A500 Camera and Recording improvment? - Acer Iconia A500

Sorry if this topic has already been brought up but has anyone thought about the ability to improve our camera and camera recording quality?
I mean the camera is pretty good and takes decent pictures and also records pretty ok, but there's always room for improvement
Maybe some codecs swaps here and there or increasing the jpeg compression or something. I'm no expert in these areas but I thought it may be something for the skilled dev's to be interested in and of course we all can be test bunnies.
Hope alot of you get into this, let's make the most of out glorius Acer Iconia! And put other tabs to shame! Hear Hear!

I was trying to do some pictures and the camera is out of focus.
When you press the shutter icon the camera is doing the focus, you can see that is passing through a position where the picture is really sharp and crispy but unfortunately isc not stopping there.
I was trying different applications from the market without success.
Looks that is a software problem.
Do not forget that Acer has not too much experience with digital photography.
In comparison the photos taken with my Omnia 2 phone (also a 5M camera if I remember corectly) are super duper.
Let's hope that Acer will correct this issue in the next updates/upgrades

Same results, must be a software issue, shutter activation not synched with focus lock properly resulting in blurry, soft images.

I didnt think of that at all but yes its true.
But the next update is for Honeycomb Android UI only 3.0 to 3.1
But there must be someone that be creative about this and create a modd of some kind.

There is definately a software issue here, try this............
Take a shot on autofocus and then change focus setting to infinity and take the same shot.
On auto, the shot will be blurry, on infinity it will be sharp.
Dont think this is a HC issue, something Acer has to fix.

Not sure if you guys know this or not, but you need to hold the button until it focuses completely. If you just tap the button it will take a blurry pic. It was pissing me off to no end until I relized that lol.

Great find! I didn't know this.
Sent from my A500 using XDA Premium App

I hold the button, and it'll do its focus thing, but it still goes past being clear and in focus and to blurry. Its definitely a software Issue I feel. It CAN focus and I see it in focus, but it goes right back to being blurry before I unpress the button. :-\

Is matter of camera driver I think, I've tried with other free apps from the market but no improvments.
I did not bought FXCamera, only in pay version is supporting 5M camera so I can not be 100% sure that is the camera driver or Acer camera app.
Did anybody used the FXCamera full version?

peejayw said:
There is definately a software issue here, try this............
Take a shot on autofocus and then change focus setting to infinity and take the same shot.
On auto, the shot will be blurry, on infinity it will be sharp.
Dont think this is a HC issue, something Acer has to fix.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My point exactly its acer that has to fix the camera.
Thanks for the infinity thing, spread the Acer minions!

I was very frustrated with my A500's camera until I read heathen's post. Thanks! I hadn't thought of holding the button down, but when I do it definitely autofocuses to a sharp image. Then I release the button and get a perfect shot. I'm using Android 3.2 so perhaps Acer did do some kind of fix. As others noted, the shutter still fires before the camera has focussed if I simply press the button and release. (Is this a feature or a bug? ) What's the point of having the button operate in 2 modes?

robcox said:
I was very frustrated with my A500's camera until I read heathen's post. Thanks! I hadn't thought of holding the button down, but when I do it definitely autofocuses to a sharp image. Then I release the button and get a perfect shot. I'm using Android 3.2 so perhaps Acer did do some kind of fix. As others noted, the shutter still fires before the camera has focussed if I simply press the button and release. (Is this a feature or a bug? ) What's the point of having the button operate in 2 modes?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This hold and focus feature is also on my android phone android 2.2.so its the same.my Iconia takes great pictures.just holding still is the key.
Videos are not so good.
But i have a awesome Nikon digital camera for real pics.

Under 3.01 and 3.1 when you held down the shutter there was a beep when focus locked. This does not seem to happen under 3.2 but it seems that you don't have to hold down the shutter any more, and I get proper focus with a simple shutter press.

