DSLR vs Smartphone Cameras – Are Smartphones Better?

Photography is ever-changing, especially for smartphones. However, the fundamentals of photography remain the same. Be it DSLR or smartphone cameras, the basics are the same – especially the exposure triangle. Of course, there are differences between DSLR vs smartphone cameras.

We took a look at how to shoot in portrait mode and manual mode, but not really focused on other modes and how it can be created by a DSLR. Hence, I took the opportunity to curate this piece – a brief comparison on how to create these “picture modes” through a DSLR.

And by the way, dual-camera smartphones are not better than single-camera smartphones either. Learn more about dual-camera smartphones here.

To be honest, I’m just very triggered by ridiculously outrageous and baseless claims like this. Once you understand photography, these claims wouldn’t exist. Prices between DSLR vs smartphone are in completely different leagues. Just try taking a Nat Geo-esque video with a smartphone.

For either of these devices, it’s best to always use a tripod for the best effect. You know, us humans aren’t the stablest beings in the world – and any tiny movement will affect the picture negatively, destroying perfection.

Exposure Triangle

We mentioned the exposure triangle quite a lot of times. The gist of it is this – a balance has to be struck in between these 3 parameters. When it comes to the exposure of a picture, there is a total of 3 parameters that control it, namely:

• Shutter speed
• ISO
• Aperture

These 3 parameters can be controlled individually and bring out different types of effect, depending on which one you’re looking for. For certain scenes, there are different usages too. All in all, it really depends on the situation.

There is another general rule when it comes to controlling these parameters. The ISO is always to be set at its lowest value for the best picture quality and will be the final parameter to be adjusted to change the exposure of an image.

IT’S ALL ABOUT BALANCE

Each of them has their own impact in creating the whole picture. It’s best to practice to really know how the exposure triangle works, and how your particular camera behaves – be it a smartphone or a DSLR. It’s all about balance.

Every camera does have its own differences, and specs can’t really tell you all the difference. It’s best to learn your camera and get a feel of how it responds to you, the photographer.

Playing around with the exposure triangle

Most smartphones and cameras even have a “modes” which has already tuned the exposure triangle to work the way it should. For example, Sports Mode will adjust to a low aperture number, relatively high shutter speed to capture the quickest motion without blur and adjust the ISO appropriately for a balanced exposure.

As for Portrait Mode that we took a look here, it will prioritize to maintain a low aperture number and adjusting both ISO and shutter speed appropriately. Night Mode? Simple – for the best effect, it’s advisable to aim for low ISO and long shutter speed. The same concept is used to do light painting and light trails. The “silky waterfall” effect? Yeah, just take the picture with a long shutter speed and a high aperture number and low ISO.

As long shutter speed is used, any sort of tiny movement to the camera will cause blurriness to the picture. Hence, it is best to use a tripod.

However, for situations like a wedding dinner, it’s best to have a moderately high shutter speed (about 1/60), appropriate aperture at about f/4.0 and ISO 400~600. Else, an external flash is recommended.

How do software and hardware modes differ?

Let’s take portrait mode as the prime example here.

Software portrait mode is done through blurring the background and foreground by detecting depth through either the second camera like the Huawei P10 or through autofocusing technology. With that said, it can sometimes get confused and blurred the wrong thing.

DSLR blurring is on point and it obviously doesn’t get confused, as everything is done through hardware. I mean, it’s obeying the laws of physics and there’s nothing that can run away from that. There are no software tricks but the price to pay is its bulkiness and weight.

For a DSLR lens with the same f-number as a tiny lens like in a smartphone, the amount that light that can go in and through the DSLR lens is much more compared to a smartphone’s lens. I mean – just look at the diameter difference!

When it comes to the amount of light that the camera can take in, the clear winner between DSLR vs smartphone is obviously the DSLR.

DSLR vs smartphone – which is better?

In terms of quality, DSLRs win by a wide margin – no questions asked. Even the clarity of a DSLR is much better, as shown here in our guide to “portrait mode” photography. There are many things that smartphone manufacturers do not disclose, like the sensor size, the focal length of the lens, and the number of aperture blades.

DSLR CAN CREATE CUSTOM-SHAPED BOKEH

Speaking of aperture blades, I have never heard about smartphone cameras having aperture blades at all. The number of blades matters when taking hardware-created bokeh images. The number of blades dictates how the bokeh image will appear. The more aperture blades there are in a lens, the smooth the final bokeh image.

