Pictures + Videos Taken With My Lumia 950 XL

[anon(8555314)]

 

[RumoredNow]

Thanks again to occamsmonkey for the requested sample. It was perfect for my analysis. Infinite focus is theoretical, IMHO and shooting comparison pics through different phones has lead me to believe practice differs from theory. So here is what I am looking at...


On the 950 XL with an aperture of f/1.9 occamsmonkey supplied a 3840x2160 image that calculates to 8.3 MP. I then cropped in on a near portion, a mid and a far range.


near
mid
far


I think anyone would agree that the near portion of the image is crystal clear. Check the slats on the stairs and the reflections in the glass.

The mid portion is very nice. Not as sharply defined. Compare the tower of the crane vs the boom. Also the frames around the windows of the building at about the same distance as the cranes. Look at the building on the wooded hill behind the right-most crane. Acceptable.

There does appear to be some softening in the farthest reaches of the picture. Check the taller buildings and the strut work of the bridge. It is still very nice for such a tight crop on an 8 MP image.It is also highly unlikely that one would want a crop so tight on such a far off subject to make a "presentation" pic. I'm still impressed with the quality here.


For comparison, I had some stock on hand from my 1520 with an aperture of f/2.4. The original is 3072x1728 which calculates to 5.3 MP. I was able to crop on a near and a mid portion for comparison.


near
mid


The near and mid results are nearly identical for clarity compared between 1520 and 950 XL and this is what I was after. Confirmation that 950 XL will replicate this clarity over a wide shot when cropped in or viewed on a large screen. The near portion from 950 XL seems even sharper, but I think it benefits from the larger image size of +3 MP and some more favorable lighting. Also, on the cranes, the 950 XL gets help with color contrast vs the sky...

So I am confident that 950 XL's f/1.9 aperture doesn't suffer from the lack I saw on 928.


I also have the exact same scene as the 1520 taken with a 928 on an f/2.0 aperture. The original is 3552x2000 which calculates to 7.1 MP and I have the same near and mid crops.


near
mid


Side by side with the 1520 sample taken seconds apart, the 928 looks softer all over: the original, the near and the mid. Look at the differences in the near crops of the license plate and the cranes and architecture in the mid crop. The 928 samples have significantly more pixels than the same crop on 1520, yet the 1520 handles it better.

I was afraid that since aperture is fixed and does play into depth of field that maybe 950 XL would suffer from what I saw with a wider aperture on 928. I'm glad to see my fears are countered by in use evidence.

 

[jmajid]

Dang! That made a huge difference in sharpness. Thanks for posting. Also really like the ornament macro!

looks like the moral of the story is to keep away from Rich capture or use it when you must...

 

[zimilaci]

Speaking of rich capture, and rich recording with the 4 Mics.... shouldnt we be able to record in 5.1? I saw no chance to change the audio recording options (((( am I missing something... I mainly bought this device for the good audio recording in concerts and parties with loud bass..

 

[206Husky]

View attachment 117947
Slow traffic on 99 tonight.

Seattle waterfront FTW!

 

[anon(8555314)]

 

[anon(8555314)]

I did some experimenting with macro filters and also with a Neutral Density 64 filter at sunset. The flower above is with 10X and 4X macro filters. The two below are with a ND filter and the shutter set to 4 seconds.

 

[ClixT]

Here's a 4k video, edited with premiere pro (just added a universal SL Clean Punch HDR to it). My thoughts so far about the 950XL:

4k Video is amazing, I mainly use DXO for image editing, and I can't use that for RAW post processing (it needs a camera module). I guess I have to get use to Photoshop..

 

[RumoredNow]

I guess I have to get use to Photoshop..

Have you tried Rawer on the phone? https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...%2Fapps%2FRawer%2F9WZDNCRFJVBT&token=NSkZeoxB

 

[onetwright]

I had a chance to play with the 950XL camera at the MS store tonight. I kept having 2 really annoying issues with it.
1. "Finishing touches" took FOREVER. I'm talking like 15s for rich capture pics and even a second or two for regular pics
2. When I take selfies with my wife, I use the rear facing camera and take the photo using the camera button. My arms are long so I can do that . I tried a few such shots in the store, and the delay between when I pressed the button and when the picture was taken was so long that I kept getting a picture of whatever the camera was pointing at when I was pulling my arm back down. Then, to boot, all but one that actually got my face we're totally out of focus.

Are these issues present on any of your phones? I want to like the XL, but my in store experience with side by side comparisons to a 1020 or 930 really haven't been good. XL is great for color, and I thought speed until the selfie issues tonight, but I've never been impressed with the detail at full zoom... Seems grainy vs 930 and can't touch the 1020 for detail, though it absolutely destroys it for speed I always leave the store wondering if it's REALLY any better than the 930 since its got a pretty quick shooter too.