Related

Camera focus troubles in macro mode

I was trying to shoot some macro pics but I'm having troubles to get objects in focus. It looks like a software bug because whilst focusing I can see the object becomes sharp at a certain point but the camera keeps on going deeper so that the object is out of focus again. Then it stops and the marker turns red.
I'm running on the latest KE2 FW. Cam FW is TBEC28.
Anybody else experienced the same?
Same here. When taking a shot i can see it go into focus, but then goes out of focus and shows the red markers
same here. I just try a slightly different area to focus on, until the camera succeeds focusing. Not a big deal to me really.
up to what distance can you approach the object till you get focus problems?
El Salvador said:
up to what distance can you approach the object till you get focus problems?
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Click to collapse
i think i am getting easy focus at 7-8 inches, difficult (or no) focus closer than that. but it may depend on the subject.
kreoXDA said:
i think i am getting easy focus at 7-8 inches, difficult (or no) focus closer than that. but it may depend on the subject.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you make a picture that far away, I don't think you can call it a macro shot anymore.
I can get a decent focus in macro mode up to 4 inch or so. If I go closer, I can't get a decent focus anymore, though I'm used to go closer at around 2 inch. But that aint gonna work in my case.
Besides, at 4 inch normal auto focus works nice as well. So there's not really a purpose for a macro mode if you can't shoot pictures closer than that.
El Salvador said:
If you make a picture that far away, I don't think you can call it a macro shot anymore.
I can get a decent focus in macro mode up to 4 inch or so. If I go closer, I can't get a decent focus anymore, though I'm used to go closer at around 2 inch. But that aint gonna work in my case.
Besides, at 4 inch normal auto focus works nice as well. So there's not really a purpose for a macro mode if you can't shoot pictures closer than that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah agree.
i just played with lighting and achieved focusing at about 5 inches.
kreoXDA said:
yeah agree.
i just played with lighting and achieved focusing at about 5 inches.
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Click to collapse
Yup that's about the closest distance I can achieve as well. But if you compare a macro shot and an auto focus shot at this distance, there's not really much of a difference between the pics. So again, if you can't get a focus at a closer distance in macro modus, then what's the purpose of macro modus?
El Salvador said:
I was trying to shoot some macro pics but I'm having troubles to get objects in focus. It looks like a software bug because whilst focusing I can see the object becomes sharp at a certain point but the camera keeps on going deeper so that the object is out of focus again. Then it stops and the marker turns red.
I'm running on the latest KE2 FW. Cam FW is TBEC28.
Anybody else experienced the same?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In low-light conditions?
hazart said:
In low-light conditions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In artificial light conditions, right under my halogen lamp
I've found if you tap to focus once when in Macro mode, it'll then let you focus with the shutter button. But until I tap to focus, I get the red crosshairs all the time and it can't get focus properly.
i use vignette cause it focus properly at lower distances
macro/non macro doesnt seems to make any diff
Hm maybe I should give vignette a try then. But the question still remains.. why are you putting a macro shot option in there when the autofocus modus gives you the same results, if not better.
I'm surprised that this subject doesn't get much attention. Where are the photographers?
I think it's due to software, or just a bug i don't know because i use camera360 it takes better marco shot.
El Salvador said:
Hm maybe I should give vignette a try then. But the question still remains.. why are you putting a macro shot option in there when the autofocus modus gives you the same results, if not better.
I'm surprised that this subject doesn't get much attention. Where are the photographers?
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Click to collapse
i sort of agree
i didnt see much diff in macro on the sgs either. dunno what its really supposed to do xD
I often would like to have closer shots and the camera seems to be able to focus - but the software refuses the result and you've to be slightly further away from the object (even on vignette, albeit its better)
Yup it's really strange. I hope Sammy will fix this in the next update. It definately seems like a flaw in the software.
btw the sgs1 has the same behavior but not nearly as pronounced
Yes, same problem here. Impossible to scan barcodes or use Goggles.
Just encountered that focus problem too. Wasn't able to scan barcodes with two different apps
I'm on KE2. Can someone confirm this is a software error or a hardware defect?
I'm running on the latest KE2 FW , same here ..

