Is it possible to improve the front or rear camera in a samsung galaxy, lenovo, meizu m3 note 3 pro, xiaomi redmi 4x, lg k10 2017 phone running on android 6.0.
These are the questions I get asked most often. If your smartphone or tablet has a bad camera, then something can be improved.
In general, now the camera function is being added to many devices, ranging from mobile phones.
Just to get good image quality, you need a SLR camera, although you can get really good results in idle time if you apply the right settings.
To begin with, it is worth explaining the relationship between sensor size and image quality and dispelling the myth about the number of megapixels, which quite often is not a determining factor in quality when shooting.
It happens that a phone camera with 2 megapixels makes a much higher quality than a matrix with 12 megapixels.
Firstly, the more megapixels, the bigger the picture you get and the better the lens, the better the image quality will be.
Another issue is the camera control software that comes from the manufacturer and manages it all.
You can "amplify" software for getting best quality Images. Get acquainted with programs that improve the quality of the built-in camera, .
Settings to improve the webcam in a smartphone or tablet
In order to improve the quality of photos taken with a mobile phone, there are a few important things to keep in mind.
Lighting - try to keep the objects well lit - the weaker the lighting, the more "noise" will be visible in the picture, and if your phone is equipped with an LED flash, it's good to turn it on.
Although the built-in flash is not able to illuminate the entire subject, it can always help a little (LED flashes are more of a marketing ploy, not a strong flash lamp).
Contrast is a parameter to consider when photographing indoors where the lighting is artificial - thanks to it you will be able to preserve natural colors.
Digital Zoom - Definitely avoid using this option as nothing ruins image quality more than digital zoom.
Image Stabilization - Some phones offer digital image stabilization, which is not to be trusted unconditionally.
Auto focus - should be used when there is a problem with sharpness when trying to capture objects.
ISO - Noise in images is often the result of overuse of ISO settings that add artificial light from low light - higher ISO values can make clearer shots in poor light.
Improve the camera using the engineering menu
I am often asked - how to improve the camera using the engineering menu? I’ll tell you how to enter it, but don’t count on super improvement, and not every smartphone will be able to launch it.
NOTE: if your smartphone or tablet is running on a Qualcomm chipset, then there may not be an engineering menu, but on those that use a MediaTek processor it will be for sure.
To open the engineering menu, enter the command: *#*#3646633#*#*. If this code does not work, try another one: *#*#4636#*#* or *#15963#*.
NOTE: on Xiaomi smartphone you need to click on the “Kernel Version” parameter several times in a row.
Using the engineering menu, you can make some changes and check the sensors and perform component testing.
If the code did not work, you can try using the MobileUncle Tools or MTK Engineering applications - you can download it on the play market.
After logging in, you should be interested in the "Camera" option - setting various parameters.
After the transition, the settings will open.
The engineering menu is preferable for experienced users and must be used very carefully so as not to do tragic "miracles".
Video enhancement software
If you already have a filmed video, but of poor quality, then it can also be improved using computer programs.
Movavi Video Editor is a powerful yet simple video editor. When using it, the following tools will become available to you: cropping video edges, rotations, adding audio, effects, filters and others
vReveal is a great assistant if you like to shoot videos with your phone. Then, most likely you get a video far from ideal.
vReveal has quality enhancement technology to improve the quality of video files and clips.
Video Enhancer - This program is able to increase video resolutions. You can dramatically improve the quality of your photos or videos with Video Super Resolution technology.
With the help of frame detail technology, you can increase the resolution to the HD standard.
NOTE: all programs have a drawback - they are paid, and I could not find worthy free analogues. Good luck.
The camera has automatic settings that you can use to capture photos and videos instantly. However, the Camera provides several ways to control exposure, including controlling the focus, turning the flash on and off, and changing the white balance. You can take negative pictures and apply other special effects.
In addition, the Camera contains settings to control the quality and duration of video recording, where photos are saved, and more.
Camera settings depend on the features supported by your phone.
Changing Camera Settings
Camera mode settings
Settings. Click to open a scrollable list of settings:
Focus mode. Press to use the auto focus mode (Auto) or take quick pictures with infinity focus (Infinity) or close subjects (Macro). For more information on supported focus features, see your phone's user guide.
Exposure. Click to change exposure.
Selecting a shooting mode. Tap to select a preset combination of camera settings for special shooting modes such as shooting on the beach or shooting fireworks. For supported shooting modes, see your phone's user guide.
Photo size. Click the size of the image (in pixels) you want to take. In phones that support these sizes, the VGA mode is defined as 640x480 pixels.
Image quality. Select the image quality (that is, the ratio between image quality and file size that will be used when saving the photo to a file).
color effects. Tap the special effect to be used when shooting, such as monochrome, sepia, or negative.
Record location Select the checkbox to include the location of the subject using the GPS system in each shot.
Location stored with photo
Location not stored with photo
White balance.
Automatically
incandescent lamp
Daylight
Daylight lamp
Mainly cloudy
Flash mode. Click to specify whether the Camera should determine whether the flash should be turned on using its own light measurements, or whether or not to use the flash with each shot.
Automatically
Magnification 1x . Click to zoom in from 1x to 2x. For other scaling methods, see . For digital zoom support, see your phone's user guide.
Camera selection Click to select desired camera(if the phone has multiple cameras).
rear camera
Front camera
Video mode setting
As in camera mode, the camcorder settings are displayed on the screen.
Settings. Click to open a scrollable list of settings:
color effects. Click the special effect to be used when shooting video, such as monochrome, sepia, or negative.
Restore default values. Click to restore all Camera settings to default.
White balance. Tap to choose how the Camera adjusts colors under different lighting conditions to capture natural colors, or let the Camera change the white balance automatically.
- To improve the quality of photographs, the White Balance function allows you to correct the color depending on the type of lighting (incandescent or fluorescent, natural light, sunny or overcast weather). Automatic adjustment of light balance is possible.
- “Location Recording” via GPS (with and without photo).
- Flash mode. If you don't know when to use it, set the mode to "Auto" and the device will turn it on when needed.
