Sony – LightCentric Photography Blog

Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha)

March 25, 2023Posted in PHOTOGRAPHYTagged ADDO National Elephant Park, Africa, Andy Richards, color, Elephant, exposure, Gqeberha, Kudu, Light, LightCentric Photography, National Park, PHOTOGRAPHY, Photoshop, Port Elizabeth, Sony, South Africa, Springbok, travel, Warthog, ZebraLeave a comment

Addo Elephant National Park
Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Copyright Andy Richards 2023
All Rights Reserved

I THINK maybe we have now had 3 different general cruising experiences. One is what I will call the “sun and fun” experience. To us, that means a Caribbean Cruise. They are almost always warm and sunny. It seems that all the many stops (more are being added yearly) in the islands of the Caribbean have a certain “sameness” to them. A kind of “Bob Marley” vibe. We have done a few fun excursions around the islands, but generally they are all the same. I generally get off the ship at each stop and look for photographic opportunities. Mostly, I find colorful, Caribbean subjects, ala Jimmy Buffet’s “Boats, Bars and Beaches.” That’s not a bad thing. I have made some nice and fun images in the Caribbean. We also spend a lot of time on the ship, in the sun, around the pool, eating and drinking, and generally soaking up the warm sunshine. Since we bought our home in the Tampa Bay, Florida area, the allure of those cruises has worn off somewhat. Then there is what I will call the “see the world cruise.” This has generally translated into The Mediterranean, Europe, the British Isles, and the Baltic for us, so far. I know we will venture further in the years to come, seeing parts of Asia and Hawaii and Polynesia, and New Zealand and Australia. The goal, here is to see new things. The “wonders of the world,” so to speak. It has branched my photography out into travel, street shooting and architectural photography. At the same time, it has afforded continued landscape, nature, and even occasional wildlife opportunities. Photographically, it is more rewarding that the first category.

THIS TIME, though, we discovered a new category, all its own: Africa. What do you do for 16 days in South Africa? Some of the time was spent in Cape Town, and the rest on a cruise ship making 5 planned port stops around the South African Peninsula. After experiencing it, and spending the time there, there is really only one answer. You do wildlife viewing. There is really not much else to do. Perhaps an unfair characterization. But probably an accurate generalization.

When it comes to wildlife viewing, the African Continent is second to none

FOR SURE, there are some spectacular views of the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Indian Ocean on the eastern seashores of South Africa. That doesn’t – in my view – make it a unique travel destination. We saw incredible seacoast views in Portugal and in both Ireland and Northern Ireland. We have seen them again, in the Baltic Sea, and I have no doubt that our views of Norway’s fjord’s in June will be nothing less than spectacular. We have pretty great seascapes of all types on the shores of both the Atlantic and the Pacific right here in the U.S., and our Great Lakes, as well. Don’t get me wrong. The South African water views are worth seeing. They just bolster the fact that the world is an incredibly beautiful place. But they are not the reason to travel to South Africa. Likewise, though we didn’t get far into the interior of the African Peninsula, we are told that Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River (actually in Zimbabwe) are nothing short of spectacular. But are they more spectacular than our own Niagara Falls? Or even some of the “lesser” falls around the U.S. and around the world? Not really. They are not the reason to travel to South Africa. Cape Town is a very cool city, with some pretty interesting features. And the view of Table Mountain in the background virtually everywhere you go certainly adds its own unique quality to the city. We didn’t get to Johannesburg, or the wine regions of Franshoek and Stellenbosch. All have their own charm. No doubt. But at the end of the day, none would top my list of cities or places to visit. That isn’t saying I wouldn’t love to visit them. Just that there are other destinations that have more “draw,” in my view, both historically and photographically.