Camera quality is bad

So I've been taking a few pictures on my phone, and I have noticed that the Galaxy S2 is very very inconsistent in taking quality photos. I can have a great clear shot of some mid-ranged photos, but far distanced photos have horrible quality. I understand if you take pictures of something really far, obviously it won't be that good, but when I compared to my friends iPhone 4, the 8MP is barely on par with it. Do any of you know what might be the problem? I've tried using auto focus and manual focus, but it is always blurry.
It seems to be an hardware problem. I find the sgsw camera pretty good, especially the dynamic range. My only concern is with indoor pictures, a bit noisy and cold.
Can you upload and provide some shots samples?
Everything on auto? It might help to know which ROM/mod you are using.
I'm not an expert in mobile digital photography but if I can see your blurry distant shots it might be able to tell if I get better result with my device.
The S2 tends to like low shutter speeds (1/4s - 1/20s) ALL the frigging time.
It will select this slow shutter speed even when it should raise the ISO and get a faster shutter speed.
This is why the S2 often takes blurry photos, because even 1/15 or 1/19sec is not fast enough to take a photo sharply with a 28mm lens (effectively what the S2 is).
The slowest shutter speed the S2 should use is 1/30sec to ensure the photos aren't blurred by *camera* vibration/shake. (But, if the *subject* is moving, like a child, then 1/60s or 1/80s are the minimum that are needed to freeze the subject).
This is why the photos are so often blurry as soon as the light gets slightly low - cloud day, in shade, etc. I don't have a solution sorry!
Proof: check the EXIF data of the blurry photos you take. Most will have a stupidly low ISO (like ISO25, ISO50) and a stupid low shutter speed.
Yes I have noticed that the shutter speeds are quite low...now I'm assured that its not just me
I can take SOME really good photos, but almost every other pictures are very blurry even at a close distance.
Everything is on default, except I have enabled Anti-Shake or something like that, and I am using CheckROM 3.1.1 (KJ3)
The first 2 are taken at a considerably good range, with no zoom or any effects, just a normal shot, but then the outcome was very weird.
The last one was a closer shot, but in a darker area, and that one was a little bit more clear
I don't want to be captain obvious, and I am sure you are a better photographer than me but can you check if the focus mode is set to macro if it is then change to auto focus.
Since this happened to me once i set to macro and forgot and all the photos were blurry.
I just felt that might be the reason.
I am guessing that what you're doing is pressing on the "Capture" button without focusing on the subject yet?
I do find that it's best to press to focus on the area you want to take and then press the main capture button to capture it. It seems like the focus hasn't focused on what you want to take.
It's quite annoying because then that means I have to press in the middle and then press the capture button to take a decent shot. I wish I could just hold down the capture button to focus, then release to shoot.. which works sometimes but not as good as what I said above.
Here you have 2 images, far and close focus. You can see the great quality of the camera. Take a look at the focus settings: better in auto mode if you don't want to manage it in all photos. Maybe you have some problem in the camera hardware... so warranty is the best option here.
There are at least 2 types of camera modules in SGS II.
Check this:http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1098834
Mine also had this problem (blury at far objects), the soultion is set the metering to matrix in camera menu.It works for me.
iocar said:
Yes I have noticed that the shutter speeds are quite low...now I'm assured that its not just me
I can take SOME really good photos, but almost every other pictures are very blurry even at a close distance.
Everything is on default, except I have enabled Anti-Shake or something like that, and I am using CheckROM 3.1.1 (KJ3)
The first 2 are taken at a considerably good range, with no zoom or any effects, just a normal shot, but then the outcome was very weird.
The last one was a closer shot, but in a darker area, and that one was a little bit more clear
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
are you using macro mode to take farer objects ?
thats why it is more clear when you are taking photo of the specimen (3rd one)
or the camera firmware is broken , if not ,it may be the hardware issue
I always touch the place where I want to focus, and that is why I am confused