- Image stabilization. This feature will prevent your photo from being ruined if your phone moves due to uneven breathing or hand shaking while taking a picture.
- Digital zoom (zoom in from 1x to 2x).
Setting up the camera for chatting in Skype
Setting up a camera for communication in Skype is not difficult. To do this, you need to enter the "Advanced Settings" section of video recording and check the box "Forced calls" for both the rear and front cameras. Then restart your device and choose which one to communicate on.
Camera problems and how to fix them
The performance of the camera may deteriorate during use. This can be caused by various reasons: contamination of the sensor; clogging the cache or mechanical damage to the module responsible for the settings; virus damage. There are several ways to improve the performance of your device.
When updating the firmware automatically, the basic settings often go astray, leading to incorrect operation of applications. To fix this problem, just do the following:
- go to the gadget settings;
- go to "Backup";
- enable the "Reset to factory settings" function.
- The problem with viruses will be solved by cleaning the system and installing an antivirus program.
- To clear the cache of the module, go to "Settings", select the "Applications" section. In its menu, find the "Camera" subsection and enable the "Clear cache" option.
- Download and set up an application alternative to the standard camera, for example, HD or DSLRCamera, ShotControl, etc.
- By wiping the lens before each use, you will eliminate the risk of dots and subtle smudges in the pictures.
- Try not to use Zoom. Any photo can be corrected in a graphic editor. With digital "zoom" the likelihood that it will be irretrievably damaged increases dramatically.
However, some smartphones do not come with good camera apps installed by the manufacturer and therefore you cannot take advantage of the camera. High Quality.
But this is not a problem if you have a good Android phone with an 8 or 13 Megapixel camera. Install these apps on your phone and you will be able to take professional photos using your smartphone.
#5. line camera
Line camera is one of the best apps to take selfies and photo collages on your smartphone. The application has high quality filters that are easy to customize.
It's not just a camera app, it also allows you to edit photos when you take them, arrange a bunch of photos side by side, and create a collage. This app is three in one! You can shoot, edit and create a collage of images with this application. And all this is absolutely free.
#four. open camera
Open camera is one of the smallest (approximately 500 KB) applications of its kind for Android devices. But despite its small size, the app has plenty of features and pretty decent exposure control. Open camera is recommended for night shooting on Android phone.
Just tap anywhere on the screen to focus on the subject and the image will magically become brighter. Open camera is also perfect free app for Android devices.
#3. Google Camera
Google Camera is Google's app for photographers and it has tons of unique features to help you take better photos. Google Camera captures both photos and videos quickly and easily, taking advantage of the processing power of your Android device, as well as photo enhancement features such as HDR+, blur at shallow depth of field, wide angle, panorama and 360 degree panorama.
But if you want to use Google Camera, you need to own an Android smartphone or tablet with Android KitKat version 4.4 or higher. In this case, you can download the application for free from the Google Play service.
#2. A Better Camera
As the name Better Camera suggests, this app will allow you to take better quality photos with its top-notch functionality. This application will allow you to take photos and videos in 11 different shooting modes such as HD panorama, HDR, Night, Group and others.
Apart from this, this camera app also has various features such as exposure mode, ISO setting options, smart mode, auto focus, and more. This app is available on Google Play in both paid and free versions.
#one. Ucam Ultra Camera
Samsung is poised to produce excellent Cell phones on the Android platform. Her phones can be found everywhere, in every corner of the world, and people will be happy to use them. Samsung phones are so popular that in 2014, the company managed to capture a large part of the market for smartphones built on the Android ecosystem. Everything in Samsung devices is well done, except for a small, very tiny detail.
If earlier, when phones were big and with buttons, every phone had to come with an instruction book, which documented in the most detailed way what features the phone is equipped with, what they are for and how to use them. And now, in a box with a smartphone, bought for a tangible wad of money, there are only two dead pamphlets, one pretends to be a guarantee, and the second is usually called "Quick Start" and contains frivolous instructions on where to insert a SIM card and how to put the battery in so as not to break the phone case. However, this trend applies to all computer electronics. It is understood that the users of all this technology are so advanced that they themselves will figure out what's what. And if they don’t understand something, they will look at the online help. But, the trouble is that Samsung forgot about its own online help and the user has to deal with all the software installed on the phone on his own. And sometimes it is not so easy to do this, especially not for the most advanced consumer.
It is possible that the Koreans were counting on the fact that in all other countries, people are just as good at rummaging through computer technology, like the Koreans themselves, who only do what they study from morning until late at night for 40 years, or even more. But, this is just a stereotype. In Korea, there are quite a few people who are technically "you" and who use the potential of their phones far from being to their fullest. And there are plenty of Russians who are unable to distinguish Google Chrome from Yandex Browser.
Actually with this article, I want to conduct a small educational program on one of the most popular applications on such a popular smartphone as the Samsung Galaxy S5. The following is about the Camera app, which lets you take photos and videos on your phone.
"Camera" is the application. Yes, it is installed on the phone in the factory setting, but no one bothers using a third-party photo and video application. For example, you can absolutely free to download and install a good app "Camera" from the empire of good Google. But for now, let's focus on the application from the Korean giant, since the majority use this particular application. It is possible that in the future, other articles will appear explaining how to use this or that lotion on the phone. Therefore, stay tuned.
So, in order to bring to life the application for shooting, you need to click on the corresponding icon. The application starts up and we see its interface. Surprisingly, some 10-12 years ago, when digital cameras were just starting to appear, they loaded much longer than this application does (yes, during the time that the camera used to turn on, now a modern phone has time to reboot ). It happened that the plot would already have time to reach the Canadian border, and the camera had not yet fully loaded. The speed of launching the application and its readiness for shooting, the facts are very important, because it even depends on whether you can take a picture of what you wanted or if you don’t have time. However, on the S5 and other flagships from Samsung, there is no such problem. The camera starts almost instantly and is immediately ready for use. Longer, usually, you take out the phone from your pocket, get through the interface to the camera launch button.
Camera application interface.