BUT WHEN it comes to wildlife viewing, the African Continent is second to none. And not surprisingly, virtually every port of call excursion and activity centered around seeing the animals. In spite of reading and hearing about the phenomena of “The Safari,” I was somewhat ignorant of the rank of this activity among “things to do in Africa.” In hindsight, it is the primary thing to do and is the reason to visit the African Continent. Everything else is secondary. At least, that’s my view of it. While we did have some splendid viewing opportunities, we really didn’t take full advantage of the trip. That is not to say we didn’t immensely enjoy our visit. Nor did we completely miss the viewing opportunities, as the photos here illustrate. But we didn’t take full advantage as we perhaps could have. There were other activities, but they weren’t even a close second to the wildlife “drives.” We spoke to fellow passengers who took a couple of the “city” tours and similar excursions. They were largely underwhelmed. We visited the beach and somewhat famous aquarium in Durban. Really “just o.k.” I’ll give it coverage in an upcoming post. But every single wildlife drive or viewing opportunity was acclaimed by all we spoke to. And they were certainly the highlight of our trip, also. If the opportunity to go back arises, we will arrange a several-day tour of the interior of the continent, including Botswana, and Kruger National Park in northwestern South Africa for wildlife, and Zimbabwe, for Victoria Falls.

FOR US, the Port Elizabeth stop was all about our wildlife drive. We were fortunate to have met a couple at the beginning of the trip who had room for two more in a six-person tour. We traveled from the cruise port inland to the ADDO Elephant National Park. Our guide, Mike, was very good. Having grown up over in Cape Town, he had taken up the career of tour guide. Mike picked us up just outside the port, where he drove us the approximately 35 miles inland to the park entrance. South Africa’s third largest national park, and said to have the full complement of wildlife, it is really known for its elephant population. It is a natural habitat for these huge animals, and they have been there for many years. But it has not all been good for them. The park was originally established in 1931, as a refuge for elephants. One of the large agricultural products of the area, particularly down along the flatter land adjacent to the Indian Ocean is oranges. But as the orange groves grew and became established, the indigenous African Elephant population, a scavenging herbivore, discovered the plantations and began migrating toward them to feed. They destroyed much of the groves as they foraged. The farmers began to shoot them as a defense of their groves. At one point, the population is said to have dwindled to only 11 remaining resident elephants. In 1931, South African conservationist, Syndey Skaife established the preserve. Fences were erected, creating a perimeter of the park and over time, were designed and re-designed (today they are electrified), with the goal of keeping the elephants inside the preserve, and presumably safe. In later years, Lions and the Black Rhinocerus were re-introduced to the area. Today, there are more than 600 Elephants in the park, along with many other species of wildlife, including Zebra, Wildebeest, Cape Buffalo, Warthog, Hartebeest, Kudu, Springbok, Ostrich and other bird species, to name a few. We were fortunate to see and photograph a number of these. As you can probably see from the images, the elephants were the most impressive.

WE WERE fortunate during the early part of the day to have a bright overcast sky, conducive to photographing the elephants. As the day wore on, the sun became “hotter,” and the usual challenges of daytime photography ensued. The other challenge was that we had to shoot from inside the vehicle. Park rules prohibit exiting the vehicle or even opening the doors. Distance was also a factor in a number of cases. We learned that Lions and Leopards are mostly active only during the very early and late hours – times we couldn’t be in the park. We did not see any cats. This is one of the reasons I would – as I mentioned above – schedule a more full-on safari if I visited again. They get you out during these early hours and you are pretty likely to spot these big cats.

I CARRIED my travel rig on this trip. Thankfully, that includes a zoom that reached out to 300m (35mm equivalent). I would have been very frustrated and disappointed without it. It did a decent job, particularly with the large animals like the elephant. But another trip to South Africa would have me making the effort to carry my more serious equipment. The “full frame,” 46mp sensor on the Sony would have made a substantial difference compared to the m4/3 body’s 20mp sensor, and its comparatively small size. As would the higher quality lens. I could have made better, and more detailed crops of some of the more distant animals. If you are a serious photographer and are making a trip to the African Continent, I would seriously consider carrying your best possible gear, and perhaps something even a little longer than 300mm.

