Database Users

Post Photos Taken by Your Athena/U1000/Advantage/Ameo

I realize the phone only came out a couple of days ago, but me and probably a lot of other people on this forum would like to know the quality of the Athena's 3 Megapixel camera. Having said that , post pictures taken by it !

Cmon, you select few lucky XDA forum members, please contribute and upload some photos !!!!!!

Here are some photos...
SupraSkylineSTI said:
Cmon, you select few lucky XDA forum members, please contribute and upload some photos !!!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK SupraSkylineSTI. I've done a few, but because most of them are personal family pics of my kids, I can only upload a few for now, but definitely more in the week.
Now bear in mind these are the default settings and all I have changed in the camera menu settings is 'half press' as opposed to the default 'Full Press', as full press requires you to have very steady hands. Also photos have not been altered in any way, just resized according to forum rules.
I actually have to admit, that these are the best photos by far that I have seen taken by a HTC designed PPC/PE. I'm sure with some settings tweaking, they can be much improved. Nokia or SE camphone it is not, not even comparable, but bloody good all the same. Colour reproduction is also very good and accurate for outdoor shots. All 3 photos were taken in Auto mode, so changing the setting to the appropriate one is sure to improve things a little.

Thanks for your contribution man !!!!
Can you upload one full-size photo of something, so we can truly see camera quality ?

SupraSkylineSTI said:
Thanks for your contribution man !!!!
Can you upload one full-size photo of something, so we can truly see camera quality ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ill have to zip it up due to restrictions on the forum......hold tight..it's coming.

Xperia Z Review Update

Hey guys, some of you may remember i posted a link to my Xperia Z review from my blog here a few weeks back and a lot of you seemed to like it. I have now posted a small update to my review along with camera samples in a new blog post so heres the link if you fancy reading some more
http://techoffanddie.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/sony-xperia-z-review-update-camera.html

keyz86 said:
Hey guys, some of you may remember i posted a link to my Xperia Z review from my blog here a few weeks back and a lot of you seemed to like it. I have now posted a small update to my review along with camera samples in a new blog post so heres the link if you fancy reading some more
http://techoffanddie.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/sony-xperia-z-review-update-camera.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good update
But why opening new thread, just update the old one.
Sent from my C6602 using xda app-developers app

abd_alazeez2002 said:
Good update
But why opening new thread, just update the old one.
Sent from my C6602 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I figured most people probably wouldn't open the old thread as they would just assume it was just someone else making a comment that bumped it back up to the top... actually now i think about it i could have changed the title of the thread... ok my bad! Its been a VERY busy few weeks for me at work and my brain just isn't working as it should be.
If the mods want to delete this thread let me know and i'll update the other one. Thank god its a bank holiday weekend, i can finally get some rest!

Daytime the camera is amazing night time or any low light situation sucks lots of noise.

Teknohtc said:
Daytime the camera is amazing night time or any low light situation sucks lots of noise.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did manage to take some really nice night shots by messing around with the camera settings but i accidentally deleted them before writing the blog post
I may update it in a few days with some new pictures but i rarely find myself needing to take any photos after dark, the ones that i deleted i actually went out one evening specifically just to take some night shots with the phone for this blog but i just haven't had the time since to take any more.

wolf0491 said:
Enjoyed your reviews :thumbup:
Sent from my Xperia Z
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, glad you enjoyed reading
Sent from my C6603 using xda premium

Really useful. Thanks a lot, we appreciate the effort and concern. Keep up the good work!
Sent from my C6602 using xda premium

If anyone is interested in following my blog i have added RSS links on the page, or use this URL : http://techoffanddie.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

Amaazing!!!!!!!
So its really Xperia Z Camera result,Why In Picture Properties didn't anything shown regarding Camera info by which its taken ??????????????