Yes I was using Macro, but only because it had the best quality...Auto-Focus doesn't really help as it never focus properly, as in when I press the "Capture" button, most of the time it goes to red and doesn't turn green. I am holding the phone still and don't know why
The camera firmware is also up to date
What I don't get is that my old HTC Desire can take photos that are much more crisp than my Galaxy S2
Try resetting the camera settings see if that works,try a third party HDR camera app or Camera 360,if quility is still bad in the 3rd party app then it could be a hardware fault
Sichroteph said:
My only concern is with indoor pictures, a bit noisy and cold.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
auto contrast I find helps take better indoors
Cant say I've had any problems with the camera. Love the macro focussing.
It seems obvious that your device doesn't behave like it should and have focus problems. I can have the exact same results with macro mode activated (and not shooting close objects)
I would suggest :
- trying another camera app (like TheiPhoneKiller suggested)
- trying a totally stock rom
- trying a rom like CM7 or MIUI
If you still got totally unfocused shots, you may very well have an faulty device. Try to get a replacement unit if you can.
(And did you try the fix kisstom suggested?)
Well... my shots is certainly much more grainy, since i upgraded to 2.3.5 - even if shot outside in bright sunshine. And many of the pictures is becoming more yellow than before - especially when using the flash-LED, so something has happened when i upgraded... this is one of my big complaints about the new upgrade. My old W800i 2Mpx beats the SGS2 in pure quality of the pictures now (but that was also, and still is, a VERY good camera for a phone)...
When comparing the newest pictures to some of the old pictures i have shot in the past, it's clear to me that i have a loss of quality since upgrading. How do i check manually, if there's a new camera-software version available - as i can't seem to find any in the Samsung apps, even if i have read somewhere that there's a newer one, comparing to my version of the camera-software???
But a least it's still not as crappy as my old HTC's camera - THAT was lousy...
Frankly speaking, 'Camera quality is bad' makes no sense. If you've said it's bad than this or that then I'd take it. Have used all the SE phones as I loved their image quality and I'll say after playing with the Satio, C905 I don't think this one would beat them. We are talking about a small image sensor here. So the main job is how good the post image processing is, some part still depends on the lens though.
The thing is I didn't buy this one for camera, believe me or not, after purchase, that is almost six months now, I've shot barely 10 pics with it. For normal usage and as a professional can't go without 350D, and for short tours and holidays I still shoot with my C905 , but not GSII.
But still this Camera is capable of taking some great pics, posting some of them here, after seeing them you certainly can't say Camera quality is bad.
The very bests I've found,
-> ithehappy
Well - i used to have that image quality too, but it has become somewhat impossible to shot such good pictures, since upgrading... i suspect that it's because my camera firmware still is TBEC28 (but of course not sure of it)
iocar said:
I always touch the place where I want to focus, and that is why I am confused
Yes I was using Macro, but only because it had the best quality...Auto-Focus doesn't really help as it never focus properly, as in when I press the "Capture" button, most of the time it goes to red and doesn't turn green. I am holding the phone still and don't know why
The camera firmware is also up to date
What I don't get is that my old HTC Desire can take photos that are much more crisp than my Galaxy S2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Confused!!! Are you saying that you always have macro focus on?
If so then turn it off. My cousin complained about the exact same thing, blurry and red box when trying to focus. Went through his settings, turned macro off and everything was good again.
Also auto focus will not work correctly if macro is on, unless your taking really close range pics, which is what macro focus is for.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
well i am on 2.3.5 Images are really Perfect for me am seriously impressed the Quality iam on kI8 here is one example
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/708/20111118205552.jpg
iocar said:
Yes I was using Macro, but only because it had the best quality
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's exactly why your pictures are blurry at a distance.
Macro focus is for close-up pictures, use auto focus for longer distances

