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National Geographic Photographer Praises iPhone 5s Camera

SvenSvenson said:
You'd seriously expect NG not to laugh in your face if you turned up with a plastic, consumer-grade toy like a 70D? If you were nearer, I'd lend you my real camera (EOS-1Ds)
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I imagine NG doesn't care what you take the pictures on. I imagine if you took the pictures on a pinhole camera made out of a shoe box, but they were NG quality, they would publish them. They are in the business of selling a magazine with stunning nature and subject photography, not worrying about the gear someone is using. I'm not saying consumer grade cameras would survive all their crazy treks through the wilderness, but that's different on whether they pics are good. (hey, would you not publish the photo from Mt. Suribachi just because it was a Speed Graphic and not a modern pro dSLR? It's an awesome pic, even with, a by modern standards, terrible lens)

These guys take good pictures regardless of the gear they have (just like Nadal would crush you with a racket from Kmart and you with some custom $5000 racket), because they are top notch photographers, not because of the model they carry. Remember the pictures from 5-8 years ago were good enough for NG, but were probably taken with a sensor that is likely inferior to current consumer grade cameras.
 
The utility of the camera on smartphones, to me, is unprecedented. I use it everyday and it makes my life easier...sorry Canon 60D I will get you out of that gig bag some day soon.
 
Apple worried

What we see here is that Apple is genuinely worried about NOKIA LUMIA 1020!

I guess Apple "panicked when they saw how superior the camera on Nokia Lumia 1020 was. National Geographic used the Lumia 1020 and was amazed by the quality of the photos.

Now Apple try to divert from the attention Lumia 1020 and its superior camera
by suggesting users don't want to be able to set whitebalance and other stuff. I beg to differ!

Lumia is getting traction - fast!

That is a good thing for us consumers. Apple better "up their game". No, the iPhone 5s is nowhere close to the amazing quality of the Lumia 1020:s camera.

And that goes for all other smartphones to! If you are into photography (like I am) take a close look at the Nokia Lumia 1020.
 
henryhbk said:
I imagine NG doesn't care what you take the pictures on. I imagine if you took the pictures on a pinhole camera made out of a shoe box, but they were NG quality, they would publish them. They are in the business of selling a magazine with stunning nature and subject photography, not worrying about the gear someone is using. I'm not saying consumer grade cameras would survive all their crazy treks through the wilderness, but that's different on whether they pics are good. (hey, would you not publish the photo from Mt. Suribachi just because it was a Speed Graphic and not a modern pro dSLR? It's an awesome pic, even with, a by modern standards, terrible lens)

These guys take good pictures regardless of the gear they have (just like Nadal would crush you with a racket from Kmart and you with some custom $5000 racket), because they are top notch photographers, not because of the model they carry. Remember the pictures from 5-8 years ago were good enough for NG, but were probably taken with a sensor that is likely inferior to current consumer grade cameras.
Click to expand...

Yup exactly. "It's not the tool you use, it's how you use the tool."

A co-worker of mine's son is a photographer for the NYTimes, has worked extensively traveling with and photographing the president, through war zones, etc. He sparked a bit of an uproar when this hipstamatic print won him an award. Is it not a great photograph solely because of the tool used? Bollocks.

damon_winter_hipstamatic-tm.jpg
 
akadmon said:
I'll take my DSLR (Canon 70D) over the iPhone (or any other phone/P&S, FTM) any day. You'd have to be insane to bring a phone as your only camera on a "once in a lifetime" trip! This story is bogus. NG would not pay his expenses if all he had with him was a phone camera.
Click to expand...

SvenSvenson said:
You'd seriously expect NG not to laugh in your face if you turned up with a plastic, consumer-grade toy like a 70D? If you were nearer, I'd lend you my real camera (EOS-1Ds)
Click to expand...

Let's do a little transitive relation:

  • The camera on the iPhone 5s is not as good as the 70D (but the 70D does not surf the web or play games nearly as well as the iPhone)
  • NG just published a photos taken with an iPhone 5s without laughing
  • Looks like NG would not laugh at a photographer they trust turning up with a consumer grade camera like the 70D (True, if you are a professional wedding photographer or sport photographer, the 70D might not be up to the task, day after day. But it still is a great camera!)

So you have a really nice 10 year old digital camera, so what?
 
Sakuraba said:
What we see here is that Apple is genuinely worried about NOKIA LUMIA 1020!

I guess Apple "panicked when they saw how superior the camera on Nokia Lumia 1020 was. National Geographic used the Lumia 1020 and was amazed by the quality of the photos.

