ironman187
Well-Known Member
Anybody else have issues with the macro function on the camera? Mine just won't focus on anything closer than 2 or so feet...that's not macro.
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no issues with macro recording. what are your settings? what scene are you attempting to capture? did you have this issue from day one of purchasing or did it just start after some time?
ironman187
Well-Known Member
I didn't change any settings from the way the camera came, and I was attempting to capture a section of the case I bought for the phone. I tried under two light sources (bright, dimmer) admittedly I only tried on one occasion, then ended up using my digital camera.
Copy that.
I took some sample shots and as long as I am tapping on the part of the screen I want to be in focus, the performance has been solid. this is stock/basic settings under indoor incandescent lighting.
short of a soft reset and cleaning the lens, not sure what else could be the cause.
its the weekend, so more of the camera users will chime in perhaps tomorrow.
I took some sample shots and as long as I am tapping on the part of the screen I want to be in focus, the performance has been solid. this is stock/basic settings under indoor incandescent lighting.
short of a soft reset and cleaning the lens, not sure what else could be the cause.
its the weekend, so more of the camera users will chime in perhaps tomorrow.
It doesn't have an actual macro mode, like the LTEvo?
Yes it has a Macro Mode to choose from the Camera settings.
Samcanadian
Member
I find that the macro mode is almost identical in performance to the normal mode. I just did a test in bright light with a few small object and I can't really seem to see much difference between the two. Obviously there's a bit of play in these, as it's hard to take an identical shot without a tripod, but you take a look yourself and see what's better.
Volvo Key
I took this shot probably about 5-6 inches away from the Key and was trying to focus on the Volvo logo for both shots.
You can see that at a little further away, the lettering on the key portion of the Fob is very clear, but the volvo logo is a bit blurry. As far as either shot goes, the Volvo logo is not that clear.
normal mode
macro mode (I must have subconsciously snuck up a little closer on this one)
Here's a candy I put out in the sunlight. I was trying to focus on the text on top.
Normal
And a Macro shot. I'm not impressed with either of these, although the detail in the wood grain of my deck comes out quite nicely.
And then finally my salt and pepper shaker man. I couldn't get the camera to focus in on this little guy's head in either mode, but I found that tapping his belly as the focal point made it a somewhat decent shot (You can see the flecks of dirt represented quite clearly on his gut. he's a messy eater, I imagine)
Normal mode
Macro mode
Volvo Key
I took this shot probably about 5-6 inches away from the Key and was trying to focus on the Volvo logo for both shots.
You can see that at a little further away, the lettering on the key portion of the Fob is very clear, but the volvo logo is a bit blurry. As far as either shot goes, the Volvo logo is not that clear.
normal mode
macro mode (I must have subconsciously snuck up a little closer on this one)
Here's a candy I put out in the sunlight. I was trying to focus on the text on top.
Normal
And a Macro shot. I'm not impressed with either of these, although the detail in the wood grain of my deck comes out quite nicely.
And then finally my salt and pepper shaker man. I couldn't get the camera to focus in on this little guy's head in either mode, but I found that tapping his belly as the focal point made it a somewhat decent shot (You can see the flecks of dirt represented quite clearly on his gut. he's a messy eater, I imagine)
Normal mode
Macro mode
Samcanadian
Member
That was a bad test. I'm trying a different one atm. Stay tuned.
JimKnuckles
Android Enthusiast
looks to me like the macro mode is making the objects lighter in color.
Samcanadian
Member
Ok, so I took a little Ninja figurine I got out of one of those coin-crank machines and placed him on the kitchen table at the end of a strip of tape measuring out every inch up to 5 inches. The figurine is slightly over 1" tall, so it IS quite little.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/EvilFenn/PlasticNinja.jpg
Considering most macro shots are done from close up, I wanted to see what kind of detail I could get out of the macro setting vs. the regular setting in an actual macro situation.
SO
Here's what ended up happening.
First of all, anything taken from 3 inches and closer was blurry. Neither the macro or normal function could focus in on the little figurine and obviously anything closer than 4 inches is where the Macro lens limits out.
What I put together below, however, is the comparison of the "normal" mode to the "Macro" mode of the HTC One. I rested the camera on the kitchen table and held the lens level with both the 5 inch mark and the 4 inch mark before snapping.