Camera interface
After the Camera is launched, the application interface becomes visible to the user. The background for it is that, in this moment sees the camera of the device and, in fact, what will be filmed. In some cases, the interface becomes a little blind, it all depends on the displayed background, but, in general, it is quite intelligible.
Let's quickly go over all its main elements. As the story progresses, you can and even need to press the interface elements on your phone to further learn the skills of working with the camera on your phone. By the way, the application always starts in landscape mode, as if hinting to a person that it is necessary to shoot in this position, so that later it would not be excruciatingly painful when you upload a video shot in portrait mode on YouTube. But, at the same time, tips can be flipped depending on the screen orientation. However, you should not forget that in most cases you need to shoot in this position - the phone is located horizontally.
So, in the leftmost part (1) we have a group of settings. In the very top corner, there is a setting for changing the camera. It is with its help that you can switch from the front to the rear camera and vice versa. At the very bottom of the group, there is a "gear" of all the main camera settings. Keep in mind that there are quite a lot of settings, some of them are not compatible with each other, in this case, incompatible settings are inactive and cannot be switched without disabling another, incompatible setting. Such disabled settings differ in appearance from everyone else, they look like "extinct".
Between the camera selection and the general settings, there is room for the most commonly used settings. In total, three settings are placed in this place. I got there the "Selective focus" mode, "Flash mode", as well as "HDR mode". At the request of the user, these three positions can be changed. To do this, just enter the general settings menu (by clicking on the gear) and drag the desired setting to the frequently used settings field. It is advisable to put the most frequently used settings here, so that they are always at hand, and there would be no need to go to the menu for them.
In the middle of the screen, at the very top, an indication of the current shooting mode is displayed (2). At the moment, the main mode, which is called "Auto", is enabled. In general, the automatic mode is perhaps the most convenient and frequently used. Firstly, because there is simply no other alternative (in the Camera, you cannot select manual settings, or aperture or shutter priorities, we still have a phone in our hands, not a camera), and secondly, it works quite tolerably, whatever in the vast majority of cases, take a very good picture. The shooting modes themselves are selected by the corresponding "Mode" button (6). But, we will talk about them separately.
In the very center of the screen is a focus indicator (3) stylized as a "wedge" indicator, which is used to display focus on some reflex cameras. This indicator can move around the screen in full accordance with the desire of the user, which is very, very convenient. The camera will focus on the place in the scene that the user points to with his finger, or rather, simply presses his finger on the screen. The functionality of the archive is convenient and allows you to create very complex scenes where both near, medium and long-range plans meet, and you need to focus only on one of them, highlighting one or another object as a focus. Try tapping on different areas on the screen and see how the camera focuses on them.
Such focusing avoids the classic focusing error when two people are filmed standing on the same line. Conventional cameras focus on the center of the composition and in this case focus on the background, not on the people. As a result, people are blurry and the background is sharp. Of course, some cameras try to understand when a person is mistaken and correct the focus, focusing on face recognition in the frame and focusing on it. But, do not rely entirely on electronics. Try to focus on your own.
In the area located in the upper right corner (4), there is a set of indicators that inform the user about the current settings. So, for example, at the moment it is displayed that the lighting is insufficient and it is worth holding the camera tighter, trying to avoid “shake”, followed by an indicator indicating that a shooting location mark will be written into the photo, and the automatic flash indicator closes the list. In general, different indicators can be displayed here, it all depends on the specific situation.
Under the set of indicators, there are two buttons (5), the top one starts video recording, and the bottom one allows you to take a photo. Displaying two buttons at once on the screen is a very convenient solution, as it allows you to either take a photo or start recording a video with a minimum of movements. By the way, if you start recording a video, you can pause it, and then continue shooting. Well, of course, you can just stop recording. But, when using a pause, you can easily shoot a small movie, with several angles or plans, without any subsequent gluing of individual files on your computer.
And finally, in the very bottom right corner (7), there is a button to go to the camera gallery, where you can see all the photos and videos taken by the camera. After taking another photo or video, its thumbnail image is displayed on this button. By the way, you can also go to the gallery as in a regular application if you install the appropriate shortcut on the phone's desktop.
Settings
As mentioned above, in order to get to the settings menu, you need to press the corresponding "Settings" button in the application, made in the form of a small gear. Keep in mind that there are many settings and they do not fit on one page and the necessary settings may be hidden from view. Try scrolling through the list of settings.
Now, let's look at all the settings that are in the application. In the screenshot above, not all settings are active. Their activity may depend on what other modes or settings are enabled. Active settings are bright, while inactive settings are dim.
Image size
Perhaps the simplest setting is responsible for the photo mode. This menu allows you to select the resolution and size of the photo. The following options are available:
- 5312x2988 (16:9) 16M
- 3984x2988 (4:3) 12M
- 2976x2976 (1:1) 9M
- 3264x2448 (4:3) 8M
- 3264x1836 (16:9) 6M
Where the numbers indicate the size of the future photo in pixels, and in brackets the aspect ratio of the photo. So, for example, the 16:9 format corresponds to the aspect ratio adopted in the FullHD standard, and this means that such a picture will completely occupy the entire area of \u200b\u200bthe modern widescreen screen (however, the S5 phone, too, since it has FullHD resolution). The 4:3 aspect ratio is more suited to the already obsolete "square" screen TVs, and the 1:1 aspect ratio is just a square shot. The numbers with the prefix "M" indicate the number of megapixels involved. There is a general rule here that the larger the size of the photo, the more megapixels involved, the more the photo will take up space on the memory card, but the larger the photo can be printed. And the larger the size, the more it will be possible to enlarge the shot by bringing the desired object closer in the photo.
As a rule, for most situations, the universal version of 5312x2988 is quite enough.
Continuous Shooting
When continuous shooting is activated, the camera will take a series of photos with a minimum pause between them. To start continuous shooting, you need to activate this function and press without releasing the button to take photos. The camera will take one photo after another. In this mode, recording of the resulting images can be forced to the internal memory of the phone, since a large data stream requires a storage device that is appropriate in speed, and the memory card installed in the phone cannot always provide the required recording speed.
