Manual camera

[BartmanJax]

So I'm still anxiously waiting to hear if Sony will include the Camera2 API with its release of the Lollipop update. Still no word. Can you guys with Nexus 6 post some comparison shots between the stock camera and the Manual Camera app?

Comparing the manual app to the stock camera app isn't really a good comparison. The manual app lets you adjust SO many things. For example, lets say I were taking a picture of a waterfall. With the normal app, it would just take a picture and say ISO 400, 1/400 shutter speed. With the Manual Camera app, I could take that same picture at say ISO 800, 1/800 of a second and pretty much stop the water. But I could also go down to say ISO 50, and 1/30 of a second shutter speed which would blur the water showing a sense of motion.

Manual Camera isn't going to take better pictures. It's going to give you creative control over the pictures you already take. For quick shots or shots that have a moving subject, the standard camera app will probably work better. Be still life or close up pictures or pictures where you want to control the depth of field, then Manual Camera will be give you that flexibility and creative control.

 

[RaRa85]

Comparing the manual app to the stock camera app isn't really a good comparison. The manual app lets you adjust SO many things. For example, lets say I were taking a picture of a waterfall. With the normal app, it would just take a picture and say ISO 400, 1/400 shutter speed. With the Manual Camera app, I could take that same picture at say ISO 800, 1/800 of a second and pretty much stop the water. But I could also go down to say ISO 50, and 1/30 of a second shutter speed which would blur the water showing a sense of motion.

Manual Camera isn't going to take better pictures. It's going to give you creative control over the pictures you already take. For quick shots or shots that have a moving subject, the standard camera app will probably work better. Be still life or close up pictures or pictures where you want to control the depth of field, then Manual Camera will be give you that flexibility and creative control.

That is the whole point of me asking. I haven't seen any reviews of the app yet and I want to see how much a difference being able to control the settings made. I guess I just want to see some images captured using the app beyond what the stock camera can do.

 

[BartmanJax]

That is the whole point of me asking. I haven't seen any reviews of the app yet and I want to see how much a difference being able to control the settings made. I guess I just want to see some images captured using the app beyond what the stock camera can do.

Ah, OK! Sadly, it's terrible weather here today and it's supposed to rain here the next few days. As soon as we get a nice, sunny day, I'll get outside and set up a few different scenarios and see what I can get from the app. Stay tuned....

 

[RaRa85]

Ah, OK! Sadly, it's terrible weather here today and it's supposed to rain here the next few days. As soon as we get a nice, sunny day, I'll get outside and set up a few different scenarios and see what I can get from the app. Stay tuned....

Yes. Thanks a bunch. I'll be looking forward to your images.

 

[BartmanJax]

Some new updates today. You can now "pinch to zoom" (4X) and the bug with portrait/landscape has been fixed.

 

[TraderGary]

Some new updates today. You can now "pinch to zoom" (4X) and the bug with portrait/landscape has been fixed.

It should be called "pinch to crop".

 

[RaRa85]

So I'm back after many weeks. Can anyone tell me what the maximum or slowest shutter speed this app allows you to achieve?

 

[the tall guy]

So I'm back after many weeks. Can anyone tell me what the maximum or slowest shutter speed this app allows you to achieve?

1/32000 & 0.6s

 

[RaRa85]

1/32000 & 0.6s

Thank you kind sir. I was hoping for a little longer shutter speed but that's not bad.

 

[the tall guy]

Thank you kind sir. I was hoping for a little longer shutter speed but that's not bad.

No problem I have just downloaded the app and going to give it a spin and see how I like it. I'm using the Nexus 6 btw. I would love to understand how to operate a manual camera, so I guess this app is a good starting point, learn on the job as they say.

 

[alexcolka]

Hi would you recommend what settings can I use for a standard shot in low light conditions without flash with this app? Many thanks.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[RaRa85]

Yeah from the looks of it the app will help you learn a good bit on the phone that can translate to use with a DSLR or something like that. I came from Windows Phone and the Lumia Camera and ProShot apps had the ability to shoot up to 4 seconds at full resolution which was just amazing to me do on a phone. That's one thing I miss a lot as I loved to tinker with the settings.

 

[RaRa85]

Hi would you recommend what settings can I use for a standard shot in low light conditions without flash with this app? Many thanks.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Get a tripod and mount the phone. Keep ISO in between 100-200 and do the max shutter speed. You should get a clear, low noise photo with those settings.

 

[alexcolka]

Thanks for your quick reply.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[RaRa85]

No problem.

 

[RaRa85]

https://flic.kr/p/q6Lh9q Here's an unedited shot from my Xperia Z3 using a tripod and night mode. If I had the Manual Camera app or even had the ability to shoot at maybe 1 second exposure at this ISO or even ISO 100, I could've achieved greater results. Also the picture is a little on the warm side. That's why apps like Manual Camera are so cool. Unfortunately I may never get to use it on the Z3 as Sony has decided not to include the Camera2 API in the pending Lollipop update and since T-Mobile has already discontinued it, I don't expect any future updates.

 

[the tall guy]

No problem.

would you mind explaining what increasing and decreasing the ISO does? Also if I increase or decrease the shutter speed, I would imagine I would also need to amend the ISO?

 

[RaRa85]

would you mind explaining what increasing and decreasing the ISO does? Also if I increase or decrease the shutter speed, I would imagine I would also need to amend the ISO?

Well I'm not professional but when you decrease the ISO you get less noise in photos because it controls the sensitivity to light. But for lowlight, increasing the ISO is needed to capture more light. More ISO means more noise unless you have a seriously great lens found on a DSLR that can shoot at higher ISO with less noise. So our phones need to keep the shutter open longer with the addition of low ISO to get shots that aren't so grainy. However if you want to freeze a moving subject in lower light scenarios it's nearly impossible because the shutter speed will need to be fast (around 1/300 or more) and you will have to greatly increase the ISO or you will get a pitch black shot. Just play around with the settings in different scenarios and it will make more sense. Shoot the same scene with different shutter speeds and the same ISO and then reverse it shoot with the same shutter speed but different ISOs. Hope that helps and isn't confusing.

 

[the tall guy]

Well I'm not professional but when you decrease the ISO you get less noise in photos because it controls the sensitivity to light. But for lowlight, increasing the ISO is needed to capture more light. More ISO means more noise unless you have a seriously great lens found on a DSLR that can shoot at higher ISO with less noise. So our phones need to keep the shutter open longer with the addition of low ISO to get shots that aren't so grainy. However if you want to freeze a moving subject in lower light scenarios it's nearly impossible because the shutter speed will need to be fast (around 1/300 or more) and you will have to greatly increase the ISO or you will get a pitch black shot. Just play around with the settings in different scenarios and it will make more sense. Shoot the same scene with different shutter speeds and the same ISO and then reverse it shoot with the same shutter speed but different ISOs. Hope that helps and isn't confusing.

Thanks that helps to understand what each function does. I have a few nieces and nephews - would increasing the shutter speed be able to catch them with little blur, if I were in good lighting?

 

[RaRa85]

Oh yeah in ample light you can freeze a moving car with a faster shutter speed and the ISO doesn't have to be high either. In daylight try ISO 100 and 1/500 or somewhere around there. Have fun.