Macro on the left, normal on the right. I hit the "view actual size" button in Windows Media Viewer in order to get the full res pic, then cropped out the rest of the frame for these.
My camera settings are standard except for "Sharpness" which I dropped to -1.
FROM 5 INCHES AWAY MACRO ON LEFT, NORMAL MODE ON RIGHT.
FROM 4 INCHES AWAY. MACRO MODE ON LEFT, NORMAL MODE ON RIGHT.
There doesn't look to be too much difference except for the saturation and the sharpness. I'm not sure how much different they would've looked if I would've left the sharpness on the camera's standard 0 setting.
In other words, I don't know how much of a benefit the macro mode is as of yet.
Here's a link to the photos if you'd like to see the full versions.
Macro from 5": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Macro5_zpse2257d0a.jpg
Macro from 4": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Macro4_zpsb4c459aa.jpg
Normal from 5": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Normal5_zps6c1ca05d.jpg
Normal from 4": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Normal4_zps028f4626.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/EvilFenn/PlasticNinja.jpg
Considering most macro shots are done from close up, I wanted to see what kind of detail I could get out of the macro setting vs. the regular setting in an actual macro situation.
SO
Here's what ended up happening.
First of all, anything taken from 3 inches and closer was blurry. Neither the macro or normal function could focus in on the little figurine and obviously anything closer than 4 inches is where the Macro lens limits out.
What I put together below, however, is the comparison of the "normal" mode to the "Macro" mode of the HTC One. I rested the camera on the kitchen table and held the lens level with both the 5 inch mark and the 4 inch mark before snapping.
Macro on the left, normal on the right. I hit the "view actual size" button in Windows Media Viewer in order to get the full res pic, then cropped out the rest of the frame for these.
My camera settings are standard except for "Sharpness" which I dropped to -1.
FROM 5 INCHES AWAY MACRO ON LEFT, NORMAL MODE ON RIGHT.
FROM 4 INCHES AWAY. MACRO MODE ON LEFT, NORMAL MODE ON RIGHT.
There doesn't look to be too much difference except for the saturation and the sharpness. I'm not sure how much different they would've looked if I would've left the sharpness on the camera's standard 0 setting.
In other words, I don't know how much of a benefit the macro mode is as of yet.
Here's a link to the photos if you'd like to see the full versions.
Macro from 5": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Macro5_zpse2257d0a.jpg
Macro from 4": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Macro4_zpsb4c459aa.jpg
Normal from 5": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Normal5_zps6c1ca05d.jpg
Normal from 4": http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u221/samcanadian/Normal4_zps028f4626.jpg
vulcangrey
Member
were you using the zoom feature on either of these shots?
Samcanadian
Member
Nope, neither were zoomed. The ones from 4 and 5" out look small because the figurine is very small.
When I dropped them onto my PC I opened them in Photo Gallery and clicked "View Full Size" Then centred the photos on the figurine. I put them side by side without either zooming in, or out, and then clipped the image with a screencap tool.
I'm sure there are better ways to do it, but that's how I did it.
When I dropped them onto my PC I opened them in Photo Gallery and clicked "View Full Size" Then centred the photos on the figurine. I put them side by side without either zooming in, or out, and then clipped the image with a screencap tool.
I'm sure there are better ways to do it, but that's how I did it.
vulcangrey
Member
Yea, I reproduced your shots with and without macro on some small parts on my desk. I really didn't see a difference either, focal distance appeared to be the same for "normal" and "macro".
I agree as well. I've tried some macro shots and, depending on the elements in the picture, the focus points didn't really show a difference between it and normal mode; at least not to the level of distinction shown in the advertisements/examples I've seen for the HTC One around the web. I also noticed that sometimes, it takes a few seconds for the focus to come into clarity. Maybe it's my impatience when it comes to a great shot, but taping the screen still took it a second or two for the focus to get to the point where I was satisfied with the image it would produce. Nevertheless...I still love the camera though.