ALL IN all, it was great day, and we not only saw some amazing wildlife that – outside of a zoo – I may never have the opportunity to photograph again, but we also enjoyed the company of some good new friends. Our next stop would be Durban.

“Playing” At Sea

December 3, 2022Posted in EQUIPMENT REVIEWS, PHOTOGRAPHY, TRAVELTagged Andy Richards, Apex, Celebrity, color, Light, LightCentric Photography, Olympus, PHOTOGRAPHY, Photoshop, Sony, travel, waterLeave a comment

The Martini Bar
Celebrity Apex
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

THE NEXT scheduled port was Helsinki, Finland. But first, we had another day at sea. Our ship, the Celebrity Apex, was “new” to us. The second in the “Edge” class (there are now 3 of them, the 3rd being the Celebrity Beyond, with a 4th under construction) line, it was essentially identical to the “Edge” which we had cruised on in the Mediterranean in 2019. The only differences that I could perceive were some of the sculptures and the addition of the Craft Social Bar.

it occurred to me that some of the things around the ship might lend themselves to – well – “playing” with the fisheye lens

WHEN I changed up to the Olympus m4/3 setup, I picked up a third-party, inexpensive manual, 7mm wide-angle lens (14mm 35mm equivalency). I have a similar one for my Sony gear, which I use for extra-wide landscapes and some night shooting. I carried the new Olympus-fitted lens with me in Portugal in June, for some street and architectural shooting. I didn’t do my homework. 🙂 The lens was essentially the same as the Sony-fitted lens, including the manufacturer. So I thought (or perhaps better said: “didn’t think). The m4/3 7mm is a “fisheye” lens. The Sony-fitted one is not (wide lenses that are corrected for distortion are known as “rectilinear.” I have a rectilinear wide-angle lens for the Olympus now 🙂 ). I had a “fisheye” lens years back for my Sony NEX-6, just to play with. The fisheye creates round distortion. Substantial distortion. When I got back from the Portugal trip, I spent a lot of time in perspective correction (more than I think it is worth). I replaced it with a rectilinear wide zoom. Much better. There is still distortion (a completely “flat” rectilinear lens is all but impossible to create, and the engineering and technology makes them very expensive – especially if you are looking for branded and autofocus lenses). But the fisheye was cheap, so I kept it. I thought (I still think so) it might be fun for some “creative” shooting. As I was packing for this cruise, it occurred to me that some of the things around the ship might lend themselves to – well – “playing” with the fisheye lens.

Fisheye vs. Rectilinear Lenses
Celebrity Apex
{Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

IN THE deck image above, you can see the difference between the perspectives of these two lenses. They are not identical in focal length, but as close as I have. The fisheye is 7.5mm and the rectilinear is shot at 9mm. You can see that just that 1/5mm difference includes a lot more in the photo. But if you don’t like the distortion, by the time you correct it in post-processing it may even show less in the image. I don’t think I would be disappointed in either of these images from a perspective standpoint (as long as you accept that one is clearly distorted from reality). The only thing I am slightly “bothered” by is the sea/horizon. I would probably play around in post and see if I could level that up. Tilting a fisheye lens can either ameliorate or exacerbate the inherent distortion in the lens, depending on circumstances. In the Martini Bar image at the beginning of the post, tilting the camera underplayed the fisheye effect enough that the image is not an unpleasant wide-angle result. But my experience has been that that is unpredictable. Here, I was well back from the subject and that, too, helps.

I TRIED to play around with some other subjects around the ship, but mostly, I am just not “feeling” the results. The image below is kind of reminiscent of those shots you see where the photographer lies down on his back and shoots upward into a tree canopy. interesting. But no “wall-hanger.” Lots of blue space. And check out that horizon on the ocean in this one.