jhony.liver said:
Amaazing!!!!!!!
So its really Xperia Z Camera result,Why In Picture Properties didn't anything shown regarding Camera info by which its taken ??????????????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it has something to do with the way Picassa hosts them or links to them, the copies I have on my PC have all the information there.
Sent from my C6603 using xda premium

jhony.liver said:
Amaazing!!!!!!!
So its really Xperia Z Camera result,Why In Picture Properties didn't anything shown regarding Camera info by which its taken ??????????????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes they are from the Z. I've taken enough pictures myself with the phone to instantly recognise the quality.
My only gripe with the Zs camera is the fact that it doesn't hold as much detail as the Xperia S does. Don't get me wrong, the picture quality is better on the Z but the S seems to focus much better. Even before taking the shot, if I just hold both cameras up side by side and point at an image, I can clearly see that the S's camera is just better focused. It might take longer to do so but the focus is better. Details get blurred out a bit too easily on the Z.
At first like most, I blamed the image processing for cleaning up the noise at the expense of detail but now I'm convinced it's a focusing problem. At zero crop, it's all fine, but once you begin to crop, you see it all.
Having said that, the S only performs better in daylight and good light situations. Under low light and indoors, the amount of noise on the S's pictures make them much worse even if they hold more detail. If Sony can fix this focusing issue with an update, the Zs camera will quite simply, be the very best out now.
But until then, I can't really make that claim with the S4 packing a similar camera without the same problem.
It has absolutely nothing to do with the image processing algorithms or compression as many have claimed. Like I said even before you take the shot, you can see that the S's camera is better focused. Everything just looks sharper, I'm surprised people haven't clued on to this yet.
Sent from my C6603 using xda app-developers app

[Discussion] Camera firmware

I've came across Note2, S4, G2 and now I'm on Z1. And I've expected for camera to be top out of those, but left disappointed. I feel like hardware could do so much more, but that camera firmware is so.. so... Nah, don't even have word for it. It's like Krait 400 clocked at 0.5 GHz.
What was Sony thinking?
Colors are off, there's too much noise, no option for wide 16MP, or something like that, white balance is off... It's mess!
If Samsung had this sensor, I feel like it would rock 1020 with it's firmware.. Do you feel same?

Yes,I guess so.
Did you try the manual mode and playing with the ISO?
Sent from my C6603 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

The Developers will improve the software soon. Anyway I still one from many disappointed. The hardware is ok, software from Sony sucks.

Eclyptos : The camera software from Sony DOESN'T SUCK! It just needs improvement. If it would suck, you wouldn't be able to take such good pictures in manual mode (check the forum in the Z1 camera tests).
But that requires some knoledge ...
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

bogdan wst said:
Eclyptos : The camera software from Sony DOESN'T SUCK! It just needs improvement. If it would suck, you wouldn't be able to take such good pictures in manual mode (check the forum in the Z1 camera tests).
But that requires some knoledge ...
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HElp me with this what settings do you use in manual to get good pics??

very disappointed
im very disappointed with cam of my Z1, very very noise specialy in colors more dark, im waiting a lot of updates for cam.... noise, wide 16 for example.. and others

,,,,,,

cooldude9119 said:
HElp me with this what settings do you use in manual to get good pics??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, go read photographing forums, same rules apply for all cameras, here is not the place to learn how to shoot.
Sent from my C6903 using Tapatalk

It really.isn't.that bad. Sure, the 1020 is better but it's probably the best Android camera (Sony was with the Xperia S too).
It.does have issues.in auto mode.when.in iffy conditions but you.can get amazing results with this phone!
Sent from my C6903 using xda app-developers app

highly disappointed, the camera is designed by the cybershot team man, how can it be so crappy. imagine processing is one thing, the functionality is a complete joke, 20 MP only then 8MP? Not even a 16MP 16:9 or 16MP 4:3. The sensor size would probably be great for 16MP photos, but 20MP is probably a bit too much. The auto mode is complete trash too, only time I ever get good shot is only under perfect light condition. Unless they are still trying to iron out a few things, or the cybershot team lacks experience writing software for ARM processor or something. There is no excuse of it being as what it is now. And it was out for a while and we still don't see any major improvement what so ever, they should be ashame of themselves.

