Good Photo taking technique/settings? - HTC Sensation

I've noticed the camera blurs a lot of photos when I take them even if my hand moves only the slightest amount. The only time it doesn't blur is with the flash on for close objects.
Just applied the HQ-Camerav0.8 mod for ICS and still getting the same problem.
Any idea how to take sharp photos without using a tripod/resting on something?

Just worth mentioning that selecting a low ISO value, rather than auto or a high setting helps to give a cleaner image. That won't do much for the blurring though.

does iso value have anything to do with shutter speed? I've got an app which takes loads photos extremely quickly so you get a selection of blurry/clear images but i'd prefer if the stock camera could take sharp & clear photos with a quick shutter speed.

Usually higher ISO means higher shutter speeds in photography, but sacrifice of image quality
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Camera360 app for all your needs...

HTC Amaze ported to Sensation GB. really good specially portrait mode i like the blurring the background and the focusing is really accurate and fast. But currently not supported in ICS

i am also struggling with the sensation camera-stock shot. blurry and it will just get worse when you see how iphone can capture with auto-optimization shots..
camera360 is good with all the hdr effects which i reckon, it is impressive. however it is not reliable as for some reason it is not fully compat with sensation yet. couple of shots with camera360, and the bugs will crawl out. be it persistent FC or screen zoom, you do not want to rely on camera360 too much.
i have heard about the 'amazing camera' and i would try it out later these days. anyone has tried it before?

If you want a really detailed sharp image you will need to use a lower iso shutter speed. But for low iso speeds you will genuinely need a tripod or very steady hands. If you are taking a picture of something that isn't moving use a timer so you have time to hold the phone as still as possible after pressing the shutter button. Otherwise your best bet is to set it to auto or something 100 or higher. ( well at least that is how it is in general photography theory.)
i suggest unless you are outdoors or have decent amount of lighting leave the iso on auto, and use it timer.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA

Related

[Q] Best camera settings for concert

Hi all!
So tomorrow is going to be the first real test for my Sensation camera as I'm going to a concert (The National for who's interested). I was wondering which settings you would recommend for taking the best quality pictures. My expectations aren't that high but still, it's worth a shot.
Furthermore I'm interested if there are some standard todos to increase picture quality, e.g. enable/disable Automatic correction
Thanks
Tirozz said:
Hi all!
So tomorrow is going to be the first real test for my Sensation camera as I'm going to a concert (The National for who's interested). I was wondering which settings you would recommend for taking the best quality pictures. My expectations aren't that high but still, it's worth a shot.
Furthermore I'm interested if there are some standard todos to increase picture quality, e.g. enable/disable Automatic correction
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To increase picture quality, set the ISO to a low number, 100, 200. This will make it less grainy/pixelated. However, in low light settings, such as a concert, you won't be able to see much without a high ISO, like 800 or 1600.
Concerts and photos on phones are tricky because you can't change the shutter speed, really. Most of the pictures will turn out blurry. I forget if there's a "night" scene for the HTC camera app, but you can try that! Good luck!
Like he ^^^ said, use high iso's in low light. Your best bet is to keep it in auto mode. Or if you have a real camera i'm sure it'll outperform this camera in low-light. To give you an idea why a normal camera will take better pictures in low-light take a look at this site.
http://goo.gl/cD3tt
It shows the size of camera sensors and i'd bet money that ours is the absolute smallest on here. The 1.5X is the sensor you would find in a nikon d90, d300, d7000 etc, while the 1/3 or 1/5 is what we most likely have. The reason why low light looks bad is because the photosites/pixels are soo much smaller and don't absorb light really well. The larger the photosite, the more light is captured and that = great low-light performance. Most pocket cameras use a 2/3 image sensor which is still twice as big as our sensor meaning in theory it should capture 100% more light assuming the pocket camera had an 8MP sensor. A 12MP pocket cam in theory would still give you 50% better low light performance.
Ok, thanks for this so far! There is a 'Low light' scene option so I'll enable that plus high ISO. I'll post the results tomorrow!

[Q] Is there any way to improve the camera focus?