Celebrity Apex
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

ONE THING I have observed is that this kind of lens is best if it is extremely close up (in the image below, I cropped my feet out of the bottom), or back far enough that the effects of the fisheye are not as pronounced (as in the Martini Bar image). I think there are instances that lend themselves to the fisheye lens – particularly, whimsical subjects – but it is definitely a limited and special purpose lens.

Modern Sculpture
woman looking in window
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

HEW! I got that out of my system. 🙂 Now on to the next port and maybe some better images.

Some “Hands On” Commentary on the Olympus M-4/3 System

July 8, 2022September 7, 2022Posted in PHOTOGRAPHYTagged Andy Richards, color, DSLR, Europe, exposure, Light, LightCentric Photography, M4/3, MFT, micro four thirds, Olympus, PHOTOGRAPHY, Photoshop, Sony1 Comment

Doors
Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

LAST POST, I went into (too much?) detail about my decision to add the Olympus Micro 4/3 (MFT) system to my gear bag. Had I not happened upon an idle and available Olympus OMD-M10 body, I probably would never have even considered this direction. But the very diminutive size of this SLR/DSLR-like camera had me hooked from the first time I picked it up. As readers know, I have been shooting 35mm SLR and DSLR bodies since my college days (a very long time ago). I “grew up” with all manual settings, very slow ISO speeds, and mechanical bodies and lenses. While I have appreciated the lightyears of progress in photographic gear, I still feel most comfortable with an SLR-style body in my hands and an optical viewfinder to my eye. From an ergonomic standpoint, this little unit has been a pleasure to handle.

AFTER SEVERAL thousand images, my take on image quality and digital handling is more mixed, but still generally is positive. Since I first picked up the M10, I “upgraded” to the M10 ver. 2, primarily because of its better IBIS, knowing that 95% of my shooting would be hand-held with this particular gear. Otherwise, there is very little difference between ver. 1 and 2. I carried the ver. 1 on a weeklong cruise to the Caribbean in January, and the ver. 2 for an extended 15-day trip to Portugal in May. In between, I carried the rig as a backup on my week-long trip to Maine in early May, and used it to make a couple of street images in one of the towns we visited. The Portugal trip resulted in well over 2,000 images (which I am in the middle of curating and processing as I write this). I think the sample is now large enough to make some conclusions about image quality, and the usage long enough to make some observations about handling.

Nassau, Bahamas
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

AFTER EVERY other single other consideration, in the end, image quality is going to be the litmus test. In terms of color, contrast, and sharpness, I have been well-impressed with the gear combo I am carrying. In the Belize shot below, I am impressed with the fully saturated colors, more or less right out of the camera. The Olympus *.orf raw format renders nicely in Photoshop’s ACR, with lots to work with in post-processing (especially in ACR). So far, with images that have been made in good, if not bright, sunlight, I have been impressed with the colors as-rendered with ACR’s Adobe “standard” profile. Again, this is an Olympus orf raw file (I convert all my raw files to the dng format before further processing), with only very slight additional processing. I used the NIK Viveza 2.0 photoshop plugin to lower the brightness and increase contrast slightly in the foreground. I also tweaked the raw image in ACR very slightly, using the dehaze feature and I think that may shift colors slightly, as you can see some cyan in the cloud edges. But those reds, greens, yellows and blues? WYSIWYG. 🙂 And, as I have gained experience, I have found that often, I am happy with the out of camera result with very minimal adjustments in ACR and no further work other than some output sharpening, cropping, image-sizing. I do think my Sony raw images are cleaner, smoother and overall, are superior. But it is not really a fair comparison, and for what I have in the Olympus, I am very happy with these results.

