Camera Lab Test Scores iPhone 6s on Same Level as iPhone 6

[Genkakuzai]

I don't have a 6S (waiting for the 7), but the thing I like about live pictures is that you don't have to think about turning it on. You just take pictures. If you get a picture of your kid catching the winning pass of the game, or making an adorable face, you often don't get an opportunity to take it again to capture the motion. All I need is an easy way to strip the motion part out of a picture that doesn't benefit from it.

In my case i'm actually using in the opposite way, I turn it on when I feel it is somehow merited ^^ But anyways I like the concept, but I think they could've perhaps made it a tad bit smoother. Still though, I'm sure it'll have its place for me as well, just not in ever shot I take. However it's really easy and quick to turn on and off in the camera app so.

then i doubt your "photography background" because the image quality is overall much worse than on the 5s. dont let yourself fool by apples marketing blah.

and seriously, no way that a DSLR is anything near the image quality of the 6s.

If you're saying the 6S has WORSE quality than the 5S you're delusional, and I _AM_ a photographer who does it for a living.

However you're certainly correct in that a dSLR is still vastly superior to any smartphone camera, but that still doesn't mean you can't take splendid photos with it.

 

[Genkakuzai]

I have a 6. I have the money to buy a 6s but there is no need. My camera is outstanding. I use it all the time and in addition I shoot pix of sheet music, hand held in low church lite and they are razor sharp blown up for use during preformance on an iPad Air. I could not do that with my 5 on a stand using a count down timer to assure no shake, they were still not clear-useable but nothing like my 6. I can only imagine how great the current cameras are and next year when I upgrade, they will be even better.

I honestly don't get why some people have to get EVERY model. I've always gone for the S models, so every other year I upgrade. They easily last for 2 years, changing every year seems quite pointless, to me at least.

I do photography as part of my day job (5D MkIII and 24-70 f/2.8L are my bread and butter) and I'm definitely getting better images than on the 6. The sharpness in close ups and landscapes is definitely improved. Skin tones seem to be a touch better. Last weekend we had some friends over for a fire on the new patio I built this summer and the low light photos were surprisingly good. Grainy but perfect for snapshots. I'd say low light performance isn't ideal but daylight performance is much improved. I also like taking stills from 4K video. Each frame is about 8mp! I can easily print 8x10s of my kid from video stills lol. That's crazy and an unexpected benefit. The great tonal range you get from the iPhone, especially in HDR mode makes editing in Lightroom Mobile a possibility without much clipping or banding—which is impressive for any 8-but file. Produces a much more gentle histogram curve.

I get the feeling that Apple is going to leapfrog with the camera in the iPhone 7. Rumors seem to suggest they're working on something big and I know they love to lead the smartphone camera race.

This lines up pretty neatly with my experience as well. One thing I've noticed with the 6S Plus, more in comparison to the 5S than anything else, is how well the images "pop". Likely, at least partly, due to the increased contrast, something I also experience in comparison to the 6 (not Plus nor as much as compared to the 5S, mind you). Excellent point regarding stills from 4K video, hadn't even thought about that use. I agree with you on the tonal range, you can push the images quite a bit in post, as long as you don't go too far with the shadows (but that's true for just about every smartphone camera out there).

 

[asleep]

iPhone 6 camera was

iPhone 6S camera is

 

[x34]

If you're saying the 6S has WORSE quality than the 5S you're delusional

it's a fact and proven in many threads e.g. on macrumors.

 

[macduke]

Here's a snapshot I took of some mums a couple weeks ago with the 6S. I had posted it on the forums after I took it, and here it is again but edited with Lightroom Mobile. To export the full res size so people can inspect the detail, I had to export it from LR desktop. The file size is too large, so I've hosted it on my cloud account. You can view the image here:

http://d.pr/1c3ZN.jpg

It makes a great autumn wallpaper! Feel free to use it for non-commercial stuff.

 

[Genkakuzai]

it's a fact and proven in many threads e.g. on macrumors.

Yeah I don't give a rats a** what people claim to have proven. I just went from a 5S to a 6S Plus, and the 6S Plus is better in every single way, period. I've compared them side by side more than once, and it's no competition. I am quite capable of comparing images seeing as I do it on an everyday basis.

 

[Genkakuzai]

Here's a snapshot I took of some mums a couple weeks ago with the 6S. I had posted it on the forums after I took it, and here it is again but edited with Lightroom Mobile. To export the full res size so people can inspect the detail, I had to export it from LR desktop. The file size is too large, so I've hosted it on my cloud account. You can view the image here:

http://d.pr/1c3ZN.jpg

It makes a great autumn wallpaper! Feel free to use it for non-commercial stuff.

The image doesn't show up in the thread for some reason, it works perfectly fine when clicking the link provided when you quote your post though. Nice shot by the way!

 

[maxsix]

Nearly every week since it's introduction Apple's iPhone 6S is taking a hit, it's problems, shortcomings, or same/same reports are being issued. I am super happy that I didn't take the bait and buy into what is a very mediocre "upgrade" as is the case with the 6S series.