JimKnuckles
Android Enthusiast
ive had the phone since release date and had yet to shoot or use Zoe mode. last night i went to a carnival with my sister / brother in-law and nieces, and took a bunch of zoe shots of them riding rides etc... also used it while taking a few family pics of them
wow i never thought i'd use it, but its actually very awesome. the 30 second videos it created were so nice. i emailed the vids to them and they absolutely loved them.
also, i was able to go in after shooting fam pics and use the 'always smiling' feature. which allows you to select one of the faces, and choose the best part within the 3 seconds for that one person. it was very useful, as one child rarely looks at the camera.
great job htc.
wow i never thought i'd use it, but its actually very awesome. the 30 second videos it created were so nice. i emailed the vids to them and they absolutely loved them.
also, i was able to go in after shooting fam pics and use the 'always smiling' feature. which allows you to select one of the faces, and choose the best part within the 3 seconds for that one person. it was very useful, as one child rarely looks at the camera.
great job htc.
perhaps the macro mode is a fix that may be in the next MR from htc? 
I noticed the shots taken (LOVE THE SALT AND PEPPER DUDE! HA!) and can see what you are experiencing.
I don't use camera phones much as I always carry a conventional digital cam, but i will see if i can reproduce these also.
as I always say, sending a ticket to htc will help.
great work!
I noticed the shots taken (LOVE THE SALT AND PEPPER DUDE! HA!) and can see what you are experiencing.I don't use camera phones much as I always carry a conventional digital cam, but i will see if i can reproduce these also.
as I always say, sending a ticket to htc will help.
great work!
Samcanadian
Member
Ok, so I feel a little silly.
I talked to a friend of mine who also owns the HTC One and I explained my Macro dilemma to him. Since he is considerably more well-versed in photography than I am, he let me know that a Macro mode won't necessarily effect the quality of the photo taken, but rather HOW the photo is taken.
Here's a test to show you what I mean.
Holding your camera in one hand, point it at a wall and let it focus in on it. Then, holding an arm straight out, place your hand in front of the camera. The Normal Shooting mode will struggle to focus in on the hand and/or the wall and will most likely focus on the hand...but it may not. To focus on the hand, you'd have to tap to focus before taking the picture.
If you switch the camera to MACRO mode, that "Tap to focus" step is unnecessary. When you hold something in front of the camera, it will automatically focus on the nearest thing to it rather than making you tap on it manually. So, do the same test and notice how much quicker the camera will focus in on the hand or other objects close to the camera.
This shooting method would probably be useful if you're outdoors or trying to take a shot of something with bright light obscuring the screen. Sometimes it's hard to tell if an object is in focus, so with the Macro mode you can rest assured that the object in the foreground will be what the camera is focusing on.
I talked to a friend of mine who also owns the HTC One and I explained my Macro dilemma to him. Since he is considerably more well-versed in photography than I am, he let me know that a Macro mode won't necessarily effect the quality of the photo taken, but rather HOW the photo is taken.
Here's a test to show you what I mean.
Holding your camera in one hand, point it at a wall and let it focus in on it. Then, holding an arm straight out, place your hand in front of the camera. The Normal Shooting mode will struggle to focus in on the hand and/or the wall and will most likely focus on the hand...but it may not. To focus on the hand, you'd have to tap to focus before taking the picture.
If you switch the camera to MACRO mode, that "Tap to focus" step is unnecessary. When you hold something in front of the camera, it will automatically focus on the nearest thing to it rather than making you tap on it manually. So, do the same test and notice how much quicker the camera will focus in on the hand or other objects close to the camera.
This shooting method would probably be useful if you're outdoors or trying to take a shot of something with bright light obscuring the screen. Sometimes it's hard to tell if an object is in focus, so with the Macro mode you can rest assured that the object in the foreground will be what the camera is focusing on.
I'm laughing at myself.
I just found out that on my LTEvo, when I go to edit a photo, I can select Effects - and at the top is a little doo-dad that lets me "add filters."
There is a wealth of stuff there, I practically don't need Photo Enhance Pro for most of my changes.
Is the One the same way??
I just found out that on my LTEvo, when I go to edit a photo, I can select Effects - and at the top is a little doo-dad that lets me "add filters."
There is a wealth of stuff there, I practically don't need Photo Enhance Pro for most of my changes.
Is the One the same way??
The only thing I hate about Zeo is how it interacts with Dropbox. I wish it would store Zoe pictures in a separate folder, so I don't get 20 of the same pictures...
PyroSporker
Android Expert
Yeah, that was a mostly un-noticed feature enhanced/added with one of the updates for the Evo 4G LTE. I almost posted about it once since I had the feeling that not a lot of folks knew it was there, but after a while I just decided, meh...