Belize City Cruise Port
Belize City, Belize
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

IT IS notable, I think, that I am reviewing – and using – a first-generation, “entry-level” camera here. There are perhaps some “charged” words here. “Entry-level,” in this case (Olympus) is pretty darn sophisticated. The EM-10 is their entry level, DSLR-style, mirrorless camera. They have the PEN line which could be thought of (incorrectly, in my view) as a “lesser” entry level model. All of the micro 4/3 offerings from Olympus (now OM Holdings) seem pretty full-featured and sophisticated to me. They have all the things any serious photographer would consider must have. The OMD EM-10 version 1 came out in 2014 and was marketed as a “lower” version of their “flagship” OMD E1 and mid-range OMD E5. But the differences were nuanced in my view. Some of great importance to me and some of great importance to others. The OMD E10, for example, has never been “weather-sealed.” The OMD E1 always has. There are a few other bells and whistles that have also been added with newer iterations and “higher” models. Originally, all three models had the same processor and were 16 megapixels. Current models are all 20 megapixels and have a newer processor. These things alone, are not enough for me to consider in my personal shooting style (action shooters, and shooters who may be using the camera as their primary body will see this differently). The big thing for me comes back around again to size. The EM10, version 1 is the smallest of their bodies. Every new iteration creeps slightly larger and heavier. The EM5 is somewhat larger and heavier from the proverbial “get-go,” and the EM1 is larger still (and looks more like the modern DSLR/Mirrorless bodies). While they all still use the same, much smaller lenses, just that incremental change in body size is significant to me. Again, I am comparing it against my Sony RX100. The EM10 compares favorably. As these bodies start to edge ever larger, the attraction loses much of its glitter.

Celebrity Reflection
Nassau, Bahamas
I wanted to see how the “kit” pancake 24-42mm EZ handled depth of field on close-up images. While this image was handheld, the 1/800 sec. shutter speed (as well as the Olympus IS – which is highly regarded) took care of my tripod issue. At f/11, the image appears nice and sharp from front to back.
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

OF COURSE I also wanted to see how the 40-150 performed. Having read many enthusiastic review and seen some sample images, I wasn’t surprised to see that it performs pretty well – for what it is (a consumer grade, f4 – 5.6, plastic body lens). The Mexican Coast Guard Building image shows that it is very acceptably sharp, and renders the same snappy, slightly warm colors as the EZ lens does. To think that you can buy this combination of lenses for $450 (or used, like I did for a total of $225) is pretty amazing.

Coast Guard Building
Cozumel, Mexico
Olympus OMD-EM10; M. Zuiko 40-150 f4-f5.6mm lens @150
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

I WAS interested in seeing how the camera and lenses handled difficult lighting situations. As we left Nassau, the sun was setting behind some variable clouds with a fair amount of intense reflection off the water below. The resulting image, shot with the 40-150 at 40mm and f/11, proved worthy of handling flare, as well as the ability to withstand some deeper post-processing, as I used NIK Viveza 2.0 to adjust brightness and pull shadow areas discretely. I am not displeased with the result.

Sunset
Nassau, Bahamas
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

ANOTHER IMPORTANT test was the low light and night shooting capabilities of the camera. I got that chance on several occasions during the Portugal trip. I signed up for a night photo walk with a local pro in Lisbon. While I found working with a new camera with unfamiliar menus and controls (a cardinal sin) a bit daunting, I was nonetheless generally impressed with the low-light handling. Acknowledging that the sensor used in the OM-D M10 versions was older technology, I expected noise to be a factor. And it is, indeed. However, I found that a gentle application of noise reduction in ACR worked very well, and running suspect images through the NIK Dfine filter, even better. The in-body stabilization (IBIS) capability of the camera is also impressive. The street image below was hand-held.

Lisbon, Portugal
Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved

THE CAMERA seems equally comfortable on a tripod. For these trips I use my ultra small and light Sirui Carbon travel tripod, and with the possible exception of buffeting wind issues, it has proved to provide ample stability as a platform for longer exposure shots. With an L-bracket and wired remote, I felt quite at home with the setup. The fountain image was made at low ISO and small aperture, mounted on a tripod. The lower ISO produced a relatively noise-free image. Noise is, of course, more notable at higher ISOs, as would be expected.

