Camera comparision between Lumia 920 and iPhone 5

[TK2011]

I am not a professional photographer therefore was not familier with this concept

No problem. I thought it was a great shot (he created shallow DOF to isolate the flower nicely against the beach background) and found it ironic that you thought the blurry background was a con!

 

[fancy0479]

1. Auto WB works great for me indoor and out. What kind of lighting is giving you trouble?

2. All kinds of cameras underexpose snow scenes and overexposure black curtains quite often in auto mode. That's what EV control is for.

3. Is your lens clean? This post shows dirty vs clean lens comparison:
http://forums.windowscentral.com/nokia-lumia-920/200218-43.htm#post1847709

1. Please see the pictures. The 1st one is what AUTO gave me. The 2nd one is closer to what I actually saw (I got this one after manually set WB to fluorescent).



2. I didn't talk about snow scenes. What I meant is 920 in AUTO mode will produce night photos way too brighter than it actually is, even like shot in daylight.

3. Yes, it's clean.

 

[JammyGitz]

When are EE UK going to get the update??

 

[JonesCK1]

In addition to better sharpness and detail, the iPhone 5's camera also has a *much* faster shutter due to continuous auto-focus in picture mode. What this means is the photo is taken almost at the same instant your finger touches the shutter icon as opposed to the "touch to focus" system the 920 employs which adds a second or so of focus time from when you touch the screen, which is less forgiving if you don't have steady hands.

The Lumia 920 has a 2 stage shutter button like professional DSLR cameras. Try pressing the shutter half way which puts the camera on continuous focus and when you're ready to take the picture, press it all the way, that should help you capture just the right moment immediately without having to wait for the focus and lose your chance ;-)

 

[socialcarpet]

The Lumia 920 has a 2 stage shutter button like professional DSLR cameras. Try pressing the shutter half way which puts the camera on continuous focus and when you're ready to take the picture, press it all the way, that should help you capture just the right moment immediately without having to wait for the focus and lose your chance ;-)

This.

I'm still convinced at least 50% of the complaints about the 920's camera are a result of people not understanding how to use it. It's a little trickier than an iPhone, but the reward is it will take great pictures once you learn to use it properly. Like I said, I have had great results from day one just by taking my time with it and following advice and tips I've found here.

 

[Vishal Prakash]

Yes, I'm being silly.

These pics were taken with a 920 though, with everything set to auto (except for the macro of the flower). These were taken before the software update and there is NO post processing trickery done here. I am not a trained photographer by any stretch of the imagination either. The point is, the complaints about the daytime performance of the 920's camera are GROSSLY exaggerated. I've been taking great pics with my 920 since day one, day or night.

These are pretty nice pictures but if you had taken the same with iphone 5 , people would think you used a DSLR !

This.

I'm still convinced at least 50% of the complaints about the 920's camera are a result of people not understanding how to use it. It's a little trickier than an iPhone, but the reward is it will take great pictures once you learn to use it properly. Like I said, I have had great results from day one just by taking my time with it and following advice and tips I've found here.

Problem with 920 is soft/blurry images. Colour, light, whitebalance, exposure, etc etc does not matter if raw capture itself is not proper.
People are praising its low light performance as "compared" to other phones. Yes, my 920 also takes "better" low light pictures "compared" to iphone 5.

I am so disappointed with the camera. Come on Nokia, its 2013 , a $ 40 logitech webcam takes sharper pictures !

 

[dickturpin1976]

another video recording comparison..


Google Nexus 4, Nokia Lumia 920 und iPhone 5: Videoaufnahmen im Vergleich - YouTube

 

[V J]

The Lumia 920 has a 2 stage shutter button like professional DSLR cameras. Try pressing the shutter half way which puts the camera on continuous focus and when you're ready to take the picture, press it all the way, that should help you capture just the right moment immediately without having to wait for the focus and lose your chance ;-)

Incorrect. I am fully aware of the 2-stage shutter key. But pressing the key half-way does NOT put the camera in continuous auto-focus mode. It merely lets the camera focus on the center of what you are CURRENTLY pointing the camera at when you press it halfway. It's the exact same system used on the Nokia N8. Meaning once you press it halfway and the camera focuses, you must take a picture of what you've made the camera focus on, if you choose another scenery while its pressed and the disparity in distance is too great, your picture will come out out of focus.

Pressing the 2-stage shutter key is almost exactly the same as touching the middle of the screen to take a snap, except with a slightly wider focus range in the middle. The iPhone 5 however, has true continuous auto-focus, meaning while the camera is active, it continually refocuses as you move the camera around when trying to pick a scenery. It's always there, always ready to take a picture for you as soon as your finger touches the snap icon.

 

[jarettp]

The fluorescent setting fixes the weird fluorescent colors for me.

 

[Vishal Prakash]

Three years and + 3 mega pixels and I do not know how many technological advancements later....

The left side image is taken from N97 mini, right image is from Lumia 920

sorry, this is a bit OT

 

[fancy0479]

The fluorescent setting fixes the weird fluorescent colors for me.

But I think AUTO should work properly instead of letting the user to do the manual work.

 

[fancy0479]

Incorrect. I am fully aware of the 2-stage shutter key. But pressing the key half-way does NOT put the camera in continuous auto-focus mode. It merely lets the camera focus on the center of what you are CURRENTLY pointing the camera at when you press it halfway. It's the exact same system used on the Nokia N8. Meaning once you press it halfway and the camera focuses, you must take a picture of what you've made the camera focus on, if you choose another scenery while its pressed and the disparity in distance is too great, your picture will come out out of focus.