[Q] Autofocus must be bugged, right? It refuses to focus except with direct light

I love everything about the Nexus 4 except the camera. The autofocus is having serious trouble unless you have a LOT of light. Compared to other smartphones, it seems to be broken. Does anyone else have this problem? Also, I've used 2 Nexus 4's, so I'm sure this is a software issue. Have any past Nexus devices had similar issues and been fixed?
Thanks!
I don't have that problem. Both with normal and HDR mode. In HDR mode it can be blurry, but not because out-of-focus but rather because my hands move while the phone still taking the picture (it takes more than one picture to create a HDR picture)
Also, I do notice that even in normal mode the camera actually takes longer to take the picture than one would expect, so usually holds your hand steady for a few extra seconds do the trick.
I hope that helps.
whittikins said:
I love everything about the Nexus 4 except the camera. The autofocus is having serious trouble unless you have a LOT of light. Compared to other smartphones, it seems to be broken. Does anyone else have this problem? Also, I've used 2 Nexus 4's, so I'm sure this is a software issue. Have any past Nexus devices had similar issues and been fixed?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I have the same exact problem. It's very annoying and makes me feel like my phone is defective.
Stretch3000 said:
Yes, I have the same exact problem. It's very annoying and makes me feel like my phone is defective.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. My N4 16GB refuses to take any macro shots. The auto focus keeps engaging and is extremely annoying. The video recording seems ok, but the picture taking is atrocious.
I think I'm getting the same thing... but then, I started to think maybe it was psychological. You know, the circle showing you constant auto focusing? It moves so much, it makes you feel the "focus bouncing" much more than it would do if all you saw was the picture being focused only.
Well, that's my theory, anyways.
Any 'fix' for this?
Ivan Fuentes Hagar said:
I think I'm getting the same thing... but then, I started to think maybe it was psychological. You know, the circle showing you constant auto focusing? It moves so much, it makes you feel the "focus bouncing" much more than it would do if all you saw was the picture being focused only.
Well, that's my theory, anyways.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was trying to take a picture of my old Sensation XE to put on ebay but the N4 just wont focus well enough, it constantly focuses and refocuses. Its hugely frustrating and disappointing for a phone this powerful. Has anybody had any success perhaps with different software? There doesnt seem to be any kind of 'macro mode' built into the JB app?
Yes, I find the camera to be bad too, especially the autofocus that fails to focus on objects that are further away.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
Unless you are using tap to focus... if the camera is refocusing it is because your hands are not steady, which most likely is also the reason your shots are blurry.
I have noticed that the default program tends to set shutter speeds low to get the ISO down, but anything under 1/60th is going to take steady hands or a tripod. Consider using action mode to tell the camera you want it to use higher shutter speeds (but be aware this will cause more noise in low light due to higher ISO settings).
I've noticed this alot, when I try and take a close up photo, say of a phone, with the flash on, I use touch to focus and the flash turns on for a split second, and the green circle comes up saying it's focused, when it's badly out of focus, it seems to be a bit better with the flash off, but I've noticed the best improvement, whilst still not great, is pressing the shutter button before it focuses, so no ring on the screen, then it seems to have more luck focusing.
I honestly haven't had any problem with this. I have noticed the flash turning on briefly when focusing in low-light conditions, but the resulting pictures turn out fine.
Dunno if this will help, but someone on another thread suggested holding down (basically long-pressing) the capture button, waiting for the camera to focus, then releasing when you actually want to take the picture.
I don't have this issue either. Sorry to go a little off-topic but what is 'HDR'?
309041291a said:
what is 'HDR'?
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Click to collapse
High dynamic range. The camera uses multiple exposures of the same image to generate more levels from shadows to hilights.
I think the problem lies in the new Camera app in 4.2. I had this same problem with my Galaxy Nexus when I updated to 4.2 so I reverted back to 4.1.
Now with Nexus 4 the problem seems to presist, but only when trying to focus very close.
the issue I have is with PA (so maybe not hardware related), but videos don't focus, only the camera function (unless I've not worked out how).
---------- Post added at 05:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:59 PM ----------
Very helpful, was having same issue (no autofocus) with the wonderful PA ROM on the (so far) fun Nexus 4.
Only real issue I've had with it so far, good to be past it (hard to know where to look).
Clearly I have no idea what radio even means, time to read.
Same problem here
nellisere said:
I've noticed this alot, when I try and take a close up photo, say of a phone, with the flash on, I use touch to focus and the flash turns on for a split second, and the green circle comes up saying it's focused, when it's badly out of focus, it seems to be a bit better with the flash off, but I've noticed the best improvement, whilst still not great, is pressing the shutter button before it focuses, so no ring on the screen, then it seems to have more luck focusing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I subscribe to you + it makes a noise at focus
---Lg nexus 4 - Android 4.4---
Same Issue w/ my Nexus 3
Must be software related...I have the same issue with my nexus 3. Completely unable to take photos at certain distances...

Is it just my Z2 or is camera focus a problem.