Looks like not everyone disagrees with me like they did on my post here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2562211
Oh well, maybe the will improve it on the upcoming 14.2.A.1.114 firmware update.

Man I don't know why people complain so much about the camera! Maybe I'm just lucky but my phone takes absolutely brilliant pics! I threw a few pics onto a massive Samsung smart TV not so long ago and I was blown away by the quality! Sure it struggles a bit in low ligting conditions but honestly it's still good for a phone, I think people were expecting DSLR quality pics when they bought this phone or expecting it to be the same as a Sony Cybershot point and shoot camera? By comparison to the two cameras I mentioned, it will never be on par with those because it has a much smaller sensor. For what it is (a phone camera) it is brilliant.
I'm not denying that there is definite room for improvement on the software side but honestly currently it's still a killer camera (if you know how to use it properly)
I don't understand why people are so nit picky about this phone, people have ripped it to shreds over small details but at the end of the day it's a killer android phone worthy to be a flagship device. I know other's have had issues with displays... blah blah blah. Infact I did too, I had a tiny dead pixel on mine the first time I turned it on, sent it back and they gave me a replacement no questions asked! My point is, if you're so unhappy about the device then just sell it and buy another phone or if there's a fault with it then get it fixed or replaced under warranty instead of ripping the phone to shreds

NanoSurfer said:
Man I don't know why people complain so much about the camera! Maybe I'm just lucky but my phone takes absolutely brilliant pics! I threw a few pics onto a massive Samsung smart TV not so long ago and I was blown away by the quality! Sure it struggles a bit in low ligting conditions but honestly it's still good for a phone, I think people were expecting DSLR quality pics when they bought this phone or expecting it to be the same as a Sony Cybershot point and shoot camera? By comparison to the two cameras I mentioned, it will never be on par with those because it has a much smaller sensor. For what it is (a phone camera) it is brilliant.
I'm not denying that there is definite room for improvement on the software side but honestly currently it's still a killer camera (if you know how to use it properly)
I don't understand why people are so nit picky about this phone, people have ripped it to shreds over small details but at the end of the day it's a killer android phone worthy to be a flagship device. I know other's have had issues with displays... blah blah blah. Infact I did too, I had a tiny dead pixel on mine the first time I turned it on, sent it back and they gave me a replacement no questions asked! My point is, if you're so unhappy about the device then just sell it and buy another phone or if there's a fault with it then get it fixed or replaced under warranty instead of ripping the phone to shreds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not the camera that itself that people are complaining about. It's the auto mode. I think some of us know that it takes great photos with the right manual settings but what is the point of having the Auto mode if it doesn't work properly?
I really want to love this phone as it is probably the most elegant device out there, has excellent battery life, and the performance is one of the best but it's the unpredictable auto mode on the camera that bugs the crap out of me and most of the people who are not happy about the camera.

soulreaver99 said:
It's not the camera that itself that people are complaining about. It's the auto mode. I think some of us know that it takes great photos with the right manual settings but what is the point of having the Auto mode if it doesn't work properly?
I really want to love this phone as it is probably the most elegant device out there, has excellent battery life, and the performance is one of the best but it's the unpredictable auto mode on the camera that bugs the crap out of me and most of the people who are not happy about the camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok yes, on that point I agree with you. Auto mode could be better. Im 100% sure that Sony keeps an eye on this forum as we are the most critical users out there, the average Joe probably doesn't care much about the camera and uses the phone for texting and calls so my point is they are aware of it and they will address it, give them time. They heard our screams with the bootloader fiasco! Btw Samsung wouldn't have even cared less about the issue but Sony does, so just wait for them to sort the software issues out.

