It was the iPhone*
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It was the iPhone*
Not the Sony, can you believe it?
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Over the weekend I posted back to back pictures of young Zadie, taken on both an iPhone and a Sony 70-200mm lens, and asked you to predict which was which, A or B.
“A is the Sony,” said reader Rocky. “The details in photo A are much clearer than photo B.”
Rocky’s sentiment were shared by most, who were convinced the best shot was from the Sony.
Which, if true, would be remarkable. My big A7IV camera and beloved 70-200mm 2.8 lens costs over $5,000, and is large, bulky and heavy, compared to the starting price of the compact iPhone 15 Pro Max that fits in your pocket at $1,200. A smartphone pic used to be a decent alternative when you didn’t have a “real” camera by your side.
Take a look again, but I warn you: looks are deceiving. We begin with the Sony, then the iPhone, in Portrait Mode and the Studio Light setting.
So both look really sharp, and the background “bokeh” looks as natural and cinematic as can be.
Now, let’s blow these photos up—and you can see which one is the easy winner. It’s the Sony. Look at how sharp it is, compared to the iPhone.
Then again, as my friend Sean points out, you may not need a photo to go on a billboard, but just sayin’, a camera with beautiful glass, compared to computational photography is still, as of today, the sharpest in town.
For equal time, here’s the bird blown up several times. What do you think?
LIVE THURSDAY
We’ll be live Thursday at 5 p.m. California time. Topic: How to get great family photos for Thanksgiving, plus, we’re taking your questions in real time. I’ll have several tips for you on arranging the family for photos, where and how to get your shots and as always, suggestions for doing interviews on video. LINK HERE:
SUNDAY: Manhattan Beach Photowalk
Weather permitting, we’ll be back at the Manhattan Beach Pier Sunday morning for tips on how to get pro level smartphone photos on your iPhone and Galaxy, and to take a cool morning stroll with cameras by our sides. Come join us. Tickets here:
The above video has nothing to do with the holiday of Thanksgiving except that it was taken last year, on Thanksgiving Day, and keeping with our bird theme, they were an absolutely awesome sight to behold. So on that note, thanks for watching, reading and listening and I’ll see you on Thursday!
Jeff
It was the iPhone*
Is there an iPhone version of Zadie without the Portrait Lighting? It's a bit overdone for my eyes. I would additionally do comparisons with Halide and Camera+ , as well Varlens which has the ability to turn off HDR (for a setting called De-Sharpen). If I could dial back the Apple Camera app's Computational Results by 15-20% , I'd be more tempted to use it.
I was noticing this with the 3x lens on the iphone13, which with the latest software update can now do macro. I've spent some time comparing shots taken in the native camera app with those in the Lightroom app and with some taken on my camera. There's a pretty substantial difference in the native phone app vs Lightroom. The native phone app is much sharper. That's not the lens though, it's the software. It's interesting to try to pull those native photos into Lightroom and edit them because sometimes they end up less sharp. Sometimes the iPhone over sharpens and it's one of the problems with photographing say a foggy sunrise with it. I'd still bet the Sony has a better lens and sensor. Also, I have to be much closer to my subject with the iPhone so that's going to probably increase sharpness but I'm not sure. Anyway, it is curious for shots where you have a choice. My iPhone is still absolutely lousy for photographing anything moving or anything I can't reach or get close to! Plus given it's been near freezing here every morning, I can't work the phone with mittens on and I can work the camera with mittens on!