Photo stabilization
This setting is very effective when shooting in low light conditions. But, the setting can be disabled when other settings are activated. For my taste, it is better to keep it constantly on, so that if necessary, take a picture without "stirring". After all, you constantly forget that you need to turn on stabilization. There is no harm from this setting, since it is activated only in low light.
Face detection
When enabled, the camera will automatically find faces in the frame and give them priority in focusing and metering. Found faces are circled in yellow. If several faces are detected at once, and if they are at different distances from the camera and illuminated differently, then the machine will try to find a compromise, but as a rule, the closest face to the camera is selected. This feature is useful if you are filming a lot of people. If not, then it can be turned off so as not to confuse focusing algorithms with accidentally detected faces.
ISO AUTO
The setting is responsible for the sensitivity of the matrix used for shooting. You can think of this value as synonymous with film speed, although the values between digital and film values are slightly different. The following options are available in the menu:
In the "Auto" setting mode, the camera independently automatically selects the optimal sensitivity of the matrix. In case of sufficient illumination, the sensitivity decreases, in case of insufficient illumination, it increases.
In general, the lower the sensitivity, the less digital noise, appearing there due to leakage currents of photosensitive elements and the general imperfection of the device. The higher the sensitivity, the more noisy the image will be. But, the longer the shutter speed is used, and it increases with decreasing sensitivity, the more noise there will be in the photograph. Therefore, for each case, you need to catch the very compromise that will provide the least noise in the photo. Or use the "Auto" mode. In my experience, the camera in the S5 is smart enough to adjust the ISO in the optimal way on its own.
Measurement modes
In order for the camera to be able to adjust the exposure accurately, it measures the illumination at several points in the frame. These types of measurements came to us from analog mirror technology, where several physical light sensors were used across the frame and, in order to give space for human creativity, they were combined into groups. It is groups such as a certain atavism that migrated to the settings of a digital camera:
- Center weighted
- Matrix
- Spot metering
In the case of center-weighted metering, exposure is measured with some averaging of the central area of the frame. This option works great if the subject being photographed is located in the center of the frame. But, in difficult conditions, for example, in the case of strong backlight, or large irregularities in lighting, it is better to switch to spot metering, which also measures exposure in the center of the frame, but takes a noticeably smaller area for measurement and averaging.
Well, the most versatile option is matrix metering. It averages the exposure values for the whole frame. However, you shouldn't always use it. In adverse lighting conditions, when there are strong differences in illumination in the frame, you should either use metering in the center of the frame (one of them), or use the spot focus function with your finger. In this case, it is enough to click on the object of interest to us in the frame, and the camera will immediately focus on it and measure the exposure at the focus point.
Click to shoot
Without this function activated, touching a point in the frame causes the lens to focus on the selected subject and meter the exposure. Photographing itself must be carried out by pressing the appropriate button. When the "Press to shoot" function is activated, after focusing by pressing your finger on the screen and metering the exposure, a frame is taken. Thus, you can noticeably speed up shooting by halving the number of button presses.
selective focus
The ability to control focus in a photo after it has been taken is only available on the most advanced devices. And in conventional cameras, one can only dream of this. After all, here all the magic is done with the help of software processing of frames. In the camera in S5, the process of shooting with selective focus is as follows. When the function is on, during shooting, the camera does not take one frame, but several. Frames are made quickly, but anyway, the camera should be held very evenly and motionless, otherwise the desired effect will not work. Then, after shooting, the difference between frames is calculated and the depth of the scene is determined, or rather, the position of each element in the photo in relation to the camera.
As a result of several seconds of work, a file is obtained that stores not only the resulting photo, but also the ability to change the focus, select the foreground, and blur the rest, select the middle ground, and blur the rest. Or make all plans, front, middle and back, equally sharp. In order for the function to work properly, it is necessary that the object or subject being filmed be no more than 50 cm from the camera and no less than 150 cm from the background.
After shooting, focus editing can be carried out. To do this, you just need to enter the gallery, select a photo taken with the selective focus function and enable focus editing. In the upper left corner, the photo has a "Selective focus" icon, you need to click on it. Next, you can select one of the focus options - near, far, or sharpness across the entire scene (panoramic). Interestingly, the photo can be copied to another phone or computer. And carry out the focus editing operation on them, of course, if you have the appropriate software. This is possible because the photo stores all the information about the depth of the scene and all the necessary frames, but the file size of the image itself is larger than that of a simple photo.
Samsung's app is not the only one that has this functionality. For example Google.Camera, has exactly the same functionality, but works a little differently. In Google.Camera, after capturing a base shot, you need to rotate the camera without leaving the subject in view. Thus, by changing the angle of objects, the application determines the depth of each point in the image. Making such a shot successfully is more difficult than using the Samsung application, but as a result, you can choose the focus, firstly, smoothly, and secondly, you can focus on a specific point in the scene.
Video size
Here the name speaks for itself. The S5's camera can shoot video in multiple resolutions. Actually, this setting item is responsible for choosing the resolution. Available:
- UHD 3840x2160 (16:9)
- FullHD 1920x1080 (16:9)
- HD 1280x720 (16:9)
- VGA 640x480 (4:3)
Accordingly, in this menu, the main resolutions available to the user are selected, indicating the resolution standard (UHD, FullHD), as well as the picture format. As you can see, the widescreen picture is already the standard.
Recording mode
For video mode, in addition to the video size, there is one more setting, and it lies in the "Recording Mode" option. The following options are available:
- Normal;
- Restriction for MMS;
- Slow motion (1/2, 1/4, 1/8);
- Rapid movement (x2, x4, x8);
- Smooth movement.
The normal recording mode is nothing out of the ordinary. Video is recorded at 30 frames per second. If you select the option for MMS (does anyone else use this?), the resulting video file size is limited, as well as its resolution, so that all this could be sent via MMS.
Slow motion allows you to shoot video with more frames than 30 frames per second. In 1/8 mode, the frequency is set to 120 frames per second, which is quite enough to shoot some kind of fast process. The resolution is limited by the HDReady standard, which is quite good. But, it should be borne in mind that sound recording in this mode is not conducted.