Even better are the initial rumors about iPhone 7. Hidden behind a thinly veiled wall, those of us who have been around Apple and paid attention to it's operations, know that Apple themselves are the ones releasing some of these early rumors. Rumors that in many cases are fact based. It's how Apple so cleverly programs us to get ready to buy again next year.

In lieu of having any big improvements on the 6S series (3D touch needs apps) Apple is sure to make a big splash with the iPhone 7. That will be the phone to have...

 

[macduke]

Here are some more full-res snapshots from my iPhone 6s that I decided to import and briefly work on in Lightroom:

Close up red autumn leaf:
http://d.pr/1dlps.jpg

Architecture:
http://d.pr/13tQA.jpg

Pumpkins/gourds:
http://d.pr/10sM.jpg
http://d.pr/133Ul.jpg

Autumn trees:
http://d.pr/11CSz.jpg

You can see some weakness in the last image, which kept trying to overexpose even though the sun was back-lighting the tree. I thought I pulled the exposure down enough using the controls on the phone but it was still bright. Brought it down in LR, but still not ideal, especially in areas with the sky peaking through that exhibits a bit of chromatic aberration. But overall I got some decent snapshots that have a good amount of wiggle room in post. Most of my phone photos are of my kid and wife and I won't post those here, but this should give people an idea of what is possible.

 

[macduke]

The image doesn't show up in the thread for some reason, it works perfectly fine when clicking the link provided when you quote your post though. Nice shot by the way!

Thanks! It's because I did a ninja edit between posting it, you seeing it, and quoting it. Apparently MR has controls in place to block inline images over a certain size (which makes sense because it would slow down page load, although it's too bad they can't just turn it into a linkable thumbnail), so I just put a simple text link in.

 

[Genkakuzai]

Thanks! It's because I did a ninja edit between posting it, you seeing it, and quoting it. Apparently MR has controls in place to block inline images over a certain size (which makes sense because it would slow down page load, although it's too bad they can't just turn it into a linkable thumbnail), so I just put a simple text link in.

Fair enough ^^ Nice shots btw. The thing still missing, with just about every tiny smartphone sensor, is good dynamic range, as you alluded to. Still though, a lot than it was just a few years ago.

 

[macduke]

Fair enough ^^ Nice shots btw. The thing still missing, with just about every tiny smartphone sensor, is good dynamic range, as you alluded to. Still though, a lot than it was just a few years ago.

Thanks again. I feel like the iPhone is starting to catch up to my Canons though in certain situations, lol. It's kinda sad! I'm probably going to switch to Sony for personal use, especially now that they have more lenses coming out. Sony's dynamic range is killing it and it's much more portable than my clunky dSLRs.

 

[err404]

Yeah I don't give a rats a** what people claim to have proven. I just went from a 5S to a 6S Plus, and the 6S Plus is better in every single way, period. I've compared them side by side more than once, and it's no competition. I am quite capable of comparing images seeing as I do it on an everyday basis.

I get what he is saying. Starting with the iPhone 6, Apple implemented an aggressive noise reduction filter that can look over processed in many indoor/low light situations. Where the 5s was grainy, the 6s looks muddy. Personally I don't like the filter and prefer a less processed look. That said, Unless you are zooming in on darker gradiant areas, it is not a big deal.

 

[appledefenceforce]

Pretty sure the image quality is better on the 6S plus than on the 6 plus.

 

[OldSchoolMacGuy]

I knew it, they just half-assesly bumped up the pixel count on the same sensor size.

That's what pretty much every smartphone camera ever does. Rarely do they ever make the sensor larger. Not sure why you expected they would. The specs clearly showed they didn't.

 

[Crowmoor]

And they rank Z5 as the best, I trusted them before but not now. Can't really see them as experts on this area.

 

[casperes1996]

purple is pretty much certainly the best available color out of any color anywhere.

The purpleness come from off-axis light entering the lens and bumping around in there. It happens on even professional cameras sometimes, but you can eliminate it entirely holding your hand, so it covers light around the lens, only letting the sensor see what you want to shoot, and not other light bumping around.

 

[SirLance99]

And they rank Z5 as the best, I trusted them before but not now. Can't really see them as experts on this area.

Except that pretty much every photographer looks at this site as the one place to get real information for photography. In addition, websites like this one have referenced this site every time when the iPhone WAS the number one best camera on any phone. Now all of a sudden it's not trusted by you. Give me a break.

 

[Genkakuzai]

Except that pretty much every photographer looks at this site as the one place to get real information for photography. In addition, websites like this one have referenced this site every time when the iPhone WAS the number one best camera on any phone. Now all of a sudden it's not trusted by you. Give me a break.