It seems especially in bit lower light situations, that the camera is just unable to focus properly, when I tap on the screen to focus somewhere, it clearly does go through various focus distances, even really sharp ones, but then settles to really unfocused setting, making high detail pictures impossible
sorry i don't have an answer. just wanted to come in and agree that this is very annoying... especially when you get that split second of a crystal clear image, then it turns blurry... WWHHYYYYY!!?!!
I just burst shot it pretty much everytome like take 5 or 6 click best shot and the one it picks is usually pretty goodly focused but I agree to it can get annoying and that's the only way I get around it
Sent from my HTC VLE_U using XDA

Speed of camera

I've read all about this phone. What I'm interested in is the speed at which pictures are taken. I don't mean burst mode, rather shutter speed. I have kids, and naturally they move around a lot. If the shutter speed isn't decent, the camera is no good for me. Can anyone shed some light? Or better yet post a video?
Thanks
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
pnut22r said:
I've read all about this phone. What I'm interested in is the speed at which pictures are taken. I don't mean burst mode, rather shutter speed.
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Click to collapse
My Wife just got hers yesterday, and so far it seems poor for moving kids. The camera favours low shutter speed rather than raising the iso
As an example, one photo taken outside in cloudy conditions chose shutter 1/30 and iso 125 - the shot came out blurry as my daughter was moving. I'd prefer it if chose a higher iso and higher shutter speed
If anyone knows of a third party camera app that can be set with things like minimum shutter speed, or shutter priority mode then id be keen to give it a try
Cheers, Barry
I love this phone, except for the camera. its almost unusable. Too blurry during lowlight and otherwise too.
KitKat will improve camera quality and focussing/speed greatly as users reported.

[Q] Better camera app/settings?

