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March 13, 2017 at 6:15 pm #994945
I’ve been looking at cameras for about a year, ever since my Canon G11 (bought new in 2009) met an unfortunate end.
In the meanwhile I’ve been using my older iPhone. Now some of my friends have gotten the newest iPhone and the photos they are taking with it are amazing.
Now I’m wondering if upgrading my iPhone, which I’m going to have to do pretty soon anyway, would be as good as getting a camera?
I paid about $500 new for the G11 so would probably look at something the same price, like the Canon EOS T6, which is a step up from the G11. I can’t pay any more than that. But would it even be worth it, compared to the new iPhone?Does anyone have wisdom to share?
~Christine
March 13, 2017 at 6:36 pm #1267423I haven’t used an iPhone but a few years ago I was on a trip with my daughters and both used them and came home with some very nice results. But I hope the answer you get is no, because late last year I bought the T6. I’ve been very happy with it but it is my first DSLR so nothing to compare it to. But here are some thoughts.
– What do you want to do with the pictures? If you want to do advanced editing I think you would be limited — presumably the iPhone does not offer RAW format.
– How much control do you want? Do you want to control aperture, shutter speed, etc. to achieve various effects? Again presumably iPhone would not let you do this.
– Lenses — do you want to do macro photography, telephoto wildlife shots or something else best left to a specialized lens? Another vote for a DSLR.
– Printing — not sure what the image sizes are, but megapixel limits may limit the size of print. This would likely only be an issue for large prints before pixelization comes into play.
So if you’re looking for a quick point and shoot then yes from my limited exposure (no pun intended, but now that I see it I kinda like it) the iPhone does indeed produce very serviceable shots.
Regards,
DaleDale Hoopingarner
Scanner Photography Artist
http://www.BitsOfNature.biz
http://s3.amazonaws.com/wetcanvas-hdc/Community/images/23-Feb-2007/102085-sig-bitsofnature468x60.gifMarch 13, 2017 at 7:05 pm #1267429BitsofNature is correct. Get your Rebel T6 (lots of great bundles on Amazon) and learn it well. The phones cameras have come a long way but they are fixed lens and rely on software rather than optics. Having worked as a professional photographer for a couple of years I learned the lesson that the quality of your lens is more important than the do dads on your camera. Oh, you will take lots of photos on your new phone and they will look great for what they are. A cell phone picture. I use my cell camera to take quick shots I might want to paint or if carrying my 60D would be….unadvisable. Good luck
May all your mountains be small and your rivers be shallow.March 14, 2017 at 2:56 am #1267428Cellphone cameras for me are barely OK even for snapshots of grandkids. They don’t give an image that is nice enough to paint from as far as my needs go. They might be better than OK for some folks. It all depends on what you want.
If you have $500 to spend and you want something pocket sized that will produce images that will amaze you, I would recommend a Sony RX-100. There are several models out there and the price goes up as you move to the latest one. They can be had for under $500 new. A clean used one or a refurb with a warranty might get you into a newer model at under $500 if you are patient.
Mine has the built in popup viewfinder, which for me is an absolute requirement. If you are happy with “chimping” the non viewfinder models produce the same quality image as the top end versions for quite a bit less money.
March 14, 2017 at 2:51 pm #1267430Thanks.. I like the idea of the pop up viewfinder. Mostly I’m photographing landscapes & cityscapes, for the photograph and also sometimes as a painting reference, and find that the big flat viewscreen on the backs of cameras is useless in sunlight — “point and shoot” because you can’t see what you are aiming at, ugh. That’s why I liked the G11 and it’s rotating viewscreen (and ‘real’ viewfinder.) Another point against the iPhone, too.
I looked up the Sony RX-100. It is yet another category, ‘premium compact camera’. The number of choices and variants is overwhelming!The iPhone 7 camera(s) does have a lot of control options (with an add-on, ProCamera 10.1) and does do Raw. Prints though — ?? And though photos with the 7 look so shockingly better on the phone that the ones I take with my 5, how good are they, really?
CaptRedbeard I appreciate your comment about the lens being more important than software!
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~Christine
March 14, 2017 at 3:35 pm #1267419AnonymousMy $.02 worth…
If you’re serious about taking quality photos, get something designed to do just that – a real camera.
Cell phones try to do everything, and I learned a long time ago that if you try to do everything, you’ll do nothing well. The same thought is expressed in the old adage “jack of all trades, master of none.”
I do agree with much of the advice above. First, determine what sort of photos you want to take, and what you want to do with them. Photos of sporting events or moving wildlife require different camera capabilities than do photos set up and shot in studio. If you’ll be taking macros, you’ll need a camera that excels at that. Photos you want to print require a better camera than ones you’ll only email or post online. And I think it’s true that the quality of the lenses is critical.
March 22, 2017 at 11:06 am #1267425My android cell phone takes better photos than my $100 camera, is lighter, less obtrusive, and easy to always have on hand.