First of all, Merry Christmas everyone
I've been shooting some photos yesterday and conclusion is this. Night or low light photos (indoors) looks awful, but daylight photos looks fantastic even on front facing camera. But, it's not proportional how awesome day photos looks like. I mean, there's so much detail, colors are good, and wb is just fine, but at night, there is so much noise, artifacts on front camera.. It's impossible that hardware is one to blame..
I sure hope Sony will fix it in new firmware update..

cooldude9119 said:
HElp me with this what settings do you use in manual to get good pics??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not the camera, it's the photographer.... Seriously, how do you expect us to give you the right settings we don't even know what the subject is, the lighting you have, etc... Before complaining, learn about photography and what each setting does and maybe you will take better pictures.
Sent from my C6903 using xda premium

I agree with u all… its just the SA that needs tunning. The manual mode is great for people who knows how to treat it
Sent from my C6903 using Tapatalk

Noise, noise, noise.....
My xperia T takes way far better pictures....
When they ask your money for "the best camera phone" (lol) they should give you at least something a little better than the previous flagship, not worse....
I agree that the camera takes some good pictures here and there but when you zoom in the quality goes to.....

NanoSurfer said:
Man I don't know why people complain so much about the camera!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They don't want to take the effort to get better shots. One decent shot in the photo thread is all it takes to debunk them. Hardest thing to figure out is lighting. Get that right and the shots are fantastic. Same applies to any camera.
NanoSurfer said:
I think people were expecting DSLR quality pics when they bought this phone or expecting it to be the same as a Sony Cybershot point and shoot camera? By comparison to the two cameras I mentioned, it will never be on par with those because it has a much smaller sensor. For what it is (a phone camera) it is brilliant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Was looking at the cybershot line and the bulk of them come with 1/2.3" sensors only the RX100 uses a 1 inch sensor. Meaning its around 4x bigger with carl zeiss glass.
The advantage these PS have is the optical zoom. But do they work well in auto in the hands of some one that cannot take a photo. No. Was just looking at vacation pics a friend took and so many of them were out of focus. Her compact has the same sensor size but only the outdoors photos come out ok. There is quite some noise in a double tap on the tab. Again using auto, indoors it uses a lower shutter speed and i was apalled to see 5/10 shots coming out blurred. The flash blows everybody away. When it does not you get a decent shot.
Indoors in artificial lighting in sub par lighting any compact size sensor is going to struggle. The hardest are indoors subpar lighting where you're forced to use the flash to avoid blur. Have to use higher ISOs in this case, no you won't be able to avoid noise but you will get better shots ie more natural than with a flash.
NanoSurfer said:
I don't understand why people are so nit picky about this phone, people have ripped it to shreds over small details but at the end of the day it's a killer android phone worthy to be a flagship device. I know other's have had issues with displays... blah blah blah. Infact I did too, I had a tiny dead pixel on mine the first time I turned it on, sent it back and they gave me a replacement no questions asked! My point is, if you're so unhappy about the device then just sell it and buy another phone or if there's a fault with it then get it fixed or replaced under warranty instead of ripping the phone to shreds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah and then when they get the next device, they'll go spam the respective forum with more *****ing & whining. Take a look around the board and every camera gets bashed. This is normal. Expect it and ignore it.
Bandwidth bandits the lot of 'em

The reason we all expected this to be a great camera, is because Sony told us it was with all their marketing. I was so excited by the phone. But the camera was the reason I returned it. Otherwise, it is a splendid piece of kit.

8 MP Superior Auto vs 15 MP Superior Auto

Hi everyone,
As i have rooted my Z2, i was able to install Xposed Framework. In Xposed Modes i found a mode which 'force' camera to use full 20 mp (or 15 mp in wide shot) in Superior Auto Mode. I have taken some pics to compare quality but couldn't understand anything. As i know, many of you guys are very interested in photography and know a lot about it, i decided to share some pics with you and let you decide which is better. Here's the link of 4 pics, 2 of them in 8 mp and 2 with 15 mp. (The names of the files indicate 'MP'): https://www.dropbox.com/sh/vvpghc7w187b1ia/_uUAk9NFry
Can provide more shots if needed.