I love the camera on the Z2... when it focuses properly.
I've never had such a bad phone at focussing!
I also get the odd shot that's over processed into a mush but that's another story and something all mobile cameras can do on occasions.
Went to my eldest's first nativity play today and tried to film it, end result the back of people's heads in front of us were in focus but the kids on stage?
Nah they were a blurry mess.
It's not just the constant focus seeking for no reason in videos that annoys me either.
With stills, generally it's 50/50 if I get a focussed shot or not.
When I do the results are fantastic (as long as you use manual white balance)
Half the time the camera doesn't focus properly with touch focus or doesn't focus where you want it.
If I just try infinity focus and let the camera sort itself out I get a few pictures that the camera focuses on nothing, the entire shot is out of focus.
Never had these problems with the M8, Note2, GS2 that preceded my Z2 so I don't think it's me.
I know that the Z2 has focus problems in less than brilliant light which doesn't help (unlike the M8) but it's making my mobile photography pretty hit and miss.
Unfortunately the shot often looks fine on the phone but when viewed on a large PC monitor it's obvious the shot is useless.
It's seriously making me consider leaving the Sony stable in the next generation next year which would be a real shame because the phone itself is the best Android out there for me at the moment.
Sony really have to sort out their camera processing, if Apple can do it with a Sony lens there should be no excuse for Sony.
Either it's just a Sony thing or my phone is faulty but like I said some of the pictures I take have stellar focus and colour balance but on the whole... not.
Sorry just needed to vent some frustration!
First of all this must be moved to Q & A threat,second - After the 4.4.4 update the Superior auto mode is even crappier then 4.4.2,so if you make your photos that way...its normal.Try playing with the Manual mode with 20mpxls and if you want a full focused picture - go with Multifocus mode and Multi metering,and ofcourse this is just the beginning.If you still experience those kind of focus problems see if ur camera glass antireflection coating is not removed. / scratched/ (the glass itself is not scratched.) If so - give it to sony centre for repair. You can check when putting the glass on bright light.
effective said:
First of all this must be moved to Q & A threat,second - After the 4.4.4 update the Superior auto mode is even crappier then 4.4.2,so if you make your photos that way...its normal.Try playing with the Manual mode with 20mpxls and if you want a full focused picture - go with Multifocus mode and Multi metering,and ofcourse this is just the beginning.If you still experience those kind of focus problems see if ur camera glass antireflection coating is not removed. / scratched/ (the glass itself is not scratched.) If so - give it to sony centre for repair. You can check when putting the glass on bright light.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, for the advice.
I must admit I have started using Manual mode more often than Auto now because under artificial light all the auto shots turn out orange and over processed.
I'll try Multifocus and metering now.
kibbster said:
Thanks, for the advice.
I must admit I have started using Manual mode more often than Auto now because under artificial light all the auto shots turn out orange and over processed.
I'll try Multifocus and metering now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to configure the focus tô touch or center,may solve you problems .
FrosteezBR said:
Try to configure the focus tô touch or center,may solve you problems .
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Click to collapse
No, touch focus is ropy as hell on this phone, often it won't actually focus where I want it to, and if it does often it'll focus on a pin point area and blur everything else.
kibbster said:
I love the camera on the Z2... when it focuses properly.
I've never had such a bad phone at focussing!
I also get the odd shot that's over processed into a mush but that's another story and something all mobile cameras can do on occasions.
Went to my eldest's first nativity play today and tried to film it, end result the back of people's heads in front of us were in focus but the kids on stage?
Nah they were a blurry mess.
It's not just the constant focus seeking for no reason in videos that annoys me either.
With stills, generally it's 50/50 if I get a focussed shot or not.
When I do the results are fantastic (as long as you use manual white balance)
Half the time the camera doesn't focus properly with touch focus or doesn't focus where you want it.
If I just try infinity focus and let the camera sort itself out I get a few pictures that the camera focuses on nothing, the entire shot is out of focus.
Never had these problems with the M8, Note2, GS2 that preceded my Z2 so I don't think it's me.
I know that the Z2 has focus problems in less than brilliant light which doesn't help (unlike the M8) but it's making my mobile photography pretty hit and miss.
Unfortunately the shot often looks fine on the phone but when viewed on a large PC monitor it's obvious the shot is useless.
It's seriously making me consider leaving the Sony stable in the next generation next year which would be a real shame because the phone itself is the best Android out there for me at the moment.
Sony really have to sort out their camera processing, if Apple can do it with a Sony lens there should be no excuse for Sony.
Either it's just a Sony thing or my phone is faulty but like I said some of the pictures I take have stellar focus and colour balance but on the whole... not.
Sorry just needed to vent some frustration!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the same issue. Touch focus for video is useless and it takes forever to track into focus even when looking at sharp edges and keeping still. Google Camera does MUCH better but no 4K video or 60 fps.
sam_conrad said:
I have the same issue. Touch focus for video is useless and it takes forever to track into focus even when looking at sharp edges and keeping still. Google Camera does MUCH better but no 4K video or 60 fps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may try a different camera then.
I don't use 4k or 60fps usually so probably no loss there.
Thanks.
sam_conrad said:
I have the same issue. Touch focus for video is useless and it takes forever to track into focus even when looking at sharp edges and keeping still. Google Camera does MUCH better but no 4K video or 60 fps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the tip!
Been playing with Google camera today and I've got to say it's far more accurate for focus than the stock app!
HDR in Google camera works better than stock as well, although it's slow.
Shame I can't override the default camera button behaviour because the hardware button is a handy way to get into the camera quickly.
kibbster said:
Thanks for the tip!
Been playing with Google camera today and I've got to say it's far more accurate for focus than the stock app!
HDR in Google camera works better than stock as well, although it's slow.
Shame I can't override the default camera button behaviour because the hardware button is a handy way to get into the camera quickly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HDR in Google Camera used to be exclusive to Nexus devices but Google opened it up in the last few updates. It also does HDR at 20.7 MP but Google Camera lacks extended options like ISO speed control and such.
I switch between manual mode in the Sony app and Google Camera depending on the situation. For videos, the Google Camera app definitely wins in focus speed and accuracy. The software developers and engineers at Sony really need to get on the same page!
sam_conrad said:
HDR in Google Camera used to be exclusive to Nexus devices but Google opened it up in the last few updates. It also does HDR at 20.7 MP but Google Camera lacks extended options like ISO speed control and such.
I switch between manual mode in the Sony app and Google Camera depending on the situation. For videos, the Google Camera app definitely wins in focus speed and accuracy. The software developers and engineers at Sony really need to get on the same page!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only shame with Google cam video is it doesn't have the steady shot that Sony camera does.
I guess the lack of constant focus shifting makes up for that though.
Oh and there's no doubt Sony's software engineers are the cause of most of the camera issues and need to sort it out!