Now Apple try to divert from the attention Lumia 1020 and its superior camera
by suggesting users don't want to be able to set whitebalance and other stuff. I beg to differ!

Lumia is getting traction - fast!

That is a good thing for us consumers. Apple better "up their game". No, the iPhone 5s is nowhere close to the amazing quality of the Lumia 1020:s camera.

And that goes for all other smartphones to! If you are into photography (like I am) take a close look at the Nokia Lumia 1020.
Click to expand...

http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Mo...o-firm-pushes-the-envelope-with-image-quality

I don't think Apple is losing sleep over your purchase of a Lumia 1020.
 
Sakuraba said:
What we see here is that Apple is genuinely worried about NOKIA LUMIA 1020!

I guess Apple "panicked when they saw how superior the camera on Nokia Lumia 1020 was. National Geographic used the Lumia 1020 and was amazed by the quality of the photos.

Now Apple try to divert from the attention Lumia 1020 and its superior camera
by suggesting users don't want to be able to set whitebalance and other stuff. I beg to differ!

Lumia is getting traction - fast!

That is a good thing for us consumers. Apple better "up their game". No, the iPhone 5s is nowhere close to the amazing quality of the Lumia 1020:s camera.

And that goes for all other smartphones to! If you are into photography (like I am) take a close look at the Nokia Lumia 1020.
Click to expand...

I would never touch a Windows phone no matter how great the marketing is made out to be for the camera.
 
Hey guys! Is this the thread where we try and one-up each other over who has the more impressive equipment (literally and figuratively) and/or who is the more experienced photographer? I don't want to miss the party!

The person in question is a professional photographer (definition = someone who is paid for the work that they do, usually as a full-time job) who decided to see if the iPhone is a quality device on its own... likely with a little bit of financial "support" from Apple. As it turns out, it is.

At no point did he (or anyone else at Apple or NG) ever claim it could REPLACE a real camera. Whining that "it'll never replace your $10,000 DSLR" is just asinine, and is nothing more than a grab for attention.
 
henryhbk said:
I imagine NG doesn't care what you take the pictures on. I imagine if you took the pictures on a pinhole camera made out of a shoe box, but they were NG quality, they would publish them. They are in the business of selling a magazine with stunning nature and subject photography, not worrying about the gear someone is using. I'm not saying consumer grade cameras would survive all their crazy treks through the wilderness, but that's different on whether they pics are good. (hey, would you not publish the photo from Mt. Suribachi just because it was a Speed Graphic and not a modern pro dSLR? It's an awesome pic, even with, a by modern standards, terrible lens)

These guys take good pictures regardless of the gear they have (just like Nadal would crush you with a racket from Kmart and you with some custom $5000 racket), because they are top notch photographers, not because of the model they carry. Remember the pictures from 5-8 years ago were good enough for NG, but were probably taken with a sensor that is likely inferior to current consumer grade cameras.
Click to expand...

Exactly, the pro's know their line of work and do it best regardless of equipment.

I bet professional race car drivers can drive a civic around a road course faster than someone with a BMW M3.
 
sorry but i have seen more high definition from bluray movies of nature. The fact that this photo has so much noise in the dark areas due to the 8mp is testament to Apple using a cheap photo processor.
 
Prototypical said:
Hey guys! Is this the thread where we try and one-up each other over who has the more impressive equipment (literally and figuratively) and/or who is the more experienced photographer? I don't want to miss the party!

The person in question is a professional photographer (definition = someone who is paid for the work that they do, usually as a full-time job) who decided to see if the iPhone is a quality device on its own... likely with a little bit of financial "support" from Apple. As it turns out, it is.

At no point did he (or anyone else at Apple or NG) ever claim it could REPLACE a real camera. Whining that "it'll never replace your $10,000 DSLR" is just asinine, and is nothing more than a grab for attention.
Click to expand...
When did he say Apple compensated him? And if they did but he didn't mention it isn't that unethical?
 
"Still using an 8 megapixel sensor" is a GOOD thing! After about 6MP, pixels are irrelevant, except that they take more space, take longer to upload or transfer, longer to back-up, and are slower to edit. I've had photos published in books and magazines, even as printed as two-page spreads, and none of them were greater than 6MP.

The steady upgrades of the iPhone camera have been amazing, and I hope Apple keeps improving the image quality and low-light ability. But, please, please, don't add more pixels.
 
unplugme71 said:
Exactly, the pro's know their line of work and do it best regardless of equipment.

I bet professional race car drivers can drive a civic around a road course faster than someone with a BMW M3.
Click to expand...