Mano1982 said:
Hi everyone,
As i have rooted my Z2, i was able to install Xposed Framework. In Xposed Modes i found a mode which 'force' camera to use full 20 mp (or 15 mp in wide shot) in Superior Auto Mode. I have taken some pics to compare quality but couldn't understand anything. As i know, many of you guys are very interested in photography and know a lot about it, i decided to share some pics with you and let you decide which is better. Here's the link of 4 pics, 2 of them in 8 mp and 2 with 15 mp. (The names of the files indicate 'MP'): https://www.dropbox.com/sh/vvpghc7w187b1ia/_uUAk9NFry
Can provide more shots if needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great effort. Somehow I noticed the 15 mp has a wider angle. Generally they look very close and still very good quality for both, maybe different lighting conditions and in daylight too maybe easier to distinguish which is best.

There is a great discussion on quality 8MP and 20MP. Many say 8Mp is better than 20MP, which contain more vivid colors. This video explains a little about!
We could try posting pictures!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFP3Un1mRmY

ASD007 said:
Great effort. Somehow I noticed the 15 mp has a wider angle. Generally they look very close and still very good quality for both, maybe different lighting conditions and in daylight too maybe easier to distinguish which is best.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your feedback, mate Check the folder again, just poster some more shots. As it's night in Norway now, i couldn't take daylight photos. Will do it tomorrow..
BR4DOKYBrazil said:
There is a great discussion on quality 8MP and 20MP. Many say 8Mp is better than 20MP, which contain more vivid colors. This video explains a little about!
We could try posting pictures!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFP3Un1mRmY
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your feedback, mate I will take more pictures in daylight tomorrow. Problem is that whenever you enable or disable mod, you have to reboot the phone

Hey can you also let us know what you lost from rooting? DRM etc?

robt772000 said:
Hey can you also let us know what you lost from rooting? DRM etc?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or that could stay in one of the other threads about rooting and bootloader and drm and this one could be about pictures. This thread has potential.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

jiggyb21 said:
Or that could stay in one of the other threads about rooting and bootloader and drm and this one could be about pictures. This thread has potential.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been here a lot longer than you son. Don't go telling me what to do.
Its still relevant.

robt772000 said:
I've been here a lot longer than you son. Don't go telling me what to do.
Its still relevant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Somehow I knew you were going to say that.
The reason I felt brash enough to say something is because half of all my posts since I've been here have been on that exact topic in other threads that explain in detail what is lost and what isn't. I know for a fact there's info available to answer your question without changing the topic of this thread. I'd link them for you but I'm about to watch Game of Thrones.... And don't get so bent out shape, I'm sure you've scolded more than one person in your long tenure here.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

jiggyb21 said:
Somehow I knew you were going to say that.
The reason I felt brash enough to say something is because half of all my posts since I've been here have been on that exact topic in other threads that explain in detail what is lost and what isn't. I know for a fact there's info available to answer your question without changing the topic of this thread. I'd link them for you but I'm about to watch Game of Thrones.... And don't get so bent out shape, I'm sure you've scolded more than one person in your long tenure here.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep no worries. I'm just a fiery biker.
I heard the camera can break from unlocking.

I haven't lost anything that I'm aware of...

robt772000 said:
Yep no worries. I'm just a fiery biker.
I heard the camera can break from unlocking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You motivated me to finally put up an avatar.

From my tests and I've done a lot of them since I got the phone last month.
8mp in manual mode with my own settings produced the best results in all lighting conditions. Focusing for me is the z2's greatest problem and one which gets worse the more you increase the resolution.
From the watch photo the OP posted, you can clearly see that the 8mp sample is better focused. At 8mp, everything is better, detail preservation, focus, contrast and dynamic range. Yes you can't zoom in as far as you can with the 15 and 20.7mp snaps but the quality is noticeably better.
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app

Thanks, very interesting!
Quality is comparable, actually at certain shots SA at 8MP is maybe a more consistently detailed, 15MP is sometimes a little noisier and I don't see much quality edge.
Where this can be very useful however is shooting large resolution full 4:3 frame SA images, as on stock we're limited to 8MP @16:9. It makes sense to give the full 4:3 option, and I'd love to see some 8MP vs. 20MP SA comparisons, if you have the time. :good:

robt772000 said:
I've been here a lot longer than you son. Don't go telling me what to do.
Its still relevant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are lots of us who have been here longer than you son :silly:

Haha. Internet's is fun.