Camera images are blurred.

Image looks clear and sharp before pressing the shutter but for some reason after it has took the shot and i view it's not as sharp and is slightly blurry, anyone notice this, steady hand by the way so it's not shaking that's for sure.
Ady1976 said:
Image looks clear and sharp before pressing the shutter but for some reason after it has took the shot and i view it's not as sharp and is slightly blurry, anyone notice this, steady hand by the way so it's not shaking that's for sure.
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Yes a little.
It helped if I pressed on the subject I wanted in focus, if that makes sense?
Ry2mkk said:
Yes a little.
It helped if I pressed on the subject I wanted in focus, if that makes sense?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Manually focus (press the subject) is always recommended.
Yes that help a bit, so the autofocus is off or these cameras are not as detailed as they're saying, starting to lose faith in this phone, don't want to keep hold of it too long waiting for software that may or not fix these issues because it may not be accepted back.
Blurry or not in focus? These are two different problems. One is caused by lack of OIS \ hand movement, the other is just focus lock miss (can be corrected by tapping the object before).
galr said:
Blurry or not in focus? These are two different problems. One is caused by lack of OIS \ hand movement, the other is just focus lock miss (can be corrected by tapping the object before).
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Click to collapse
I would say more not in focus than blurry even though edges of objects tend to fringe over and are a bit blurry depending on the shot. I get the manual focus thing, but what is the point of auto focus if it doesn't work correctly ? I don't have to manually focus shots on my cannon powershot sx 730 hs, I've never had an issue with focusing on any of my previous phones, hopefully it will be fixed in an update, even though there was already an update out the box with "camera optimisations" allegedly done, but obviously not quite right imo.
Another shot i just took if you look at the bottom of the mug where the text is, very clear in the viewfinder before the shot then after the shot suddenly gone out of focus, tried all settings no difference.
I find the photos of OP5 to be blurry too. They are way more blurrier than 3T.
---------- Post added at 09:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:14 AM ----------
Ady1976 said:
Another shot i just took if you look at the bottom of the mug where the text is, very clear in the viewfinder before the shot then after the shot suddenly gone out of focus, tried all settings no difference.
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Click to collapse
Are you taking photos in portrait mode? It seems like bokeh effect.
I've a quick question..since we're talking of cameras did you notice that in pro mode you'll have to tilt the phone slightly to the left in order to achieve a balanced line (as in the line turns green signalling the camera is balanced)? I tried keeping it straight in a table but the it always shows it's imbalanced...can anyone confirm? I really really hope I don't have a faulty piece...
Ok guys done more testing, it definitely is not focusing correctly, just gone to pro mode and left everything on auto but just adjusted the focus manually and it's way better. So all i can think of what is happening is after you take the shot in auto mode it's knocking the focus off slightly, look at the box of toys in manual focus then the other, also look at the numbers on the train then my manual focus version.
Edit, quality has changed slightly since uploading to xda.
Areebanwar said:
I've a quick question..since we're talking of cameras did you notice that in pro mode you'll have to tilt the phone slightly to the left in order to achieve a balanced line (as in the line turns green signalling the camera is balanced)? I tried keeping it straight in a table but the it always shows it's imbalanced...can anyone confirm? I really really hope I don't have a faulty piece...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you you have to tilt slightly to the left then yes just noticed that myself.
Ady1976 said:
Ok guys done more testing, it definitely is not focusing correctly, just gone to pro mode and left everything on auto but just adjusted the focus manually and it's way better. So all i can think of what is happening is after you take the shot in auto mode it's knocking the focus off slightly, look at the box of toys in manual focus then the other, also look at the numbers on the train then my manual focus version.
Edit, quality has changed slightly since uploading to xda.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The difference is so marginal that i don`t see the difference between the 2 pics to be honest. Maybe its an issue for you but for me it looks like nitpicking. But you can wait for a firmware update or return/RMA the device.
Areebanwar said:
I've a quick question..since we're talking of cameras did you notice that in pro mode you'll have to tilt the phone slightly to the left in order to achieve a balanced line (as in the line turns green signalling the camera is balanced)? I tried keeping it straight in a table but the it always shows it's imbalanced...can anyone confirm? I really really hope I don't have a faulty piece...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
gee2012 said:
The difference is so marginal that i don`t see the difference between the 2 pics to be honest. Maybe its an issue for you but for me it looks like nitpicking. But you can wait for a firmware update or return/RMA the device.
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Click to collapse
It's marginal on here because xda has compressed the images so the focused one looks worse than it should.
Ady1976 said:
It's marginal on here because xda has compressed the images so the focused one looks worse than it should.
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Click to collapse
Maybe share the pics on google drive to see the difference.
Okay thank you! I doubt it's a manufacturing defect..probably the software. Someone with a keen eye(unlike myself) could take a look at the camera module to see if it's a little shifted downwards...I feel so..I maybe(hopefully) wrong though!
And yes, I compared the photos/viewfinder with 3t.. it's pretty blurry! The EIS doesn't seem to kick in...
Ok 2 original images on zip, manual vs auto, don't use Google drive but here's originals in zip format.
Areebanwar said:
Okay thank you! I doubt it's a manufacturing defect..probably the software. Someone with a keen eye(unlike myself) could take a look at the camera module to see if it's a little shifted downwards...I feel so..I maybe(hopefully) wrong though!
And yes, I compared the photos/viewfinder with 3t.. it's pretty blurry! The EIS doesn't seem to kick in...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep I'm not going insane then, just blurry out of focus shots a lot.
Last example, good lighting, I've labeled them in focus and out of focus in zip, look at the numbers and look look at the coloured buttons at the top of the train, I'm not saying it's much but I've seen enough to see pro mode manual focus is better to my eyes.
Ady1976 said:
Last example, good lighting, I've labeled them in focus and out of focus in zip, look at the numbers and look look at the coloured buttons at the top of the train, I'm not saying it's much but I've seen enough to see pro mode manual focus is better to my eyes.
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Click to collapse
I know that your evidence points to your conclusion, but I can assure you that the focus is not the culprit here.
The issue is the postprocessing. OnePlus uses a muli-picture postprocessing to remove noise.
When you switch to manual mode, the amount of postprocessing used is highly minimized, because it is of course supposed to be a manual mode.
This is the exact same behavior the OP3/T has.
Check this video I did a while ago and keep in mind that nothing has changed since then and this is still happening on my device in auto-mode, mostly in artifical / dim lighting:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbn9Lj6F6EM
Try for yourself by quickly going into the preview after taking the picture (although the OP5 processing might be faster).
Also, check the exif data in your photos!
The "in-focus" photo uses only half the ISO (320) and half the shutter speed (1/25s) compared to the "out-of-focus" photo with ISO 640 and 1/50s in auto-mode.
The out of focus photo should be at least as sharp, due to the quicker shutter-speed, but the higher ISO + postprocessing kills it!
The same applies to your first comparison (manual focus.jpg vs auto focus.jpg).
ISO is higher in auto-mode -> software applies more postprocessing due to more noise -> picture is killed
So after a year since the OP3's release nothing changed and the software still suffers from the same problems.
Really disappointing!
AcmE85 said:
I know that your evidence points to your conclusion, but I can assure you that the focus is not the culprit here.
The issue is the postprocessing. OnePlus uses a muli-picture postprocessing to remove noise.
When you switch to manual mode, the amount of postprocessing used is highly minimized, because it is of course supposed to be a manual mode.
This is the exact same behavior the OP3/T has.
Check this video I did a while ago and keep in mind that nothing has changed since then and this is still happening on my device:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbn9Lj6F6EM
Try for yourself by quickly going into the preview after taking the picture (although the OP5 processing might be faster).
Also, check the exif data in your photos!
The "in-focus" photo uses only half the ISO (320) and half the shutter speed (1/25s) compared to the "out-of-focus" photo with ISO 640 and 1/50s in auto-mode.
The out of focus photo should be at least as sharp, due to the quicker shutter-speed, but the postprocessing kills it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting i shall check this out, but if that's the case why use so much processing in auto mode ? Why don't they leave the processing as the manual mode in auto mode when it is clearly much better ? I just don't get it.

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