Fountain in Lisbon, Portugal
Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved

THE NIGHT and low light shooting I have done (and will be doing) with this setup is limited mainly to street shooting and very limited landscape opportunities. By the nature of its use as my “travel setup,” even that will be a small portion of what I use it for. If I were to do serious night shooting like galaxy shooting, star trails, northern lights, or the like, I would use my Sony setup. But for the carry-around, occasional use I have on travel, this seem like it will work very well. Of course, what makes this so attractive is its small size and weight and that is made possible only by the MFT format. The closest would be the APS-C setups that are out there. But even they – with their larger sensor size – spec for larger everything. So, for the foreseeable future, the Olympus looks like the go-to setup for me.

IN GENERAL, physical handling of the camera has been very comfortable for me. The system is pretty adaptable, with several customizable buttons available for shooting styles. I like to have quick access to the ability to change the focus point for AF, and to change ISO settings on the fly. Those are pretty easily customized. I was also able to set a custom setting on the camera’s mode dial, for on-tripod settings (primarily turning off IBIS), making the transition from tripod to handheld shooting pretty much routine. One quirk is that the lens-release button for changing lenses appears to be super-sensitive and just the slightest touch of my fingers triggers a viewfinder/back panel blackout – often at very inconvenient times. I am hoping to find a workaround for it, as it has been really annoying a few times and possibly even has caused me to miss shot opportunities. It forces me to think about where my hands are on the camera body and that is never something you want to have be an ergonomics issue with a camera.

IN TERMS of overall convenience, I have certainly found some “warts.” I have been reading for years about the horrible menu system on Sony Cameras. I personally haven’t experienced it. I have seen how it could be better, and how they have improved over time. I don’t recall enough about the Nikon menu system to make detailed comparisons. I don’t think I ever felt inconvenienced or intimidated by either the Nikon or Sony systems. I have said for some time that it is a matter of a learning curve, and that, once you have the camera set up for your own needs, you don’t really need to resort to it that often. I thought the same about the Olympus menu system. But I have to say that it is far and away the worst of any I have encountered. There is very little logic in the layout and if you forget where a setting is, or inadvertently change one, good luck figuring it out on your own. And Olympus’ documentation is worse than any other I have encountered. Additionally, since it has not been as popular a system as Nikon, Canon or Sony, there are no good aftermarket “how-to” books – especially for the so-called “entry-level” models like these. Fortunately, Olympus has a very dedicated following and there are a couple of on-line groups that can be very helpful with these things. But if you are in the field? Forget about it.

ANOTHER ISSUE that concerns me is how much of the online conversation centers around problems with the Olympus equipment. I have owned many Nikon, Sony, Sigma, and Tamron lenses over the years – most of them AF (and often image-stabilized) lenses. I have had exactly one malfunction. And that was because I dropped it. I keep hearing about ribbon cables in the lens mechanisms failing, and MF clutches having issues. I have also experienced “card error” warnings and have read about some cards just not working in Olympus equipment. Online, I read more stories about camera bodies just spontaneously failing after periods of use. I also hear not-so-good things about official repair facilities (ironically, it appears that the main one is in Portugal), especially since the sale by Olympus to OM products. I get an inkling of overall frailty of the OM system. It may just be that the loudest voices are usually the ones with problems. Time will tell, and I will keep watch. Fortunately for me, I have very little invested in this system. But I would have to think twice about putting real money on the line for some of the newer and “higher end” OM systems gear.