Fast motion, on the other hand, shoots fewer frames per second to display them as fast-forward frames during playback. Again, there is no sound.
And finally, "Smooth Movement". Under this term is hidden recording in the FullHD standard, but with a resolution of 60 full frames per second. What is it for? It is necessary in order to remove the strobe effect from sudden movements of large objects in the frame. The recorded video looks very presentable and is quite suitable for display on TVs. latest generation. However, this mode is not compatible with some other modes such as image stabilization.
Video stabilization
Setting with a talking name. When enabled, the unit automatically corrects camera shake when shooting handheld. The functionality is useful and does not seem to lead to a deterioration in the quality of the picture.
Sound focus
When shooting video, it is possible to zoom the picture. Moreover, if you shoot in UHD, then the picture quality practically does not deteriorate, but in other modes, the image quality suffers significantly with zoom. So, if this function is enabled, then when the subject is "approached", the built-in microphones also focus on the approaching object. Background sounds are muted, while distant ones, on the contrary, are amplified. The functionality is useful when you shoot something from afar (for example, a speech by a politician), but you want to have not only a good picture, but a clear sound.
Well, here we finally got to one of the most interesting settings items. Effects are used to change the picture right when taking a picture. Most of the effects give a vivid picture when viewing, and when shooting, they act as they were displayed when viewing. The effects are applicable to both photos and videos.
In the filter settings menu, you can select one of the preset filters. But, you can download more. To do this, it is necessary that, firstly, a Samsung account (Samsung ID) is connected to the phone, and secondly, you need to scroll to the end of the list with effects and click on the "Download" button. Further, the user is automatically redirected to Samsung.Apps (Internet connection is required), where all filters for the Samsung camera framework are filtered out. By a strange coincidence, they all have the prefix UCAM.
Fisheye effect
Some filters are free, others are asking for cash. But, even free ones are enough to show your individuality. To the most interesting filters, I would include "Fisheye".
Flash
The flash functionality in the S5 is very interesting. There are several modes - flash off, forced on and automatic flash. The first two are more or less clear, but automatic flash worth considering more closely. Depending on the lighting and the scene, the unit may apply one of the two "flash" strategies. The first strategy, does not include any flash. And it takes a very fast series of photos. You need to hold the phone very firmly and not allow "stirring". Then, inside the phone, all these shots are merged into one, increasing the light across the frame without the increase in noise and blur from long exposures. The strategy is very interesting and allows you to get quite convincing photographs in low light. Of course, it is impossible to shoot without blurring a fast moving object when using such a strategy.
And, here, if there is very little light and a multi-frame "flash" cannot be used, then it is the flash that just turns on, which will illuminate the space in front of the phone. It is not known for certain which guide number the built-in flash has, such information is not available in the specifications for the phone, but you should be aware that it is able to illuminate objects more or less tolerably at a distance of about 2 meters, no more.
Timer
The timer allows you to take a delayed picture. In the setup menu, options from 2 to 10 seconds are available. Of course, when using the timer, the phone must be installed in a tripod (only how?), Or securely fixed. The timer is usually used in two cases. Or to shoot yourself - put the camera on, turned on the timer, ran away, stood in the composition and waited for the photo to be taken. Or, for shooting with a long exposure, for example, at night. Here the timer is used to eliminate the shake effect from pressing the shutter button on the camera.
Rich tones (HDR)
High Dynamic Range photography went mainstream when digital photography became popular. Indeed, thanks to electronic form photography, it became possible to expand the dynamic range of the image and combine very dark and very light parts of the scene in one frame without losing detail. In other words, HDR allows you to show details in the shadows in the frame, while not knocking out the details in the highlights in the photo in pure white.
However, you should not completely trust this mode and you always need to control the result. Since the operation of creating a high dynamic range image is completely under the control of the software, in automatic mode, sometimes fatal artifacts can occur. A vivid example of this is scenes with a large abundance of small details along the border of two zones that differ in illumination, for example, treetops against a bright sky. In this case, clearly visible light halos will form around thin branches in a darker sky. Alas, it will be impossible to fix such a frame. In order to avoid damage to the image, after taking the frame, you must definitely check it for the result, and if such defects are found, then it is better to reshoot the frame without HDR. In older Samsung Camera apps, such as the one found on the Note 2 (generally an amazing phone in terms of camera, battery life, and screen), when shooting in HDR mode, the camera takes two shots, one with the effect applied and the other without. In S5, the camera only takes one picture in HDR mode.
The HDR effect can also be realized without shooting in HDR. There are at least three techniques for this, and only two of them are applicable to the camera in the phone. The first technique, when shooting in 16-bit or more RAW format, allows later, by adjusting the tone in the histogram or by using other tools for dot equalization of illumination in the frame, to even out the illumination. The leveling effect is achieved due to the fact that the camera matrix is able to capture a much greater dynamic range of illumination than a modern display can display on the screen. And by manipulating this stock, it is possible to pull out the details from the shadows and get the details in the highlights, of course, within reasonable limits. But, this technique requires, firstly, support for the RAW format in the camera, which, of course, is not in the S5 (as in other phones), and secondly, specific software and the corresponding skills of the photographer in post-processing photos in RAW .
But the second and third techniques can be used with the S5 as well. Both of them mean post-processing on a computer, or processing directly on the phone, but with the use of third-party software (search Google.Play for applications using HDR keywords, there are a lot of applications). The easiest way is to artificially brighten or darken some areas in a photo taken without HDR. The method is very simple, just took and took a photo, then twisted the twist in the editor and that's it. But, as it is easy, how poorly it works. Yes, you can lighten or darken, but the boundaries of this lightening or darkening are very modest, because in order to take details in the overexposed part of the frame or too dark, they must be there, which usually does not correspond to reality.
Faux HDR in Google.Picasa. When setting the "light alignment" to the middle of the slider, details appear in the shadows on both the pedestal and the elevator, but the effect of color pasteurization (i.e. image defect) also appears there. And the house, in the upper window, did not appear (and there is nowhere for it to come from, there is simply no data for "pulling" in the photo).