I am not a serious photographer, mainly taking photos to paint from.
March 22, 2017 at 6:10 pm #1267420AnonymousMary, for somebody who says “I am not a serious photographer…” you’ve shown us some remarkable photos.
But still, I wouldn’t expect lots of print-worthy photos from a $100 camera – that’s not it’s purpose.
Depending on what sorts of photos one takes and their purpose, a more than adequate new camera can be found for $350 – $500. That’s far less than most cell phones.
As for being easy to carry, every time I take my walks I have my camera attached to a monopod resting comfortable on my shoulder. And as a bonus, the monopod makes it easy to carry back bags of any purchases (from the grocers, for example) I might make on my walks. (The downside is that this makes me look like a hobo. :lol:From time to time I have been mistaken for a homeless person; over the years several kind, well-intentioned folks who jumped to that conclusion have approached me and offered to buy me a coffee or something to eat.):lol:
April 29, 2017 at 6:41 pm #1267427I’m a bit late to the discussion but I could never give up the control and image quality offered by my dslr.
A while back, I bought a little point and shoot and while the pictures it took were ok when viewed on their own, they paled in comparison to similar photos taken by my dslr. A dip in sharpness at 100% I can somewhat tolerate, but both contrast and colours suffered visibly as well. I am also fond of bokeh and once again, only interchangeable camera systems offer that to a satisfactory degree as only they have sufficiently large sensors…for me at least.
August 30, 2017 at 9:35 am #1267431I consider the epoch of camera-phones has already come. And it is developing every day. iPhone 7 can already make great shots, iPhone 8 will be released in a month and its camera will be better than 7’s. I think cameras will just die in 5-7 years and everybody is gonna use his/her phone to take photos
August 31, 2017 at 4:17 pm #1267421AnonymousI consider the epoch of camera-phones has already come. And it is developing every day. iPhone 7 can already make great shots, iPhone 8 will be released in a month and its camera will be better than 7’s. I think cameras will just die in 5-7 years and everybody is gonna use his/her phone to take photos
Not everybody – even if I’m the lone holdout. :wink2:
I’ve come to recognize the wisdom of using the right tool for the job, and (IMO) if a tool tries to be and do everything, it’ll do nothing well.
August 31, 2017 at 9:05 pm #1267426In countries that don’t allow cell phones to be turned on during flights, even in flight mode, an old fashioned camera can still be used to take pics of cloudscapes.
August 7, 2018 at 3:37 pm #1267422I came to the photography forum with much the same question about whether an iphone makes sense. I understand that the newer iphones have incredible capabilities. I don’t know enough about cameras to understand all of the following, but I thought I’d post the camera specs on the new iphone X, just FYI:
Camera
12MP wide-angle and telephoto cameras
Wide-angle: ƒ/1.8 aperture
Telephoto: ƒ/2.4 aperture
Optical zoom; digital zoom up to 10x
Portrait mode
Portrait Lighting (beta)
Dual optical image stabilization
Six‑element lens
Quad-LED True Tone flash with Slow Sync
Panorama (up to 63MP)
Sapphire crystal lens cover
Backside illumination sensor
Hybrid IR filter
Autofocus with Focus Pixels
Tap to focus with Focus Pixels
Live Photos with stabilization
Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos
Improved local tone mapping
Body and face detection
Exposure control
Noise reduction
Auto HDR for photos
Auto image stabilization
Burst mode
Timer mode
Photo geotagging
Image formats captured: HEIF and JPEG
Video Recording
4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps
1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps
720p HD video recording at 30 fps
Optical image stabilization for video
Optical zoom; 6x digital zoom
Quad-LED True Tone flash
Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps
Time‑lapse video with stabilization
Cinematic video stabilization (1080p and 720p)
Continuous autofocus video
Body and face detection
Noise reduction
Take 8MP still photos while recording 4K video
Playback zoom
Video geotagging
Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264
TrueDepth Camera
7MP camera
Portrait mode
Portrait Lighting (beta)
Animoji
1080p HD video recording
Retina Flash
ƒ/2.2 aperture
Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos
Auto HDR
Backside illumination sensor
Body and face detection
Auto image stabilization
Burst mode
Exposure control
Timer mode
Face ID
Enabled by TrueDepth camera for facial recognitionI don’t actually intend to purchase an iphone X, as I’m on a budget, but I understand some of the older models, starting sometime around the 6s, have some pretty advanced capabilities. I’d appreciate any further thoughts on this, based on the newer specs…TIA
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August 7, 2018 at 4:07 pm #1267424Here is a link that I found interesting dealing with phones vs cams.
https://webmail2.telus.net/?skin=telus&skin=telus#1Norm Dunne
Lover of the Old Masters Art PeriodOctober 14, 2020 at 6:48 am #1344935we provided professional photo editing service. We have a great team to work. we are really appreciated by a lot of companies for our pretty work .please visit us – Professional Photo Editing Service
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