The One has a very similar edit feature within the gallery. You can probably find an online photo gallery or video walkthrough of the updated 'edit' feature in action if you look up one of the more in depth peeks at The One or Sense 5.
It is upgraded from the Evo 4G LTE and other Sense 4 devices. It has a few different filters that differ from Sense 4, a couple extra photo frames, as well as a simple retouch feature (skin smoothing, lighting, face contour, red eye remover, etc.), and a crop/transform tool. One thing the Sense 4 edit tool had that was going for it was a custom filter editor. I might just be not seeing it, but it may be missing/removed from Sense 5.
Excuse me for thinking out loud here. Maybe Zoe already does this or can do something similar
But I've been rolling an idea around in my brain for a little bit. I was thinking about how cool it would be if Zoes had an extra 3D motion effect to them. If HTC ever decided to try out making another 3D camera device, they could probably add a very enthralling 3D motion cinemagraph effect to Zoes. I don't really want to see a gallery filled with multiple .2 second repeating gifs, but It could look really cool if when you open your gallery you could see some extended motion with extra dimensionality to your pictures rather than just a cut-fade photo/video slideshow Zoe.
When you have a picture open go to edit then Effects and then long press on one of the filters until Custom appears at the bottom. Then drag the filter to the word custom and you can change the filter around and save a new preset. Haven't found a way to mess with the filters at picture taking time though.
PyroSporker
Android Expert
Ahhhh, hidden under a long press. Figures.
Not to say that said device doesn't exist, but I don't think I've ever seen a stock camera application that you can personally edit/customize the live filters on the fly (besides the optional slider bar needed for some effects)...
Zoe warping space-time....
A mild digression here:
I stopped into an AT&T store today to get my first real look at the One. The sales person was trying to talk up the phone, and made a few very inaccurate statements; one of which was "it has a 13 megapixel camera. One of the best ones out there."
I had to stop her when she made that blunder, though I had let the others pass. She seemed upset with me for telling her she was wrong, but I couldn't let that fly.
I feel sorry for people that blindly trust what sales people say. No offence meant to any sales-peeps here, I have just had horrible experiences with them, especially at cell phone retailers.
Sorry for interrupting.
I stopped into an AT&T store today to get my first real look at the One. The sales person was trying to talk up the phone, and made a few very inaccurate statements; one of which was "it has a 13 megapixel camera. One of the best ones out there."
I had to stop her when she made that blunder, though I had let the others pass. She seemed upset with me for telling her she was wrong, but I couldn't let that fly.
I feel sorry for people that blindly trust what sales people say. No offence meant to any sales-peeps here, I have just had horrible experiences with them, especially at cell phone retailers.
Sorry for interrupting.
getinmehbellay
Lurker
Has anyone experienced any kind of distortion in the photos with the camera on the HTC One?
I used to have an iPhone and was using the app Everyday to take a photo every day, and did this for about 15 months. I'm now trying to do the same with my HTC One, but every time I take a photo with it, the image looks good in the post-shot preview, but when I go to the Gallery, there is a weird distortion going on, as if there's been a horizontal displacement somewhere in the middle of the photo.
Someone's going to say it's because I'm ugly, but apart from that, has anyone experienced anything like this?
Edit: I just wanted to say I tried downloading a different app - I just picked a random Top one off the App Store, Cymera - and the distortion is no longer present.
In another app I tried called 365 Photo App! the distortion was present just like it is in the regular camera/Gallery app. I don't know if this has to do with whether or not the apps use the built-in software, or their own for taking photos.
I used to have an iPhone and was using the app Everyday to take a photo every day, and did this for about 15 months. I'm now trying to do the same with my HTC One, but every time I take a photo with it, the image looks good in the post-shot preview, but when I go to the Gallery, there is a weird distortion going on, as if there's been a horizontal displacement somewhere in the middle of the photo.
Someone's going to say it's because I'm ugly, but apart from that, has anyone experienced anything like this?
Edit: I just wanted to say I tried downloading a different app - I just picked a random Top one off the App Store, Cymera - and the distortion is no longer present.
In another app I tried called 365 Photo App! the distortion was present just like it is in the regular camera/Gallery app. I don't know if this has to do with whether or not the apps use the built-in software, or their own for taking photos.