[Video] Photography Tutorial - long overdue!

Hey folks, I got some good news...
The long overdue photography video tutorial is finally out - enjoy!
Tell me what you think (oh, and I'm well aware of the microphone issue, I'll fix it next time). If you knew everything that I've said in this video already, fear not - I'm planning on making a part 2 and a part 3 about post-processing inside and outside of Android, since that's what people seemed interested in, as well as more general photography tips such as how to better compose an image. If you have anything else that you'd love to see a tutorial of, please do mention it!
EDIT: my Z1 Flickr album
Cheers :highfive:

Keep it coming. [emoji1]

I already learn some stuff. [emoji1]

awesome
Thank you boss
The tutorial amazing I learn soo much
Thank you
Keep it going (I'm waiting part 2 and 3)
☺☺

Hermantje said:
Hey folks, I got some good news...
The long overdue photography video tutorial is finally out - enjoy!
Tell me what you think (oh, and I'm well aware of the microphone issue, I'll fix it next time). If you knew everything that I've said in this video already, fear not - I'm planning on making a part 2 and a part 3 about post-processing inside and outside of Android, since that's what people seemed interested in, as well as more general photography tips such as how to better compose an image. If you have anything else that you'd love to see a tutorial of, please do mention it!
Cheers :highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you tell me which rom/kernel do you use? Cause your camera app is opening very fast.

Thanks for the replies guys, I'm really glad to hear you like this kind of video! I'll definitely make more now
(although you may have to wait a short while, y'know how busy studies can get...)
BlAckXpeRia said:
Can you tell me which rom/kernel do you use? Cause your camera app is opening very fast.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using the latest stock firmware from Sony. So nothing fancy!
The thing is, I tested some things before recording so the application was most likely still in memory. I tried again just now and the camera seems to open in about two seconds when it's not in memory.

Awesome! Great video!
I didn't knew that Night Mode will decrease the shutter speed a bit. I will try it out tonight.
The camera in Z1 is awesome! I have many great shots with it. I just printed around 30 photos. You cannot tell much difference between the phone and a digital camera.

awesome
waiting for part 2
thanks

Any tips and trick using flash LED on Z1 when taking a photo ?
This is a little tricky too.
And the more strong light from flash LED will make the photo better or doesn't for taking a picture with low light ? (light condition around 40-50%)

Thank you very much

Yenkazu said:
Any tips and trick using flash LED on Z1 when taking a photo ?
This is a little tricky too.
And the more strong light from flash LED will make the photo better or doesn't for taking a picture with low light ? (light condition around 40-50%)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey,
I never use the LED light on my phone for photos. I used to use Xenon flashes on my SE Satio and Nokia N8, but LED lights are generally just too weak. Especially the single LED found on the Z series. In low light, I will use Night Mode and set my phone against some object so that I can take photos at the minimum shutter speed. For my static shots, an LED light would imbalance the white balance anyway, so I'm always better off not using it (as a "fill light" it is also surprisingly ineffective).
The only time I would consider using the flash is when I'm not trying to take good shots but useful ones instead. Photos that otherwise turn out too dark to see anything that I should be seeing. As for club or party photos - I just don't take those. That is pretty much the most difficult environment and no smartphone camera can really take decent photographs in that case.

I can't seem to be able to view the video. Is it me or everyone?

Netsoft said:
I can't seem to be able to view the video. Is it me or everyone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just you, because i can.

Netsoft said:
I can't seem to be able to view the video. Is it me or everyone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
jonke11 said:
Just you, because i can.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I double-checked and I can watch it just fine as well. You sure you don't have something disabled in your browser?
... and man, it's awful listening to your own voice.