Another way that works (and that's how Samsung's HDR app most likely works) is to take multiple photos at different exposures (one brighter, one darker) and then combine them into a single shot. This operation can be done completely manually, using, for example, Adobe Photoshop with the appropriate scripts, or using applications on the phone that will perform this operation automatically. The main problem that arises when creating HDR here will be the possible change of objects in the frame between two shots (the wind blew, a car drove further, etc.), as well as ambiguity (for example, light, low-contrast buildings and a dark sky) in light alignment in different frames.
In my opinion, in most cases, the HDR function in the S5 works out decently. Of course, it does not stretch the frame to the maximum, but it does not introduce too much distortion into the color rendition. In order to feel this effect and fully understand how it works and when it should be applied, and when not, practice is needed. You need to try, look at the results, train. So, based on my experience, for this scene, I would apply not only the HDR effect, but also a fill flash that would highlight the most problematic places in the frame (the near edge of the pedestal and the corner of the elevator door). But, unfortunately, when HDR mode is enabled, the Samsung camera does not allow you to force the flash on, the maximum that can be done is to turn it on automatically or turn it off completely.
Geotagging
When enabled, when taking photos, the camera will add a location tag to each photo. Then, in the appropriate software, the same Google.Picasa or Yandex.Photos, you can view them with reference to the map. The functionality is useful, especially when traveling, and "GPS" positioning does not eat up too much energy, since only the shooting location is determined and it happens very quickly.
The functionality is very convenient for various kinds of travel, when upon arrival home, there is no need to remember where this or that photo was taken. But, linking a photo to a map has back side. In some cases, your privacy may suffer. For example, if you publish a photo with a geotag in the public domain, the location data can turn against you. Therefore, before you publish any photos, you need to be clear about who can access them, and how this information can be used against you.
In complex scenes, when there are unevenly lit areas in the frame, with a large difference in illumination, or when we are trying to shoot against a bright light source, problems may arise due to the inability to determine the exposure in automatic mode. Rather, it is determined, but not at all the one that is required for the picture.
In order to somehow influence the exposure, in the absence of manual settings, an exposure compensation item has been introduced into the Camera settings. When it is called, an interface appears on the screen that allows you to either reduce the exposure, darkening the "photo", or, conversely, increase it and brighten the "photo". The user can both increase and decrease the exposure up to two steps in each direction.
Moreover, this mode, in fact, is the only one that allows you to somehow consciously interfere with the exposure mode (another alternative allows you to only indirectly influence the exposure).
Grid
The mode is incomprehensible to many, but often used by professionals. When the mode is turned on, two horizontal and two vertical lines are displayed on the screen, dividing the frame into 9 parts.
The grid lines are located on the screen for a reason, but taking into account the so-called. golden ratio rules. It is believed that in order for the picture to look the most advantageous, it is necessary to place the main object of the composition at the intersection points of the lines. There are four in total. And when shooting landscapes, you need to try to place the horizon line, not in the middle of the frame, but in accordance with the bottom or top line. All this refers to the psychology of human perception.
Assign volume key
Since the body of the S5 is not that big, there are not so many buttons on it, and it is completely inconvenient to hold it the way it is convenient to hold a real camera, in order to somehow make life easier for the user when taking pictures, this setting. When it is turned on, you can shoot not only by pressing the capture button on the screen, but also by pressing the volume up key. Sometimes it's convenient. Moreover, you can choose what will happen when you click on this button, taking a photo or shooting a video. And as always, there is a subtlety here.
In some movie modes, you can also shoot photos at the same time. It is not always possible to press the desired button on the screen (you can miss), in this case, you can use the volume up button. If the setting is disabled, then the volume buttons are responsible for the zoom (“zoom”) of the camera and zoom in or out of the image.
This setting works in conjunction with Samsung's proprietary S-Voice application. The application is responsible for the voice interface between a person and a phone. With its help, you can answer and make calls using only voice commands, get answers to simple questions, launch applications. S-Voice is Samsung's answer to Siri on the iPhone and Google.Now on Android phones and the Google.Chrome browser. Unfortunately, S-Voice noticeably loses to both, and is usually turned off by completely literate users so as not to overload the device with unnecessary running applications.
Help
By activating this setting, a sparse help system for the Camera is displayed on the screen, most of which is downloaded from the Internet.
UPD: There is a suspicion that in the firmware intended for Russia, the help is not downloaded from the Internet, but is immediately present on the phone.
Reset
When this item is activated, all settings made by the user in the Camera are returned to their original state. It makes sense if someone has tampered with your phone so that you are simply not able to change all the settings to their desired state and it is easier to set up the Camera again.
Modes
In addition to the settings, the camera has another important menu "Modes" (6) right here, you can let your creative imagination, let her open up, and at the same time surprise her friends with the unusual abilities of her camera.
As with effects, in modes, you can download additional modes through the Samsung Apps application store. But there are noticeably fewer modes than effects, perhaps due to the fact that making a mode is more difficult than an effect.
Auto mode
Perhaps the main mode of the camera, most pictures are taken in this mode and the camera independently selects best settings to take a picture. No additional settings or anything.
Snapshot & More Mode
This mode is one of the most difficult shooting modes, as it incorporates several functions at once. In general, the name "Sim. and so on." stands for quite decently, and in the Russian interface it should sound like "Snapshot and additional features". In this mode, the device takes a series of photos very quickly and after shooting, prompts the user to choose what to do with this series. The following options are available:
best photo. In this case, the camera automatically selects best shot and marks it with a special icon. But, the user is free to choose the best of the pictures himself. This can be done either immediately after shooting, or later, in a special Gallery mode called "Studio" (more on this mode below).
best face. If during the shooting, the camera detects that it has been posed, then it makes the "Best face" mode available. This mode makes sense when several people are filmed at once and not in motion, but posing. The ideal option, probably, can be a group shot of a school class or similar in terms of occupancy with people. Subsequently, when processing a photo, you can choose the most successful faces from the captured series and the camera will mount them into a single picture. Useful when someone is not smiling, closing their eyes, or generally grimacing.