 

[ClixT]

Have you tried Rawer on the phone? https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...%2Fapps%2FRawer%2F9WZDNCRFJVBT&token=snkVf1lB

I just downloaded it. Playing with it now.
Also playing with Lightroom.

 

[anon(8555314)]

I had a chance to play with the 950XL camera at the MS store tonight. I kept having 2 really annoying issues with it.
1. "Finishing touches" took FOREVER. I'm talking like 15s for rich capture pics and even a second or two for regular pics
2. When I take selfies with my wife, I use the rear facing camera and take the photo using the camera button. My arms are long so I can do that . I tried a few such shots in the store, and the delay between when I pressed the button and when the picture was taken was so long that I kept getting a picture of whatever the camera was pointing at when I was pulling my arm back down. Then, to boot, all but one that actually got my face we're totally out of focus.

Are these issues present on any of your phones? I want to like the XL, but my in store experience with side by side comparisons to a 1020 or 930 really haven't been good. XL is great for color, and I thought speed until the selfie issues tonight, but I've never been impressed with the detail at full zoom... Seems grainy vs 930 and can't touch the 1020 for detail, though it absolutely destroys it for speed I always leave the store wondering if it's REALLY any better than the 930 since its got a pretty quick shooter too.

I'm guessing that something was screwed up in the settings somewhere on that display phone. I've never seen my phone mention "finishing touches". I turned off the living images, and maybe that would be the place to start.

My experience coming from a 1020:

1) Regarding speed, the 950XL is dramatically faster in all the ways that matter. Pressing the camera button has it open and ready in about 1 second. My 1020 takes 3-4 seconds. Time between shots is also about 5 times faster on the 950XL.

2) Battery - When doing a heavy photo session, the 1020's battery can't handle more than an hour or two before it will need a charge. The 950XL has a much more robust battery.

3) The 1020 will take better shots a) in good light, b) when you have time to frame a shot and dial in the settings, 3) )if you need to crop a lot. If you are using your camera in low light, or using it as a point and shoot camera, then the 950XL works far better, because it is faster and the processing software is better, and it handles low light better. Also, with a microSD slot for storage, the 950XL has a big storage advantage.

Here's the cool thing, I can now carry both my 1020 without the sim and the 950xl. When taking pictures, I can set up the 1020 with one set of settings and the other with different settings and switch back and forth easily.

 

[abivaanenopi]

Just got my 950 and 950xl. I tried 4k video in this short video. Semilow light. More testing tomorrow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cno-w6_fEz4

 

[imnotevenhererightnow]

I feel silly for asking, but how do i view the living images on my phone? I have the setting turned on, but when I go to my camera roll I just see the static picture. Is it in a menu somewhere? Thanks!

EDIT: nvm. I think I see how it works. It actually detects movement in the shot and if it's still, then it doesn't include a living image?

 

[206Husky]

EDIT: nvm. I think I see how it works. It actually detects movement in the shot and if it's still, then it doesn't include a living image?

That's exactly how it works.

 

[hyperexpert]

Here is mine. Took it early in the morning at the Microsoft campus - It was super cold

 

[occamsmonkey]

Here is mine. Took it early in the morning at the Microsoft campus - It was super cold

Man oh man do I miss campus. I left to do film full time back in '13 and, when that failed horribly, I landed at the 'zon. Bah.

 

[hyperexpert]

I LOVE the campus! I left for 2 months earlier this year for Disney in Seattle. Couldn't take it there and came right back.

 

[IIDXholic]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLaOgCmH_X8

Here is a video I took of a concert I went to see in Houston. Band is MUSE and the song is The Globalist. I tried to get as much visuals as I can because the song is a story, and quoted from Matt Bellamy:

"The song starts with the same kind of message, a person who feels abandon, unloved and kind of lone and instead of going through a internal journey of darkness and solving that and come back to discover love, they decide to become a dictator, a power hungry maniac and in some ways inflict damage to the rest to the world....Rather than going through an internal journey they decide to go through an external and destructive journey and destroys the world or someone"

I shot it in 4K, and unfortunately I thought I would be able to zoom in like I would in the 1020, to see Matt Bellamy doing his guitar and piano solo. What I do like about the video, is the crowd noise is low, something that the 1020 couldn't do. It was REALLY loud, the crowd cheering on the band, and though it would of been an issue. Its really annoying when you have a video and some girl next to you ruins it with her "wooohOHOHOhOhOHoOWOWOWOOOOOO".

 

[zimilaci]

Is there any chance besides stereo ? Like 5.1? I would really like to have such