drexappeal
Extreme Android User
Just tested. Auto flash and image stabilization are the ones that slow the shutter down. Auto focus ok.
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Low Light Pics Suck
- Thread starter Jore
- Start date
Just tested. Auto flash and image stabilization are the ones that slow the shutter down. Auto focus ok.
You sold all your digital cameras to replace it with a phone camera
Sorry, but that's like selling your car and complaining that your bicycle isn't fast enough.
I sold my Digital SLR and used the iPhone 5 camera for most pics and it worked great but the Note III camera is not at as good in low light, should have gone with the GS5 better low light and photos overall
AnonGuy
Android Enthusiast
Turn Smart Stabilization off, however, there is an indicator in the camera UI letting you know if the phone is going to use Night Mode, in which case you should not move until the phone is done processing the photo as it uses multiple exposures similar to what they do for HDR images. It's enabled by default out of the box on these phones, to help people get better Low Light shots, but a lot of people just tap and move...
These things are all roughly equivalent:
Galaxy S4: Auto Night Mode
Galaxy Note 3: Smart Stabilization
Galaxy S3/Note 2: Low Light Mode
The difference between the Auto Night Mode/Smart Stabilization and the Low Light Mode on the GS3/Note 2 is that it will automatically switch the Night Mode on when necessary instead of you having to enable and disable it on demand. Additionally, the Image Stacking Algorithms are better in the S4/Note 3 and the Camera Optics are better in the S4/Note 3 so "Low Light Mode" shots are superior.
If the phone is going to use Night Mode:
If the phone is not going to use Night Mode:
This is no different then paying attention to the Superior Auto on a Sony Xperia phone, or paying attention to see if an iPhone is going to snap an HDR Picture with Auto-HDR turned on...
If I see the phone is going to use Light Mode, and I don't want it to use it, I can then toggle it off and take the picture without it. Otherwise, I just snap the picture and hold the phone still for an extra half a second before moving it.
The phone will never use Night Mode or the Flash in a Daylight Image, and Smart Stabilization will almost always give you a significantly better image in Low Light than if you didn't use it.
Low Light != Darkness. I think some people confuse the two and think the phone should be able to snap amazing pictures when there is barely any light available. There are "ordinary smartphones" that specialize in stuff like that (like the HTC One/M8), but the quality of Daylight images tends to suffer as a result of the optics being configured to milk every drop of light out of the environment in low light images.
Blurry pictures are often operator error.
1. If there is a lot of light: The Phone will not use Low Light Mode.
2. If there is some light, but not a ton: The phone will use Low Light Mode to capture a brighter image.
3. If there is almost no light: The phone will not use Low Light Mode, if the Flash is set to "On" or "Auto", then it will fire the flash and take a normal picture instead.
This is why it's set to "On" by default. The issue is most people don't know what you have to keep the phone more still when it's going to use the Low Light Mode and it may not be completely obvious when that mode is going to be employed (reading this post will make you aware of it, but I'm almost sure a lot of people probably have never noticed that icon pop up before reading this). Once the phone is processing you can move the phone. It's already taken all the exposures it needs. You just have to keep it still when you press the button and until it starts processing - the same way you would for an HDR capture.
It would be nice if the camera app did the Processing for those in the background, the way the Google Camera does with Lens Blur captures.
pdqgp
Well-Known Member
As a photog I always like picking up odd little gadgets like this. Looks fun.
Turn Smart Stabilization off, however, there is an indicator in the camera UI letting you know if the phone is going to use Night Mode, in which case you should not move until the phone is done processing the photo as it uses multiple exposures similar to what they do for HDR images. It's enabled by default out of the box on these phones, to help people get better Low Light shots, but a lot of people just tap and move...
These things are all roughly equivalent:
Galaxy S4: Auto Night Mode
Galaxy Note 3: Smart Stabilization
Galaxy S3/Note 2: Low Light Mode
The difference between the Auto Night Mode/Smart Stabilization and the Low Light Mode on the GS3/Note 2 is that it will automatically switch the Night Mode on when necessary instead of you having to enable and disable it on demand. Additionally, the Image Stacking Algorithms are better in the S4/Note 3 and the Camera Optics are better in the S4/Note 3 so "Low Light Mode" shots are superior.
If the phone is going to use Night Mode:
If the phone is not going to use Night Mode:
This is no different then paying attention to the Superior Auto on a Sony Xperia phone, or paying attention to see if an iPhone is going to snap an HDR Picture with Auto-HDR turned on...
If I see the phone is going to use Light Mode, and I don't want it to use it, I can then toggle it off and take the picture without it. Otherwise, I just snap the picture and hold the phone still for an extra half a second before moving it.
The phone will never use Night Mode or the Flash in a Daylight Image, and Smart Stabilization will almost always give you a significantly better image in Low Light than if you didn't use it.