Exactly. It's the image that matters, not the gear used to capture it. Granted, each piece of equipment will have its own advantages and disadvantages that may make capturing the image easier, but the creativity and ingenuity in overcoming any limitations the gear might have is what separates the pros from the amateurs.

It's like saying a great pan makes a better omlette. Or a critic saying, gee, that's the best meal I ever ate, what kind of pots did you use to make it?

----------
junkster said:
"Still using an 8 megapixel sensor" is a GOOD thing! After about 6MP, pixels are irrelevant, except that they take more space, take longer to upload or transfer, longer to back-up, and are slower to edit. I've had photos published in books and magazines, even as printed as two-page spreads, and none of them were greater than 6MP.
Click to expand...

While I generally agree with your assessment, I wanted to point out that one advantage to a high MP count is that it provides the image with much more data, which allows the photographer more latitude in doing post-processing, especially with RAW files.
 
I think the photos in the article are a bit poor (especially the noise in the sky) but am still impressed with the iPhone camera overall considering its convenience.
 
Unless iPhone can sync remote flash units it is still useless for serious photography.
 
macguy360 said:
sorry but i have seen more high definition from bluray movies of nature. The fact that this photo has so much noise in the dark areas due to the 8mp is testament to Apple using a cheap photo processor.
Click to expand...

What noise? Could you point it out?
You seem to misunderstand the difference between high-contrast and detailed.
 
Sakuraba said:
What we see here is that Apple is genuinely worried about NOKIA LUMIA 1020! ...

Lumia is getting traction - fast!

That is a good thing for us consumers. Apple better "up their game". No, the iPhone 5s is nowhere close to the amazing quality of the Lumia 1020:s camera.

And that goes for all other smartphones to! If you are into photography (like I am) take a close look at the Nokia Lumia 1020.
Click to expand...

Why does it feel like you are being paid by Nokia?
 
Prototypical said:
At no point did he (or anyone else at Apple or NG) ever claim it could REPLACE a real camera. Whining that "it'll never replace your $10,000 DSLR" is just asinine, and is nothing more than a grab for attention.
Click to expand...

Exactly! But people did that anyhow. Even show how expert they are. :rolleyes:
 
hkenneth said:
Unless iPhone can sync remote flash units it is still useless for serious photography.
Click to expand...

I do not think anything is saying that Apple claims this will replace a professional photographer's camera. The iPhone's camera is aimed at people who have small "point and shoot" cameras in their pocket and see something they want to quickly take a picture of, not people with pro level DSLRs or better cameras in their gear bag on their way to a professional shoot.

The point of this article is to say the iPhone can take really great shots.

If you have the time and space to setup remote flash units, you probably have a camera with some really nice (and much larger than a phone) lenses as well.
 
Well, whatever .....

I can't speak to how "worried" Apple really is or isn't about Nokia's offering. But the fact remains, I think the vast majority of smartphone buyers are purchasing the devices to be a phone primarily, and an internet communications device as a very close second. Functionality like the camera is important, but not so much that it rivals traditional mid-grade to high-end digital cameras. (As much as anything, the camera feature is needed for such things as the ability to scan in a bar code so a piece of software can do something with the data. My bank lets me photograph paper checks to e-deposit them from my iPhone too. Theses uses aren't all that demanding of the camera.)

The Lumia 1020 will probably cater to a niche market of people who are serious photographers and consider a good camera on their cellphone to be a top priority. The fact it doesn't run iOS or the associated library of apps means it's already a "non starter" for a vast number of smartphone customers.

I'm into photography myself (at least as a hobbyist), but any time I'm planning on taking a number of photos where quality is going to be important - I bring along my Canon. My iPhone 5 takes "good enough" photos for the everyday things you just want to upload to social media sites, and you can get a truly great photo out of it when the circumstances (lighting, etc.) are right for it. That's all I really expect of it. I'm not sure I want to spend a lot more on a phone to have a better camera in it than that?


Sakuraba said:
What we see here is that Apple is genuinely worried about NOKIA LUMIA 1020!

I guess Apple "panicked when they saw how superior the camera on Nokia Lumia 1020 was. National Geographic used the Lumia 1020 and was amazed by the quality of the photos.

Now Apple try to divert from the attention Lumia 1020 and its superior camera
by suggesting users don't want to be able to set whitebalance and other stuff. I beg to differ!

Lumia is getting traction - fast!

That is a good thing for us consumers. Apple better "up their game". No, the iPhone 5s is nowhere close to the amazing quality of the Lumia 1020:s camera.

And that goes for all other smartphones to! If you are into photography (like I am) take a close look at the Nokia Lumia 1020.
Click to expand...
 
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