For example, a lens with 3-bladed aperture will create triangular bokeh, and a lens with 9-bladed aperture will create octagonal-shaped bokeh images. You can create custom shapes too, like these lightning bolt bokeh image. But wait – let’s not forget that smartphones don’t have variable f-number, so these fantastically artistic bokeh images are only possible to be taken with a DSLR. Of course, it’s a niche trick – but cool nonetheless.

Also, images taken with a DSLR is just cleaner compared to what a smartphone can offer. This boils down to two different limitations that smartphones inherently have. Firstly, it is the physical sensor size. With such a small sensor on a smartphone, it’s impossible to take a picture that is on par with a DSLR even with the exact same settings.

Wrapping up

Certainly, the DSLR vs Smartphone camera fight comes down to your own preference. It’s a game about trade-offs. Do you want portability or a photography experience like no other?

So, is the idea of getting a DSLR justified at this day and age? Definitely. The choice of getting one, however, depends on how serious one is about photography. Sure, smartphone cameras are getting better every year, but there are some fundamental physical limitations that smartphone cameras have.

SMARTPHONES CAN NEVER CREATE “NATURAL BOKEH”

However, smartphones are definitely more flexible compared to a DSLR. Obviously, smartphones can make calls, WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Live broadcasting, browse the web, etc. and can still take pictures. Software-based modes like Beauty Mode and GIF mode are best done on a smartphone too. They’re just more flexible, as a simple software update can bring a slew of new features. Even an overhaul of the entire UI.A DSLR however, can only take pictures and videos. DSLR resell values are also much better when it comes to the test of time, especially for lenses and tripods when compared to a smartphone.

Ultimately, you do get the best image quality from a DSLR, but also the bulkiest and not the most flexible when it comes to new software-based features through updates and upgrades. Though these features can be done through Lightroom or Photoshop – but that’s another story for another time.

Sources: nasilemaktech

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Choosing the Right Cleaning Tools for your Camera Lens

Unless you are shooting in a studio every time, it isn’t unexpected to find dirt, rain, dust or whatever kind of grime on your camera. And with camera bodies and lenses costing up to thousands of dollars, it is essential for a camera owner to know how to take proper aftercare of their camera lenses. With this guide, we will show you the right tools you can use to keep your lenses crystal clear.

Camera specific tools

Rocket blower

This is an important tool that will allow you to blow away dust clinging to your camera lens. Using a cloth to wipe the lens may drag the dust and damage it. With this tool, no contact is necessary as you use air to remove unwanted material.

LensPen

This is a tool that has a carbon-charged felt tip on one end, and a retractable brush on the other. The felt tip can be used to absorb oils and other particles that might have settled on the lens, which will allow you to remove grease and fingerprints. The retractable brush will help remove the dust that the blower could not get to. You should not apply much pressure if using one of the ends.

Lens cleaning wipes

These are miniature wipes that are pre-moistened in a lens cleaning solution that quickly evaporates when applied to the lens. The wipes are designed to be convenient for the user to clean all types of spectacle lenses. The cleaning agents they contain are free from harmful damaging substances and artificial fragrances.

Non-camera tools

Microfiber cloth

These are best used to buff the lenses after using the wipes. Microfiber cloth is the perfect type of cloth to clean lenses without any product applied to it. Using the same cloth on different products should be avoided as the material coming from one might damage the other.

Paint brush

These are effective tools that can be used to remove dust that is settling on the surface of the camera bodies and lens barrels. Since it will only be used on the outside of the camera and outer casing of the lenses, a brush with tougher bristles is recommended as compared to ones that are extra soft.

Makeup brush

This performs a similar same role of the LensPen’s retractable brush end. Depending on the makeup brush’s size, you can reach areas where the LensPens could not. Make sure you buy one brand new as you do not want makeup residue to end up in your lens.

Zip-lock bag

Your cleaning gear must be protected from dust and dirt too. Zip-lock bags serve as an excellent solution to keeping your tools free from any unwanted material.

Sources: techpatio

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Dual-Camera Smartphones – What You Need To Know

http://www.sltechnozone.com- Not all dual-camera smartphones are created equal -http://www.sltechnozone.com

I shall start by saying this – dual-camera smartphones are all the rage these days. I’ve seen many people looking for a new smartphone, and one of their criteria is “must have dual-camera“. While it is arguably one of the newest feature offered at the hardware level, there are major misconceptions about these dual-camera smartphones.

Lucky for you, we’ve gone deep into this subject and summarized everything that you need to know. Let’s break it all down and have a look with the utmost detail so we won’t fall into more marketing buzzwords and confusions.