The quality of processing very much depends on how tightly the photographer holds the camera and how well the models pose in the frame. In some cases, artifacts around the replaced heads are noticeable. Therefore, take another, ordinary picture, without leaving the cash register, in case of failure, there will at least be something to show.
Photo of movement. In this mode, it is possible to reproduce an object that moves in the frame. There may be several objects. Objects can be added to or removed from the frame. Full scope for creative sports or event photography. The rules are the same - good lighting, avoid blurring or camera shake when shooting.
In the picture, two boys run towards each other. And thanks to this mode, one boy was completely etched out of the frame, and the second was added as many as three pieces. And this is far from the limit. Experiment and it is quite possible that with the help of this mode you will be able to take very interesting photos.
Eraser or motion corrector. Two tools combined in one. They are used both by themselves and in combination with other sub-modes, such as "Panorama Shot" and "Motion Photo". The eraser tool, also known as the motion corrector, allows you to remove an object from the frame that is moving in it. It is necessary in order to shoot some kind of landscape without outsiders, creatures and creatures flickering in the frame. Ideally, of course, it would be possible to clear the area in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral from tourists, but this would require too many shots. Therefore, this submode is more likely to be available for scenes that are not so intense, but simpler scenes, where there are two or three people in the frame, and then they pass so that the background does not overlap throughout the entire shooting.
This effect can be implemented quite easily using standard tools of Adobe Photoshop. It is necessary to take several shots (in theory, their number depends on how quickly the objects move in the frame and how much they cover the background of interest to us). Then, through the built-in scripts, the photos are loaded into one shot, aligned and one of the stacking modes is applied ( detailed description techniques, I propose to find it on the network on your own, there are many stacking modes and they are intended for different purposes).
Panoramic shot. Not to be confused with creating a panorama. Quite an interesting sub-mode that allows you to blur the background and leave a moving object in the frame more or less clear. It is somewhat reminiscent of "wiring" in ordinary photography, but only easier. Electronics does everything for a person.
However, due to the fact that everything is done electronically, you must, firstly, try to hold the camera firmly, avoiding a lot of blurring. Secondly, after shooting, it is possible to edit the photo, change the direction of the software background blur, select specific parts of the image that need to be left clear (this can even be a landscape), or vice versa, remove it from the frame altogether.
By the way, in the photo above, you can see some artifacts introduced by image processing algorithms. Firstly, the left boy's body outline is not very well done, the left shoe is half worn out. The right boy, again, did not quite correctly stroke one of the legs. You can also see areas of the floor that should have been blurred, but they remained clear. Unfortunately, it is not very convenient to fine-tune this effect on a phone; a phone with a stylus and a large screen, for example, a device from the Samsung Galaxy Note series, would be suitable here. Well, or processing on a computer, but, unfortunately, I don’t know in which program I can configure.
By the way, this mode is definitely worth a try when moving out of a car or when smoothly moving the camera following a moving object. Try it.
These were all submodes of the complex and complex mode "Snapshot and other", and then we will consider other, separate modes, some of which are downloaded from the Samsung.Apps website.
Panorama
The Panorama mode is specially designed for taking very long photographs. The mode supports the creation of both vertical and horizontal panoramas. To create, you need to select a starting point and move the phone, trying not to deviate much from the horizontal or vertical in the desired direction, gradually moving the phone (usually the phone turns with the person) describing a circle. You can stop panorama shooting at the desired location.
The phone independently takes photos for the panorama, and independently performs gluing. In general, the work of the gluing algorithms can be assessed as good, the camera copes with difficult areas without any special remarks. But only vertical and horizontal panoramas are supported, and there are many more of them in other photography applications.
It takes experience to create a good panorama. It is not enough just to move the camera back and forth, you need to hold it firmly, do not tilt it in any direction, but turn the camera in a circle with your body. You should not choose plots in which there are many objects of the foreground and background at the same time. In the photo above, the conditions for shooting are not the most favorable. The abundance of small details in the foreground, and shooting part of the panorama against the sun, but in general it is glued together successfully.
Dual camera
The mode works for both video and photography. And it allows you to capture an image in one frame of a photo / video, both from the front and rear cameras. This mode is useful if you want to either tell something when recording a video, or tightly stick yourself into a photograph.
The insert takes the form of a postage stamp with seals, it can move around the screen and change in size. But, you cannot replace it with another type in this mode. Only brand. This mode can also be called two-sided shooting.
Animated shot
Please note that such a travel file is very large, and it seems that it can only be played on the phone itself or on a compatible device. Send by mail, such a photo-instruction is unlikely to succeed due to the large size.
circle shot
A circular shot is just one type of panorama. But, unlike the usual vertical or horizontal panorama, this creates a complete spherical panorama of what is happening around the camera. You need to shoot a lot, or rather move the camera around you, but it doesn’t require much effort, because the camera takes pictures on its own when you aim at the desired point.
The result of the "Circle Shot" mode
In general, the result is more than satisfactory. In the picture above, there are only two problems. The first is an electrical wire that just broke into several pieces, and the second is the doubled roof of the house on the left side of the picture. And so, neither the leaves with tree branches, nor the sky were affected, and the sun did not make a terrible overexposure. Of course, viewing a flat image is not very appropriate, but if you use special software (or watch it on your phone), then viewing such a spherical photo is a pleasure. By the way, please note that the legs of the operator who shot the panorama did not fall into the frame, this is also the merit of the "Circular Shot" mode. And with a little practice, I'm sure that you can take much better shots and completely without errors.
The only thing is that the resulting photo takes more than ten megabytes and it is not possible to just send it by mail or put it on the site.
UPD: By the way, it turned out that in the 360-degree view mode, on the phone, you can not move the picture on the screen with your hand, but move the phone in space, and the picture will display the "reality" photo. It is convenient if you return to the same place and look at what has changed.
UPD2: It was also found that the panorama view mode more or less normally displays the Google+ photo album. An example of the picture above can be seen at this link. However, it seems that it still reduces the quality of the picture. Because on the phone, they look much better.
