, that was pure coincidence) and got back just in time to go to Twickenham at the weekend for a couple of rugby matches.
And - well, frankly I was rather surprised by just how many cameras I saw. I've always made a point of spotting what people are using when I'm on holiday, and these days, I don't expect to see that many. But I was wrong.
Saw a few film cameras about - all 35mm SLRs, mostly Pentax (4), but one Minolta, one Canon (a Canonflex RM, of all things) and one Nikon.
At a castle we visited, nearly half of everyone there had a DSLR (mostly) or mirrorless camera - I counted over 20 (well OK, 21), not counting my own (I had 2, one normal, one IR). And it wasn't that much different at other sites. Sure, on the beach, phones or nothing, but out and about, quite a lot of cameras.
We visited one small town where I have previously seen a camera shop selling a lot of old film gear, a bit of an Aladdin's Cave, and found to my surprise that there was another camera shop across the road, selling both new stuff and also a reasonable selection of old film gear too. Didn't have time to browse either seriously, though.
Found out that my daughter had taken my old Mju to a Beyoncé concert while we were away, and she took it to Twickenham to meet up with us too.
Oh, and the guy in front of us at Twickenham on Saturday was shooting with a Canon APS-C DSLR (didn't see the model) and 55-250 (that I COULD see), and a guy two rows behind was using a Nikon. Nice that they're allowed to take them in to a reasonably major sporting event.
So there are still people using actual cameras.
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Post by zou on Jun 1, 2023 13:06:39 GMT
When you mentioned 4 Pentaxes I was going to joke they were yours, but I see you went on to say what you were using.  |
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Post by andy on Jun 1, 2023 13:31:03 GMT
According to a recent factory tour video on YouTube Kodak are increasing production on film again, FWIW.
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Post by nickr on Jun 1, 2023 15:52:26 GMT
When you mentioned 4 Pentaxes I was going to joke they were yours, but I see you went on to say what you were using. Wouldn't be an unreasonable assumption. |
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Post by zou on Jun 1, 2023 16:43:22 GMT
According to a recent factory tour video on YouTube Kodak are increasing production on film again, FWIW. Not surprised, there appears to be no end of folk willing to pay their grossly inflated prices. Milk that market whilst they can. |
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