Introduction

Dual-camera smartphones aren’t exactly a new idea after all. HTC One M8 was announced back in March of 2014, and it’s the first dual-camera smartphone ever. That smartphone was the first one ever that brought this idea to the mainstream consumer market.

Fast forward a few years to 2016, and the re-emergence of dual-camera smartphones started popping up again. It took about a year before it caught on the hype train, and things are starting to get really out of hand right now. I’ve heard people saying that “dual-camera smartphones always means more superior image quality“, and to the point where it is a must when choosing their brand new smartphone. That’s NOT the case! :O

Not all dual-camera smartphones are the same

They might look the same – but in fact, they’re very different.

There are two different types of dual-camera smartphones. For the lack of a proper name, I just call the first type as “stereoscopic dual-camera system” and the other one as “hybrid lens dual-camera system“. The main difference here is the lens only. The megapixel count can be different between the two cameras on a single smartphone. Let me explain one by one.

Stereoscopic dual-camera system

This kind of system has both the cameras work together to get more visual details, specifically depth information. One camera gets the image, whereas the other camera gets depth information. When both these cameras work together, you’ll get additional features like what we’ve shown here with the with the Huawei P10.

STEREOSCOPIC DUAL-CAMERA SYSTEM IS LIKE HAVING TWO EYES – JUST LIKE US HUMANS

The only stereoscopic dual-camera system smartphone that gets all the fame these days is from Huawei. Huawei employed this camera system since the P9 and it’s conceptually the same as the one used on the HTC One M8 – which has identical focal lengths on both cameras’ lenses. It means that both the lenses are identical – same focal length and same aperture. In layman’s terms, this camera system is like having two eyes – just like us, humans. As a bonus, it tends to have faster-focusing speeds and the ability to refocus pictures, too.

Take a look at the Huawei P10’s dual-camera lenses here.

Hybrid lens dual-system camera

The other dual-camera system found in smartphones don’t work together, but each of the cameras has their own specialty instead. So how do they work?

Quite simple, actually. Both camera lenses differ from each other – as one lens will have a shorter focal length (wide angle lens) and the other lens will have a longer focal length (oftentimes regarded as “telephoto” lens). You essentially get the best of both worlds when it comes to this type of dual-camera system. One simple tap of a button is all it takes to swap between the two lenses. That means you can frame your shots more flexibility and get a wide angle shot when you’re at a very tight spot.

HYBRID LENS DUAL-CAMERA SYSTEM SETUP IS LIKE SOMEONE WEARING A MONOCLE

The ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom that we’ve reviewed here has exactly that – instead of having the same lens on both cameras, it has a 25mm lens on one camera and a 59mm lens on another. Like I’ve said before on our ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom review, its dual-camera system setup is like someone wearing a monocle. So, you can see things through

Take a look at the image here and the lens diameter can actually be seen.

Also, this type of dual-camera system is found more commonly on smartphones. Take the iPhone 7 Plus and LG G5 and LG G5/G6 for example. The two cameras that they have are not using the same lens.

Finding out what type of dual-camera system is on a particular smartphone

So here’s how we can determine which dual-camera system your particular smartphone is using.

Look at the spec sheet and see if there’s any discrepancy in both the camera lenses’ focal length, which is displayed in mm.

Physically measure the diameter of the lens of both the lenses. If there is a difference, then it’s using the hybrid zoom dual-camera system.

The former method is definitely much simpler – but I must highlight one more point. Many spec sheets do not state the focal length, so it’s not such a surefire method after all. The latter is quite difficult to determine without any sort of proper equipment. For me, I took a picture and then did a pixel-by-pixel comparison of both the lenses’ diameters.

Let me show you what I mean – that’ll get the message across a lot better than worded descriptions.

See the difference? The ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom has two different diameters, whereas the Huawei P10 has two of the same. That’s generally how I find out the difference between the two dual-camera systems.

Are dual-camera systems better than single-camera systems?

To answer that question, we have three flagship smartphones with three different type of camera systems. The Samsung Galaxy S8+ with a single-camera system, the ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom with a hybrid dual-camera system, and the Huawei P10 with a stereoscopic dual-camera system.

I’ve taken all 3 flagships with me on a short little lunch trip and took a few shots with them. Let’s see how they all perform – and remember, we’re trying to disprove that dual-camera smartphones are always more superior than a single-camera smartphone in terms of image quality.

Sources: nasilemaktech

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