Pressing the 2-stage shutter key is almost exactly the same as touching the middle of the screen to take a snap, except with a slightly wider focus range in the middle. The iPhone 5 however, has true continuous auto-focus, meaning while the camera is active, it continually refocuses as you move the camera around when trying to pick a scenery. It's always there, always ready to take a picture for you as soon as your finger touches the snap icon.

One day, I've tried iPhone 5 and 920. The former take pictures like 1-2 times faster than 920.
And I pressed the snap icon on iPhone 5, directly pressed down the snap button on 920.
So this impressed me a lot in a slight bad way.

 

[vlad0]

Three years and + 3 mega pixels and I do not know how many technological advancements later....

Again.. Nokia's understanding of Symbian is much, much better than WP. We are talking about years of "in house" development and R&D... not the case with the 920. The fact that they actually managed to produce what they did is still pretty impressive considering the time frame.

And the other point.. the only way to significantly improve image quality is by using better (they are generally bigger) optics and bigger image sensors. That is it. There is no (at least not yet) shortcuts you can take.. but then people moan about size, camera humps, etc. Well.. you can't have a 8 mm. thin phone and amazing imaging capabilities.

Honestly since the days of the N95/N97 the only significant advancement in imaging was shown in the Nokia N8 and the 808... and now to a certain extent in the 920 in terms of video stabilization and.. maybe low light, even tho the 808 can produce better results if you adjust the ISO.

Another test

By popular request: Nokia N8 vs Lumia 920 PR1.1 vs Ativ S camera test

 

[tebugg]

i think what's lost in this whole convo is the fact that the camera doesnt just take daylight pics. if you have to pick on this 1 thing about the lumia 920 camera to give another camera an advantage then the lumia 920's camera has already won. lets compare the lumia 920's camera to the iphone 5's in all camera category's (since after all you're talking about the camera and not just daytime pics)

daytime pics: i'll concede this to iphone 5 to prove my point although i dont think this is the case if you actually know how to take pics.
nighttime pics: lumia 920
daytime video: lumia 920
nighttime video: lumia 920
video audio (since this goes hand in hand with the video): lumia 920 with HAAC mics

so if we're talking about the camera of the lumia 920 vs. the iphone 5, the lumia 920 beats it period. as i already said, you have to really be nit picking to find 1 thing to give the iphone 5 an advantage. that says alot about the lumia 920's camera.

 

[vlad0]

I've been saying that for a while.. they should compare the whole "camera package" not just one aspect of it...

 

[smoledman]

Daytime & bright indoor photos represent 80% of smartphone camera use cases and the iPhone has it covered.

 

[Davidkoh]

Daytime & bright indoor photos represent 80% of smartphone camera use cases and the iPhone has it covered.

Please show me the data for that stat.

There are loads and loads of major problems with even trying to gather the data for that, and even if that succeeded you still have to get rid of the problems surrounding that people with phones that give crap pictures in low light will not use their phones in low light. So please tell us how you came up with that number.

 

[onlineharvest]

Daytime & bright indoor photos represent 80% of smartphone camera use cases and the iPhone has it covered.

I find this hard to believe (aside from the obvious made up statistic). You are making the typical mistake of equating 'low light' with night. The majority of indoor shots would represent a lower light situation than bright. Or do you think the camera sees what your eye sees? Anyone who uses a DSLR will understand the difference.

Anecdotally, the majority of photos I've seen taken with cell phones have been in lower light situations. Most people work for a living, and end up taking shots at dinner parties, after dusk with friends and families, birthdays, kids sports events, etc - just looking at my phone and seeing the photos my family shares with me, most are night shots ( new years eve, dinner at vacation, coffee at a bar, etc).

 

[robmif76]

Please show me the data for that stat.

There are loads and loads of major problems with even trying to gather the data for that, and even if that succeeded you still have to get rid of the problems surrounding that people with phones that give crap pictures in low light will not use their phones in low light. So please tell us how you came up with that number.

There's no "official" data on that it's just how individuals tend to use their cameras mostly. In my case I also use the camera 75% for daytime photos.

The point is, after all the hype of the 920's super duper 5 balls camera, it lacks in one of the most important areas in respect to competition. That's a hard fact despite all the apologists coming up with lines like "you have to use manual settings" or "nokia don't know WP8 as well as they did Symbian". Me as a consumer, I don't care about Nokia's hardships. I just want a product that works as it should and unfortunately I'm finding the 920 lacking in many areas. I understand this is a new product and no doubt in a year's time Nokia + WP8 will be in a good place but presently they are not worth the money.

 

[maverick786us]

i think what's lost in this whole convo is the fact that the camera doesnt just take daylight pics. if you have to pick on this 1 thing about the lumia 920 camera to give another camera an advantage then the lumia 920's camera has already won. lets compare the lumia 920's camera to the iphone 5's in all camera category's (since after all you're talking about the camera and not just daytime pics)

daytime pics: i'll concede this to iphone 5 to prove my point although i dont think this is the case if you actually know how to take pics.
nighttime pics: lumia 920
daytime video: lumia 920
nighttime video: lumia 920
video audio (since this goes hand in hand with the video): lumia 920 with HAAC mics

so if we're talking about the camera of the lumia 920 vs. the iphone 5, the lumia 920 beats it period. as i already said, you have to really be nit picking to find 1 thing to give the iphone 5 an advantage. that says alot about the lumia 920's camera.

I do agree that except for daytime pics in, every other department Lumia 920 has outclassed iphone 5. But my purpose of this thread was just the comparision of daytime shots with iPhone 5 with this firmware update, not the overall comparision. Imagine in rest of the department Lumia 920 outclass iPhone 5, with daytime if Lumia 920 gains huge lead beyond the imagination of iPhone 5??