{"id":63004,"date":"2017-08-15T22:43:12","date_gmt":"2017-08-16T05:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=63004"},"modified":"2017-08-15T22:43:12","modified_gmt":"2017-08-16T05:43:12","slug":"review-google-hdr-for-phone-cameras-and-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2017\/08\/15\/review-google-hdr-for-phone-cameras-and-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Google HDR+ For Phone Cameras and Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
HDR+. Phenomenal detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I am testing the OnePlus 5<\/a> with the default camera and the Google Camera with HDR+<\/a> and I am blown away by the superiority of HDR+.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"\"
HDR+.
Better green color rendition.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Default camera on OnePlus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n
\"\"
Google camera with HDR+. Note colors are more true to life.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Default
Default OnePlus 5 camera. Red is too saturated and not as much detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n
\"\"
HDR+. Very good detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Default one plus camera. Blown out highlights<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n
\"\"
HDR+. White balance more accurate.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
HDR+. Orange tones more accurate<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Default camera. Too orange.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n
\"\"
Default camera. Colors are very false. Too green.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
HDR+. Blue tones look soooo much better.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n
\"\"
HDR+. Phenomenal detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Default camera.Not as much detail. Too golden.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n

Why does this matter?<\/h2>\n
\"\"
Processed with VSCO with a6 preset and HDR+<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Okay so this is important because it shows the power of “computational photography”. The camera on the OnePlus 5 is the same in both pictures. But when shot with the Google Camera HDR+ app (instead of the default app) the photos look infinitely better.<\/p>\n

Therefore, if you want the best value image quality for a phone camera on Android, buy a OnePlus<\/a> and download the Google Camera HDR+ app<\/a>. Otherwise buy the newest Google Pixel phone.<\/p>\n

If you prefer iOS, just use iPhone.<\/p>\n

Based to my eyes, I think the Google HDR+ photos look far superior than any iPhone picture.<\/p>\n

For more information, read my article on COMPUTATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Another lesson for myself, no more wasting time having to process phone pictures. Straight out of phone camera with HDR+, the photos need no post processing. Adding some VSCO A6 filter does improve the aesthetic, but if you have HDR+ post processing or filters are no longer necessary.<\/p>\n

\n

Further thoughts:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Image quality is now truly good enough on a camera phone, at least in my eyes when seen in HDR+. What is now the purpose of a “normal” digital camera which is so annoying to transfer files on SD card and having to wait for Lightroom? Maybe better ergonomics on digital camera? <\/li>\n
  2. Barbell theory: only shoot with phone camera, or film camera. Avoid the middle with “normal” digital cameras. Digital Medium Format<\/a> seems more tempting. <\/li>\n
  3. Phone cameras better for shooting personal moments.<\/li>\n
  4. What if Google open sources the HDR+ algorithm to the world? All phone cameras would improve, thus good for photographers all around the world, and humanity. <\/li>\n
  5. Big access to data via Google Photos is what allows Google Camera HDR+ to be superior to Apple iPhone camera. <\/li>\n
  6. What is the future of machine learning and photography, and the role of AI (artificial intelligence) and AI?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Some thoughts to ponder.<\/p>\n

    BE CREATIVE EVERYDAY,
    \nERIC<\/p>\n

    Learn more: PHONE PHOTOGRAPHY<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I am testing the OnePlus 5 with the default camera and the Google Camera with HDR+ and I am blown away by the superiority of HDR+.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":63024,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-posts"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/IMG_20170816_133131-scaled.jpg?fit=4608%2C3456&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63004"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63004\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63027,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63004\/revisions\/63027"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}