So far, I'm pretty happy with this phone but very disappointed with the stock camera app. The camera does pretty well outdoors and in low light, but is terrible in moderate light conditions (i.e. normal indoor conditions.) I just took a bunch of blurry, grainy pictures of my kids with their Easter baskets that all snapped 1/2 a second after I clicked the shutter. The thing that makes me think the camera can do better is that everything looks great on the screen up until I ask it to take a photo, then it refocuses and everything goes to hell. I tried Samsung's sports mode, and that is only marginally better. My wife's new S5 is suffering from the same problem.
Has anyone had better luck with other camera apps or a change in settings? Camera Zoom FX and Google's new camera app don't seem any better. I don't care about effects, HDR, manual photo settings or gimmicks; all I want are sharp, in-focus photos that take without a bunch of lag.
Bazirker said:
So far, I'm pretty happy with this phone but very disappointed with the stock camera app. The camera does pretty well outdoors and in low light, but is terrible in moderate light conditions (i.e. normal indoor conditions.) I just took a bunch of blurry, grainy pictures of my kids with their Easter baskets that all snapped 1/2 a second after I clicked the shutter. The thing that makes me think the camera can do better is that everything looks great on the screen up until I ask it to take a photo, then it refocuses and everything goes to hell. I tried Samsung's sports mode, and that is only marginally better. My wife's new S5 is suffering from the same problem.
Has anyone had better luck with other camera apps or a change in settings? Camera Zoom FX and Google's new camera app don't seem any better. I don't care about effects, HDR, manual photo settings or gimmicks; all I want are sharp, in-focus photos that take without a bunch of lag.
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Click to collapse
Turn picture stabilization off and it gets rid of the picture lag.
But yes, otherwise similar issues.
That's the thing. The HTC M8 wins on indoor/low light pics (if you don't get that purple blob effect), this will on outdoors. That's where the whole MP vs. sensor size come into play as larger sensor means more light but not as sharp vs. more MP means sharper but due to smaller sensor less light thus not always great.
Anyway I've found it takes me about 2 pictures to get one I like with HDR and image stabilization off. With that on that all seem to suck due to the delay. Would have been nice to have some true optical image stabilization too. Samsung just doesn't seem to learn/care though.
We get good HW but they cheap out on the little things that make it better.
Yeah, turning off stabilization, HDR etc helps, but there's still a noticeable lag. The lag bothers me less than the fact that my near-stationary subject is coming out blurry. If the camera would simply capture the exact image that is on-screen at the moment I hit the shutter, I would be thrilled...
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
So here's kinda the problem. And it happens a lot with people taking pictures on your phone.
A phone was not meant to be a camera. It just wasn't. In the early days of low resolution things went faster. When you try to run 16 megabit... things are necessarily going to be harder.
Here's the easiest solution to your problems: Practice taking pictures with the phone. Keep your arms tucked in at your sides, keep the phone closer to your body. Shoot in landscape instead of portrait so your hands are in better position. I use the flip case for this phone which means I can use that as well to have better grip and stability. Take the picture... and keep the camera pointed just where you were taking the picture for at least 1/2 sec after you tap the "shutter release". Shutter lag will only be exacerbated by being too quick to move the phone. Also, you don't have to mash the on screen button, light tap and whatnot. Oh and the 1/3 of a sec focus time is their "fastest" rating. While in truth that is pretty darn decent, it's also the fastest you'll have. Expect a possible 1/2 to 3/4 sec focus time. And make sure you're PICKY about your focus. Do it over and over again if it's not right.
Also, your metering mode will have a big impact on your images. Get used to changing them to suit your subject.
I have 13+ years experience as a photographer. If it weren't absolutely absurd, and say all of my bodies died at the same time... I would be carrying a monopod or tripod for use with my GS5... Stability is the key to image quality. Who cares what you look like when you take the picture, it's the picture that matters.
Oh and one other thing, image blur is exacerbated when objects are either very close, or very far away. One because the contrast elements (edges and such) are easy to distinguish from the rest and when they're blurry... you notice it. The other because detail elements are TINY at that range, down to even 1 pixel width, so any shake makes those disappear entirely into blur.
Just some basic things to do. Honestly if it's a choice between getting the shot with my Nikons... or getting it with my GS5? the Nikons will win every time. But in a pinch, the camera on the GS5 is good enough. Just takes the right hands and the right frame of mind.
Arkanthos2015 said:
So here's kinda the problem. And it happens a lot with people taking pictures on your phone.
A phone was not meant to be a camera. It just wasn't. In the early days of low resolution things went faster. When you try to run 16 megabit... things are necessarily going to be harder.
Here's the easiest solution to your problems: Practice taking pictures with the phone. Keep your arms tucked in at your sides, keep the phone closer to your body. Shoot in landscape instead of portrait so your hands are in better position. I use the flip case for this phone which means I can use that as well to have better grip and stability. Take the picture... and keep the camera pointed just where you were taking the picture for at least 1/2 sec after you tap the "shutter release". Shutter lag will only be exacerbated by being too quick to move the phone. Also, you don't have to mash the on screen button, light tap and whatnot. Oh and the 1/3 of a sec focus time is their "fastest" rating. While in truth that is pretty darn decent, it's also the fastest you'll have. Expect a possible 1/2 to 3/4 sec focus time. And make sure you're PICKY about your focus. Do it over and over again if it's not right.
Also, your metering mode will have a big impact on your images. Get used to changing them to suit your subject.
I have 13+ years experience as a photographer. If it weren't absolutely absurd, and say all of my bodies died at the same time... I would be carrying a monopod or tripod for use with my GS5... Stability is the key to image quality. Who cares what you look like when you take the picture, it's the picture that matters.
Oh and one other thing, image blur is exacerbated when objects are either very close, or very far away. One because the contrast elements (edges and such) are easy to distinguish from the rest and when they're blurry... you notice it. The other because detail elements are TINY at that range, down to even 1 pixel width, so any shake makes those disappear entirely into blur.
Just some basic things to do. Honestly if it's a choice between getting the shot with my Nikons... or getting it with my GS5? the Nikons will win every time. But in a pinch, the camera on the GS5 is good enough. Just takes the right hands and the right frame of mind.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lots of truth to your post in regards to the pointers about technique and settings. I've got an EOS-1Ds I use when I plan to take photos, and you need to know how to use your gear and be practiced if you want to take a decent photo.
However, I disagree when it comes to expectations for smartphone camera performance. I used to have the same attitude you expressed about taking photos with a phone, until I recently backed up and printed some of the photos off my wife's old iPhone 4S. The photos it took were shockingly good, and my disappointment with the Galaxy S5 camera stems from the fact that it is getting severely outperformed by the 3 year old iPhone. If the Apple crowd has been able to rely on their iPhones as a competent point-and-shoot camera for years, I see no reason why my flagship Android phone should be no different.
In other news, I've been playing with different settings and apps all afternoon, and still aren't seeing any improvement in performance. Camera Zoom FX allows for ISO 1600, and that's giving me the best performance so far in terms of reducing lag and image blur. (Of course, the images are quite grainy...boo hiss.)