Low Light != Darkness. I think some people confuse the two and think the phone should be able to snap amazing pictures when there is barely any light available. There are "ordinary smartphones" that specialize in stuff like that (like the HTC One/M8), but the quality of Daylight images tends to suffer as a result of the optics being configured to milk every drop of light out of the environment in low light images.
Blurry pictures are often operator error.
1. If there is a lot of light: The Phone will not use Low Light Mode.
2. If there is some light, but not a ton: The phone will use Low Light Mode to capture a brighter image.
3. If there is almost no light: The phone will not use Low Light Mode, if the Flash is set to "On" or "Auto", then it will fire the flash and take a normal picture instead.
This is why it's set to "On" by default. The issue is most people don't know what you have to keep the phone more still when it's going to use the Low Light Mode and it may not be completely obvious when that mode is going to be employed (reading this post will make you aware of it, but I'm almost sure a lot of people probably have never noticed that icon pop up before reading this). Once the phone is processing you can move the phone. It's already taken all the exposures it needs. You just have to keep it still when you press the button and until it starts processing - the same way you would for an HDR capture.
It would be nice if the camera app did the Processing for those in the background, the way the Google Camera does with Lens Blur captures.
that is some good info.. thanks for the detailed response.
now I understand why it happens.. and when.
I will keep that in mind when I use the camera.. and see how it behaves.
phillyundead
Well-Known Member
He said other than app availability its a good phone. Windows phones are terrible. I had the 1520 for 2 months and I was forced to buy my note 3 cause of how bad the Lumia was.
AnonGuy
Android Enthusiast
The Lumia Icon is a nice piece of Kit.
Apps are a major issue on Windows Phone. There is one app that doesn't exist there, that I absolutely need period. It's not in consideration until it has it. The changes in 8.1 (Notification Center, etc.) are great changes that finally make it feel like a complete OS to me. All the basics are there, they just need more support from 3rd party developers.
Ironically that app is available for Windows 8.1 Desktop and Tablet PCs, but not for Windows Phone, Lol.
I don't think most big devices justify their size. I'd go for an Icon over a 1520. The only reason why I can use a Note is because the large device size is justified by how it can be used (S Pen, Multi-Window, etc.). If it was nothing more than an oversized Galaxy S4, I'd have just gotten the Galaxy S4 instead.
In fact, if Microsoft introduces a Surface Mini and the price is right, it will be hard to not trade my Note 3 in for the Icon and just get a Surface Mini to go with it. Probably a 70% chance I'd end up doing that.
Which app do you use exactly?
LoveTheTech
Newbie
what I find very useful for low light situations is a flashlight. 
AnonGuy
Android Enthusiast
what I find very useful for low light situations is a flashlight.
Also known by other names:
"Camera Flash"
"Light Switch"
I find it comical the iPhone is so often used as the example of great low light photography when it... simply... isn't.
It's worse than the HTC One and the M8 there, as well as some Sony and Nokia devices.
In Indoors/Low Light there is some heavy processing going on. The one thing the Google Camera and iPhone Camera software is good at is processing in the background. It doesn't put a Modal Dialog Box in your face while it's doing it's thing, it actually makes better use of the device resources, shuffling it to the background while the hardware goes to work - and that's the way it should be so Samsung got that *wrong,* IMO.
Low Light Mode and HDR Shots should process in the background, and let the user continue using the camera while they're doing their thing. Part of the reason why a lot of people go overboard blasting the low light performance is because many of then turn the Smart Stabilization Off because of the "Processing" Modals after shooting a picture, and you can't really blame them. It's a second rate user experience, IMO, and any phone released past Mid-2011 shouldn't need to do that - especially not an "eve of 2014" flagship.
A lot of the issues with "softer details" that people complain about with Low Light Mode images, are also present in indoor/lower light shots from an iPhone 5S.
I have some samples that I took on the 5S from when I owned it and compare it to the Low Light shots from the Note 3 as well as an S4. The shots are similar except the Color Balance from the iPhone is better, the Note 3/S4 Pictures are brighter (due to how Low Light Mode works), and background details are better on the Note 3/S4. The 5S does some heavy noise reduction that makes a lot of background detail look like a watercolor painting in indoor/medium light shots, especially those in darker areas of the frame.
The HTC One and M8 are fantastic in low light, but even ignoring the resolution disadvantage they have in daylight shots, they are easily worse than Samsung's camera phones. They had to make some concessions to get the better low light photos, and the worse daylight images is part of that.
There is no all-around perfect smartphone camera. Even the Nokia phones like the L1020 pump out fantastic images, but they're plagued by Shutter Lag and slow Shot-to-Shot times nevermind the Software generally doesn't match up to what those devices should be capable of putting out (Just now (WP8.1) they are going to be getting the capability to shoot Slow Motion video, for example).