Retouch
In retouching, it is possible to remove skin defects "on the fly" that can spoil some photos. The program automatically determines those areas, in its opinion, which should be smoothed and performs smoothing, works with "photoshop". You can adjust the effect both before the picture and after it in the "Studio".
Despite all attempts at automation, retouching does not always go smoothly. Some areas are too smooth, and some, on the contrary, are missed. Therefore, it is better to take several shots, including a shot without any effects, so that in case of failure, at least something remains.
Sound and photo
The mode is quite easy to use. When taking a photo, the user has the option to add a small audio clip. It is necessary, usually, in order to somehow comment on your photos. Useful when traveling, so as not to forget what kind of miracle Yudo is in the frame, what it was like in general.
Studio Gallery Mode
In addition to a variety of shooting modes, smartphone users Samsung another surprise awaits. Quite unexpectedly, the standard Gallery on the S5 showed up special treatment"Studio". Finding him is not easy, he hid in the settings of the gallery itself. And in order to get into the Studio, you need to call the Gallery application and click on the settings button. And it is there, already choose the Studio.
The studio is designed for post-processing photos and videos taken on the phone. And it is positioned as a tool for advanced users who are not satisfied with the functionality of the usual Gallery. Here, the advanced is given the choice of the following elements:
- Photo studio;
- With him. etc.;
- Video clip studio;
Not a weak set that most S5 users don't know about as they've never gotten that far into settings. Let's go over the elements of the studio and get acquainted with their functionality in more detail.
Photo studio
This mode is designed for basic photo editing and is standard for most mobile photo editors. It integrates five groups of different photo manipulation tools.
The Adjuster group contains tools such as rotating a photo, cropping a photo, and resizing a photo.
The "Tone" group already has great opportunities for adjusting the tone of a photo. Changes can be applied both to the whole photo at once, and to a selected element. You can change the brightness, contrast, saturation, saturation separately for the primary colors red, green and blue, you can also adjust the temperature of the white balance and shades.
In the "Effects" group, simple visual effects are available, with which you can decorate the photo as you wish. There are also regular filters, such as sepia or grayscale, but there are also more interesting ones, such as streaks of light or stardust (a good imitation of beautiful bokeh). By the way, these effects are not at all the effects that are loaded into the "Effects" setting in the Camera itself.
Tools for editing portraits are collected in the "Portrait" group. Of course, there is such a banality as the elimination of red eyes. But, there is something interesting, for example, selective highlighting of the face, it is convenient when the lighting is complex and the face turned out to be in shadow. "Blemish Correction" allows you to "clean up" not quite perfect skin on the face, and "Defocus" will make the background around the face blurry. Please note that these functions only work with faces recognized in photographs.
And, here, the most serious tools are concentrated in the "Decorate" group. Here you can stick a sticker to the picture, add a caption, attach a frame, draw something on the photo, or create a small collage with another photo.
In general, in a photo studio, you can work on photography to your heart's content. Not photoshop of course, but quite enough for everyday improvement.
As the name suggests, Collage Studio lets you create collages from multiple photos. Many have probably seen how iPhone users periodically post on Facebook not a few photos, but one consisting of several. Usually the photos are also connected in an unusual way. It turns out and saving photos and generally beautiful. But on S5 you can do no worse.
It is enough to select several photos, and then adjust the settings as desired. You can change the aspect ratio of photos, choose from several layout layouts, adjust the thickness and roundness of borders, and choose the right background. And your own collage is ready!
Of course, I am not a big fan of creating collages from photos, but in my non-professional opinion, the result is quite worthy. And, if you do not get carried away by publishing a huge number of collages, then the stock of templates built into the program will last for a long time. And there, you see, they will add the ability to use arbitrary templates and backgrounds.
With him. etc.
This setting allows you to edit photos taken in Snapshot and Advanced mode. Let me remind you that in this mode the camera takes several pictures very quickly, which are then combined into one. And thanks to the many shots of the same scene, you can apply different effects to them. But, these effects can be applied not only immediately after photographing, but also at any time after.
Photos "Shooting, etc." can be edited both from the regular gallery by clicking on the special icon on the photo, and through the Studio. Here, however, there is a slight relief, the system immediately filters only those photos that can be edited. The editing itself is exactly the same as that available from other parts of the Camera.
Video clip studio
Functionality, obviously not rich. But thanks for that too.
And, finally, it would seem the most powerful weapon available on the phone in the standard package. But, alas, editing tools are just an ordinary primitive video editor that only allows you to trim the beginning and end of a video clip shot by the phone itself.
There are not even effects here, let alone non-linear video editing tools. But, sometimes such tools are in place.
Summing up
The developers of the S5 phone made a very good photo and video camera that can take excellent pictures and record good videos. But, with the help of additional digital processing, you can raise the quality of the photo to a height unattainable to the village. Unfortunately, information about what a powerful tool the user has is hidden from him. Does not come with phone detailed instructions to the phone and its individual components. And even the instruction downloaded from the official site is not so intelligible and understandable that it does not allow the consumer to use his phone at 100%.
But, in capable hands, coupled with a bright and trained head, the Samsung Galaxy S5's camera is capable of doing much more than just auto mode can give. And in this skillful hands and head, the Camera and Studio application helps, which not only work when shooting and processing photos, but also allow you to achieve effects that are either completely inaccessible when shooting with a regular camera, or accessible by very, very difficult actions.
Me, in my separate digital camera, equipped with excellent optics, a high-quality photomatrix and convenient controls, there is always a lack of additional digital processing. Like the ones on my phone. And the quality of the resulting photos, under normal conditions, is almost indistinguishable on the camera, on the phone. And the more perfect phones become, the less and less this difference will be. I already shoot with a camera only when I need guaranteed excellent shooting results, and most of the photos are taken with a smartphone.
So, let's hope that progress will not stand still and gradually, the photo in the phone will play less and less than the photo in the camera. Of course, the developers of the Samsung Camera application still have room to strive and where to grow. Fortunately, the platform is open and even third-party developers can develop their own modules for the Samsung Camera.
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