Noobs help for manual camera

Hi guys I've just come back to the xzp from my note 8 (hate all the bezeless trend) and the pictures on the xzp are quite noisy especially in low light
I've heard that manual mode is the best but I'm a noob when it comes to manual setting in the camera app
What's a good starting point for the settings in manual mode to get me started with better pics in low light
I don't me night time pics just room lighting types lol
Thanks
Anyone have any recommendations :laugh:
It's easy, lower ISO better quality (but less light). You can compensate the low light by decreasing shutter speed, but then, you have to have a really steady hands, or tripod.
So, in short, to get the best quality, use ISO50 and shutter speed 1s. However, without a tripod, it's really hard to get sharp photo. Sometimes when handheld, you can try shutter speed 1/8s with higher ISO (200 or 400) you will see what is necessary by the brightness in viewfinder.
You can see some of my low light pics here https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=72886521&postcount=8
admad said:
It's easy, lower ISO better quality (but less light). You can compensate the low light by decreasing shutter speed, but then, you have to have a really steady hands, or tripod.
So, in short, to get the best quality, use ISO50 and shutter speed 1s. However, without a tripod, it's really hard to get sharp photo. Sometimes when handheld, you can try shutter speed 1/8s with higher ISO (200 or 400) you will see what is necessary by the brightness in viewfinder.
You can see some of my low light pics here https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=72886521&postcount=8
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow there some nice shots taken there :good:
I'm struggling to get decent pics just in my living room under normal lighting
admad said:
It's easy, lower ISO better quality (but less light). You can compensate the low light by decreasing shutter speed, but then, you have to have a really steady hands, or tripod.
So, in short, to get the best quality, use ISO50 and shutter speed 1s. However, without a tripod, it's really hard to get sharp photo. Sometimes when handheld, you can try shutter speed 1/8s with higher ISO (200 or 400) you will see what is necessary by the brightness in viewfinder.
You can see some of my low light pics here https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=72886521&postcount=8
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The biggest problem I have is all my pics seem blurred like my lens is smudged even though its clean
brockyneo said:
The biggest problem I have is all my pics seem blurred like my lens is smudged even though its clean
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Click to collapse
I think that's just a consequence of Sony's extreme post-processing, along with the the lack of OIS and the longer shutter speeds. When zooming in you'd notice that most detail is wiped out by the post processing even in good lighting conditions. As far as I know this can't be fixed since Sony doesn't give raw files and third party cameras are worse.
If you're using 1s shutter time then it's easy to get a bit of blur from the phone moving if you're holding it by hand but it should definitely has less noise than auto.. Resting it against a surface also helps. I found it better to use the on screen shutter button rather than the physical shutter button to reduce shaking, especially if you're using a case.
But in regards to high noise in room lighting, I find that a bit odd as the pictures I took were pretty clean, at least compared to similar cameras like the OnePlus 3. Maybe you're just noticing it because you came from the Note8, which possibly has the best camera?
brockyneo said:
The biggest problem I have is all my pics seem blurred like my lens is smudged even though its clean
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Click to collapse
It's because of hand shake when taking picture. Bidiminished said one more important thing I forgot, set a self-timer for 3 sec, because it's very easy to introduce slight movement with button press or even on screen touch.
Also, having a mobile tripod is a huge help if you can use it at the moment of taking picture.
Some example, cheap tripod with lenses(lenses are not that useful, but the tripod in this set is good ) for 3,5$ with free shipping.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/5in...a9dfc3f&transAbTest=ae803_5&priceBeautifyAB=0
Hi guys thanks I'll take another look today apart from the camera I'm loving the phone over the note 8 I'd of thought with Sony been the main provider of lenses and Sony are using there latest just thought it would be better lol
Thanks

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