Cell Phone Photography; a more Empirical View

May 14, 2022Posted in EQUIPMENT REVIEWS, MUSINGS, PHOTOGRAPHYTagged Andy Richards, cell phone, DSLR, England, exposure, iPhone 12, Light, LightCentric Photography, mirrorless, Olympus, PHOTOGRAPHY, Photoshop, Samsung s21, smartphone, Sony, travel, tripodLeave a comment

Portland Head Light
Cape Elizabeth, Maine
Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved

LAST JULY, in “Do You Really Need Anything Other Than Your Smartphone?“, I opined that, while “smart” phones have moved lightyears beyond their humble beginnings (think from Maxwell Smart’s shoe phone to today’s phones), and that they are very close, smartphone cameras are still not on par with dedicated high-end digital cameras and lenses. I did get some responses that moved my personal “needle” even further, but I am still in the “not yet” camp – they are close and creeping inexorably closer every year. But they are still not “there.” In spite of my own opinion, I have been using my Galaxy s21 phone camera more than I ever have. All the images on this blog post were taken with the Samsung S21.

Queen’s Bedroom
Kensington Palace
London, England
[Copyright Andy Richards 2021]

ON MY Vermont foliage photography trip last October, I resolved to shoot an image or two with the phone camera at each major stop. I wasn’t completely consistent, but I did make a fair number of them. Under the right circumstances, the results were impressive. And more than that, while the earlier post was based on limited experience, I now have a lot more phone-camera examples under my belt with which to make comparisons and observations. My bottom line: I am more impressed than I expected to be. But I am still “not there.”

Vermont Northeast Kingdom Barn
[Copyright Andy Richards 2021]

FOLLOWING MY Vermont experience, I used my phone camera a lot of the time during our trip to London. One area where I find it convenient (and pretty good) is indoors. The “auto” features of the smart phone camera mean generally better results achieved more easily in these low and often artificial light environments. It got to the point where I put the Sony in my pocket when we went indoors and used the smart phone. If I could do things right, with flash, tripod, etc., I would still probably use the dedicated camera. But these are generally tours and move rapidly, without allowing for flash – and certainly not tripods.

Writing Desk
Kensington Palace
London, England
[Copyright Andy Richards 2021]

LIKE ANY photographic equipment – and I have said this before – you must be familiar with its workings and practice with it before thinking you can just automatically achieve good results. I have a long way to climb up the learning curve with my phone camera. I think, though, that I need to start that slog. After having held SLR/DSLR style cameras in my hands for over 50 years, I do not find the smartphone camera controls “intuitive.” The small, thin body, with a large and sensitive touchscreen is a recipe for frustration for me. I did recently purchase an arca-swiss type mount for the phone. But even that makes it difficult to shoot the way I am accustomed to from a tripod. The clamp covers much of the phone screen, when mounted. I don’t know of any good way to use a remote release with the setup. I still don’t see myself using it for anything serious – probably well into the foreseeable future. I know that the point is not to have to use a tripod, of course, but that is another discussion for another day.

Westminster Abbey
Westminster, England
[Copyright Andy Richards 2021]

IN SPITE of arguments to the contrary from some very smart, knowledgeable folks, I think the big issue, continues to be quality. Pixels, pixel dimensions, noise, and raw capability are still areas where smartphone cameras have comparative weakness. Apple and Samsung (the industry standards) have both made significant “enhancements” in their software. The iPhone 12 and the top-end Galaxy S22 provide for raw image capture. The Galaxy S22 raw capability is “cobbled,” for lack of a better explanation. From the “get,” the either lack of – or “cobbled” raw image capability is a non-starter for me. A little research suggests that other phones (Google Pixel, Sony) may have raw capability. But as I understand it, the raw capability on all of these is cobbled (for example, on the new multiple-camera phones, raw will only record on the “main” lens). Will they “fix” all this stuff? Undoubtedly. But we aren’t there now.