To be fair, photographers have been calling out DxO for quite a few years, regarding their testing methodology, and inconsistent results in some cases. One has to keep in mind that they don't actually test cameras in real life scenarios, but rather sensors in very specific ones. That being said, for the most part their tests have a certain validity to them, and I don't doubt for a second that the Z5 is a great camera (with a great sensor), Sony are truly spectacular when it comes to sensor technology. My problem with them is how they boosted their own camera by basically rigging it. That still doesn't mean I doubt the test scores of most of the smartphones tested. But it is yet just part of the actual camera being tested.

 

[recoil80]

I work as a photographer, and to a certain extent I agree with you. Handled correctly the 6S (Plus in my case) is capable of producing great shots. However, it's not replacing my full-frame dSLR anytime soon, for lots of reasons. But it is truly impressive how far they've come from the ****** cameras they had in the first 2-3 iterations of the iPhone. One area where they still lag helplessly behind however, is bokeh, or lack thereof, which is simply not possible with a single sensor as small as this one. At least not yet, you should never say never after all.

But all in all, a truly impressive camera. Another thing I like is how well it handles colour reproduction, it is quite impressive indeed.

In my opinion iPhone is capable of great shots if you think about how tiny it is (I'm talking about lens and the sensor).
I don't think there is much room for improvement and the future may be the dual sensor to save even more vertical space on the phone.
As you stated correctly the only weak point is the bokeh, but there is pretty much nothing they can do about it now.
However I'm really happy with my iPhone 6's camera if I only need to share the pic on the social or via email. For printing or viewing on a large screen I still prefer my DSLR but I think there is a great quote "the best camera is the one you have with you" and iPhone 6 is in my pocket 100% of the time, so is usually the only camera I have

 

[Genkakuzai]

In my opinion iPhone is capable of great shots if you think about how tiny it is (I'm talking about lens and the sensor).
I don't think there is much room for improvement and the future may be the dual sensor to save even more vertical space on the phone.
As you stated correctly the only weak point is the bokeh, but there is pretty much nothing they can do about it now.
However I'm really happy with my iPhone 6's camera if I only need to share the pic on the social or via email. For printing or viewing on a large screen I still prefer my DSLR but I think there is a great quote "the best camera is the one you have with you" and iPhone 6 is in my pocket 100% of the time, so is usually the only camera I have

You can certainly take stunning shots with any newer iPhone, no doubt about that, assuming a decent amount of light. I do however think that there's plenty of room for improvement, considering how much sensor technology has improved the last 10 odd years. But there could certainly be a dual lens solution in the works, since physics is still a thing ^^
Co-sign on the rest of your post. It's not like I'm doing actual work with the camera in my smartphone, for that I still rely fully on my full-frame dSLR. That being said, I've done A4 sized prints from iPhone photos with good results. Still nothing I'd ever present to a client though.

 

[rmrx8]

I bought and returned the Samsung S6 edge, and colors are not accurate at all, and there is definite noise and compression/enhancement artifacts all over the photos. They just gave Z5 and Nexus 6P higher scores than the iPhone, yet I personally feel my photos come out much better with my iPhone 6S. DXO has been loosing reputation over the past year, because they cheated on the scores of their own hardware, and I feel like they have been getting "sponsored" reviews from some android OEMs.

This is pretty slanderous if you don't have any proof to back it up. Can you link to show hard evidence that they cheated with their own hardware? And do you have any evidence at all to show they are being sponsored by Android OEM's? Anyone can sling mud. You need to provide factual basis or apologize for making unfounded accusations.

 

[boast]

This is pretty slanderous if you don't have any proof to back it up. Can you link to show hard evidence that they cheated with their own hardware? And do you have any evidence at all to show they are being sponsored by Android OEM's? Anyone can sling mud. You need to provide factual basis or apologize for making unfounded accusations.

If Apple ever gets back on top, we'll know that Apple has started "sponsering" them too!

 

[Genkakuzai]

This is pretty slanderous if you don't have any proof to back it up. Can you link to show hard evidence that they cheated with their own hardware? And do you have any evidence at all to show they are being sponsored by Android OEM's? Anyone can sling mud. You need to provide factual basis or apologize for making unfounded accusations.

Regarding the Android bit of that statement I have no comments, seeing as I have seen nothing to support that claim. However, regarding the DxO One I think people had certain issues with them using "Super RAW" for the test, which is essentially a composite image, and as such hardly the same thing as taking a single photo and basing the score on that.

 

[c0ppo]

I haven't played around anywhere near enough with the G4 to support nor dismiss your claim, but could you provide me with some real life examples of a scenario that the G4 could capture and a 6S Plus could not? I'm genuinely curious. And the same question regarding the features you mention, which ones do the 6S Plus lack and the G4 doesn't?

Nope, I don't own G4 myself. But my friend does. And you can google that very easily. But to give u an example, at night with long exposure (manual mode) you can take pictures of stars on G4. And the pics come out amazingly well. Try to do that with iPhone and all u get is a black sky.

Just try googling for G4 camera shots and you will have way more examples than I've mentioned