New cell phone vs point and shoot camera: Greetings all. I am trying to figure out if I want to spend the money on have a new cellphone with a better camera (currently have a 3 year...

Nisolow

Greetings all. I am trying to figure out if I want to spend the money on have a new cellphone with a better camera (currently have a 3 year old LG G3 and am not very happy with the camera but the smartphone is fine) vs getting a decent compact camera. I have a dslr which I am very happy with but want something small that I can run with. Any thoughts about photo quality in a compact camera vs smartphone? Also, any thoughts on the best android smartphone camera? I am interested in the Samsung Galaxy s7. I have read lots of reviews and still am undecided. I realize that the best camera is the one that you actually have with you and that would likely be the smartphone camera if it is half way decent. My lg G3 photos are mediocre at best.

Kuzano

I just explored the LG V20. 16mp camera, Wide angle two lens system on the front camera. Pretty amazing.... for a Cell Phone. But, the reviews are mixed. I think the Cell phone solution need a couple more generations before I would consider it my "Concealed Carry All Time" camera.

Beyond that, I can't image personally ever considering any cell phone for high quality image work. Too many years with "REAL" camera's... since the Sixties. The Smart Phone aspect is of no interest to me at all.

cwp3420

Nisolow wrote:

Greetings all. I am trying to figure out if I wa... (show quote)

I currently carry the Samsung S7 Edge. It has an awesome camera which I can use to take RAW photos with. I have been very pleased with it, and can paste some pretty impressive photos on social media if I want to. However, it doesn't come close to my Fujifilm XT-1 for photo quality under low light conditions and such. My wife uses one also, and when we went to Israel in May she took some photos with it to upload to Facebook to show family at home what we were seeing, whereas I shot all my photos with the Fuji camera. The results at home with both viewed on a large 27" monitor shows that while the phone took pretty good photos, they couldn't compare with an actual camera. However, I don't carry my camera all the time, and having the cell phone camera allows me to get shots I otherwise would miss.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Galaxy S7? Isn't that illegal due to spontaneous combustion? (Oops, no, that was the NOTE 7...)

Get the iPhone 7 Plus. Dual cameras (wide angle and "tele" lenses), and the best crop of photography applications on the planet.

Or, go with a Micro Four Thirds mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. You can use small pancake lenses or fully pro fast zooms. Both small travel bodies and fully capable pro-level bodies are available, so you can build a very flexible system.

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Do as you wish

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

Nisolow wrote:

Greetings all. I am trying to figure out if I wa... (show quote)

I find that the S7 is a very good camera for what it is. Its main drawbacks are only one focal length, only one aperture, and slight haloing of high contrast edges. It can shoot RAW which can help in post processing. Very little shutter lag. The last I read on DXO, it was rated as the best cellphone camera by a slight margin. I would load it with the 200 mb chip that Samsung makes so one doesn't run out of room by shooting RAW.

johneccles Loc: Leyland UK

I use and LG G3 and an LG G2 as a back up camera and consider the images they produce are very high quality.
The main drawback with using a smartphone camera is using them in bright light when you cannot see the screen and, in my case getting my finger over the lens.
I don't know why you are disappointed with your LG G3 images, but I do suspect the LG camera app which is OK at best, I use A Better Camera and MX Camera and Google Camera which all produce excellent results, ABC and MX are may favourites, so why not give them try before buying a P&S.

I will attach a photograph taken earlier this year with my LG and ABC camera app which will show you how good the images can be.
I recommend you download the photo and zoom in to view it.

(Download)

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

I know several journalist that use the iPhone 7s for spontaneous shots as well as Facebook live interviews. I've quit carrying my pocket camera favoring the iPhone 7s. These are snapshots and mostly family things. My DSLR use is for serious photography and I usually have one handy.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Nisolow wrote:

Greetings all. I am trying to figure out if I wa... (show quote)

I prefer a camera for photography, but cell phones can take very good pictures. You have to decide if you want to carry one device or two. I'm now using an Olympus Tough TG 860 as my compact /pocket camera. It has no viewfinder, and it doesn't shoot raw, but it does the job.

02Nomad Loc: Catonsville, MD

There is currently an ad on TV for the Motorola MotoZ Droid which has an attachment with a Hasselblad zoom. I have no idea how that would affect quality, but I doubt that Hasselblad would put their name on something that wasn't high quality.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I've been overlooking what my "old" Samsung Galaxy S5 will do. Yes it can take good images. But it does things that a point and shoot can't. Recently I've added Lightroom to my phone with it's rapidly expanding feature set. I can also share photos quickly with a few of my favorite people in a wide variety of ways. My pocket cameras can do none of that.

One of the photography pundits recently did a YouTube episode about why the point-n-shoot market was declining so rapidly. He explained that a P&S can have a better lens and sensor, but the software typically sucks in comparison. Then he concluded by demonstrating the complex series of steps needed to do anything with your photos that are "buried" on an SD card in the camera.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

02Nomad wrote:

There is currently an ad on TV for the Motorola MotoZ Droid which has an attachment with a Hasselblad zoom. I have no idea how that would affect quality, but I doubt that Hasselblad would put their name on something that wasn't high quality.

Funny, but I just saw that this morning.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

02Nomad wrote:

There is currently an ad on TV for the Motorola MotoZ Droid which has an attachment with a Hasselblad zoom. I have no idea how that would affect quality, but I doubt that Hasselblad would put their name on something that wasn't high quality.

Both Sony and Olympus have a similar product. Essentially it is a self contained camera with quality lens but no viewfinder or screen. It uses a phone for that. A friend has one of the Sonys and does well with it. It succeeds at combining the optics and sensor of a RX100 with the software and sharing features of his phone.

Nisolow

Thanks for all the comments! I will try a different camera app to see if that helps my LG G3. I use Snapseed that is pretty good for in phone processing. My images just pale in comparison to my wife's iPhone 6 plus... I don't want a mirrorless camera because of the suze; my dslr is fine for that need. I think that I will likely pick up a Samsung s7 on black Friday and try to remember to keep the lens clean... Thanks again.

Camera buyer Loc: Las Vegas

I have the Sony QX-100 camera, a Sony 100, and an iPhone 6sPlus. I love having the iPhone with me all the time and the immediacy of sharing my images. The QX-100 is a great device which is pocketable with Zeiss optics and a 3 to 1 zoom. It uses the phone as a viewfinder and allows instant transfer to email. It also stores the images on a mini SD card which can then be read by your computer. I also use some of the great Apps available like "Manual" which allow you to change ISO's and shutter speeds. I use full frame Canon SLR's and Sony a6000 and an NEX-7 for more serious work. The iPhone is a great tool for capturing life on the go. On my Real Cameras, I shoot everything in RAW.