Millenium Bridge
London, England
[Copyright Andy Richards 2021]

ADD TO the above concerns the fact that the sensor size on smart phones is as small as they come. I am not the first to point this out, but I still think there are lots of folk out there who don’t appreciate the nuance here. Megapixels are not equal! My Samsung actually has a higher megapixel count than my micro 4/3 Olympus mirrorless camera. The diagram below has shown up here before (and probably will again). It illustrates something very important about image quality (at least currently). The size of the sensor carrying the pixels on the most popular dedicated cameras (4/3, APS-C, and 35mm-equivalent) are all a substantial magnitude larger than the smart phone sensor (the red, 1 2/3″ sensor is typical for smartphones). In order to get the same number (or more) pixels on the smaller sensor, the actual pixel size has to be smaller. With smaller pixels comes less dynamic range, less detail, and usually significantly more noise – especially when packed tight together on the small sensor.

WHEN I downloaded my Samsung S21 images after the London trip, I was surprised at how large the files were. But, as good as they look on my Facebook Page, when I started to look more closely, and to “process” them, they began to deteriorate much more quickly than even my Sony RX100 with the 1″ (purple rectangle) sensor. Imagine the comparison with the “full frame” on my Sony A7rii. The Millenium Bridge image is a good example. It is reasonably pleasing at so-called “web-res” display, at the size shown here. But when you begin to “work” it, its weakness in quality immediately begins to show, especially when compared to images from a “more capable” camera.

Having said all of the above, the photography “cookbook” built into the Samsung and iPhone is pretty impressive

OCCASIONALLY, I just plain old “miss” with the smartphone’s autofocus mechanism (user error, of course, but the reason for the error is important to me). Unlike my other cameras, which have autofocus feedback, again, I find the phone interface unintuitive. The sign for the Kennebunkport Democratic Headquarters is something it should have gotten tack sharp 99/100 times. I just took a quick cell phone snap of this one, while walking by. But I wish I had used my other camera. I liked the irony of this sign, so prominently hanging in “Bush” country. Maybe the Republicans could use my image to accuse the Democrats of “lack of focus” (and, that’s as political as I will get here). 🙂

Kennebunkport Democratic Headquarters
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

UT HAVING said all of the above, the photography “cookbook” built into the Samsung and iPhone (the only phones I have experience with – I am sure others are equally good) is pretty impressive. Standing on the rocky ledge south of the Portland Head Lighthouse in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, I made the opening shot here on my Galaxy s21 smartphone. On that trip, the widest angle lens capability I had was my 24mm Sony. The phone camera image here was made at approximately 15mm. I think the wider angle is pretty compelling, compositionally. But what really blew me away is that this image was made with Samsung’s jpg “recipe,” right out of the camera. Virtually no adjustments have been made. I found that to be the case mostly throughout the trip. I am impressed in terms of color, depth, and sharpness. And it seems to almost always get exposure right.

Lobster Boats
Southport, Maine
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022]

IF YOU had asked me as little as 3 years ago if there was a phone camera that could make images like the Portland Head shot and the lobster boat shot above, I might have laughed condescendingly at you. But the depth, color and dynamic range of these images are just downright impressive. The world mostly uses these cameras (as well as online technology) to make, display, and “share” their images. For these purposes, we are clearly there (and continuing to move beyond). One of my good photographer friends who is not only a talented photographer, but is very good with Photoshop and post-processing, recently told me that for his “travel” gear (like me, to him that means a non-dedicated photography trip), he is planning to carry only his iPhone 12. He has a small tripod and a tripod mount for the phone, as well as some add-on software designed to accomplish a couple of the things our cameras can do that phone cameras don’t (yet) do. I know I sound like a broken record, but I am not there yet. I have carried at the very least, my Sony RX100 on every trip (stay tuned for a change in that strategy in an upcoming blog). For the present, I still think it depends a little bit on what your goals are. I still harbor the (perhaps naive) thought that I will occasionally sell a large print from my website. I also still like to “work” my images in post-processing. This includes not only (sometimes substantial) cropping and enhancements, but also compositing. I think there may still be some buyers out there who insist on higher “quality” (more and deeper pixels) digital files, too.