burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Yep!

It’s hard to lie with a smartphone camera.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Hi Scoundrel, and welcome to UHH.
Smartphones are becoming increasingly popular and as a result, more and more capable. Most of them shoot in both JPEG and RAW and it seems like every new edition has more controls. Additionally there are more and more apps one can download and install that have all sorts of controls for you cellphone camera. If holding the cellphone is cumbersome for shooting photos, you can buy hand grips for your phone that make it more “camera-like” to hold. Of course your folding pocket phone probably won’t work with a grip.

Cellphone camera technology is rapidly developing and the quality of the images is quite amazing. While a professional or serious amateur photographer likely won’t use a smartphone as their camera for serious photography work, most casual photographers are likely to use their smartphones frequently. I have two Sony cameras, but most of the time I use my iPhone 13 Pro Max. I like what it does and how it performs, but then, I’m neither a pro or serious amateur. I enjoy photography and take photos for my personal use. I don’t sell photos or participate in photo contests, so for what I do, the iPhone camera works well for me. As for equipment, I have a light tripod with an cellphone mount on it, and a remote shutter release. I also have an Apple watch that has a shutter release feature on it in case I forget the other remote. My whole “kit” is small and portable without a lot of bulk or weight. You may want to invest in a newer cellphone if you’re at all serious about using a phone as your camera.

And yes, there is the Smartphone Photography section here. It’s gaining in popularity and it’s a great forum to see what others have posted. You’ll get a good idea of what smartphone cameras can do. My personal opinion is that they’re good for a lot more than just grabbing a few snaps at a birthday party with the kids or grandkids. Visit us at that forum and you may be surprised at what you see. Also, there is a lot of knowledge on that forum. Welcome, and see you there.

MarkSki

I’ll just say “emphatically, yes!” My wife and I use our iPhone cameras far more than our Olympus mirrorless cameras and get spectacular results. The latest iPhone cameras are extraordinary. You can check the features for yourself, but they do have all the adjustments you ask about.

MJPerini

I really do not understand why we continue to debate this.
Camera phones are amazingly good, and undeniably useful. They are cameras like any other, in the sense that every camera has a set of features that define the kinds of things it is best at.
We judge cameras by the quality of the pictures they help us make. It is up to us to choose the right tool for the job.
The smart Phone camera is a category of camera that did not exist a few years ago.
It is the first camera to be with us 24/7 .....if it is not in your pocket, it is on your nightstand. That alone has enabled millions of treasured pictures because it was THERE. It has made other photography Better by being a location scout, a documentor of lighting or camera setups and a note taker.
If you haven't taken some really good pictures with a phone, it is not the phone's fault.
Use whatever camera (s) is most appropriate for the work you do, and let your pictures speak for themselves.

Physlab Loc: Portland, OR

Scoundrel,

While I use a mirrorless camera for serious photography, I recently purchased a few items so I am able to pursue Infrared (IR) photography with an iPhone. The items are:

1. A smartphone bracket to hold the phone securely to a tripod or monopod. From my minimum experience, this may not be required as I am able to capture sharp images handheld.
2. A "c-clamp" device from Moment that holds the 720 nm filter securely to an iPhone 15 Pro. Works great.
3. A 720 nm filter from Hoya.

I don't anticipate I will have acceptable images to share until the sun shines on Oregon sometime this spring. (g)

Lowell

SAVH Loc: La Jolla, CA

This all seems like a tempest in a teapot. It is almost like school children arguing about who loves Taylor Swift more. I have a Nikon D-850 and the Z-8 and have been taking pictures for over 65 years. Of course, when I intentionally go out to take photos, I use my current best cameras. However, I don't always have one with me. Seriously, it is not rational to haul around several pounds of photo gear in every day-to-day situation. Frequently, especially in family gatherings or surprise occasions when a particularly good photo opportunity arises, I will use my cellphone and be very happy to have captured the moment. I find now with the new cellphone cameras, I can get photos good enough to include in the calendars I share with family and friends. One uses the best tool available at the time. These absolute arguments insisting it has to be one or the other are not really meaningful, to me.
Scotty

OldCADuser Loc: Irvine, CA

Note that my wife uses her cell phone as her only camera (and she used to be a real camera bug back in high school and before the advent of smartphones), but since she has an Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max, it actually takes pretty good pictures with it's three dedicated lens, one normal, one wide-angle and one 3X telephoto.

Now as for myself, I have an Apple iPhone 11 Pro and it takes fairly good pictures, but I generally only take incidental shots, mostly strictly for convenience. The vast majority of the time, I stick to my Sony a6500. However, there is one thing that I do use my cell phone camera for.

Before I went mirrorless, I was using a Sony A65 DSLR. One of the features that I liked was that this camera was equipped with GPS and it would geo-tag the images so that I could always identify exactly where I was if and when that became an issue. However, when I switch to the Sony mirrorless camera (I'm on my third) I lost the GPS feature, so what I do now is that if I'm shooting a sequence and I know that the exact location may be important later on, I'll grab my cellphone and take a quick shot, which will get archived with my regular images, knowing that I can always query that particular image for the location data of the shoot since cellphone images will geo-tagged with the GPS coordinates.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

I challenge your introduction, the idea that the UHH community is using their cell phones only in an emergency. I see Linda has already posted a link to the Cell Photo Photography subsection.

Regarding technique, I'm editing a bunch of iPhone pics from yesterday. A few thoughts from this work and prior attempts at phone-only:

1, Use selective focus. I don't know how to add more emphasis. You get better images when you 'tell' the cell phone (and your better cameras too) where exactly to focus. Just compose your image, finger-peck the phone's view screen on the point to focus, let the camera focus there and capture the image.

2, Capture a few versions. At least always take two versions, probably more, of anything that allows this option. Just pick the best and delete the rest during image review.

3, Edit your images. I know, this is kind of the opposite of 'cell phone photography'. But, if you got the image in good / sharp focus and well composed, you still can add some useful 'polish' to the final result with cropping or noise reduction or sharpening or spot healing or more contrast or WB adjustment, all things you should be doing to your SOOC JPEGs as well. I transfer my phone JPEGs to Adobe Lightroom, edit and Export the finished results for sharing.

Ednsb Loc: Santa Barbara

Because of back and neck issues I have taken more iPhone images ever in the last year. I have an iPhone 14 Pro, shoot entirely in raw and ProRaw. What has amazed me is some of the apps like reeheld and Spectre allow you to take handheld long exposures up to 30 seconds. Other apps let you take them for as long as you want on a tripod. All of this without filters! I just downloaded a new app which allows me to shoot 3D images.. While it isn’t as good as my full frame mirrorless Canon it does things easier like shooting in the rain or shooting images in a museum where you aren’t allowed a tripod.. It is truly amazing what can be done now.

joer Loc: Colorado/Illinois

Google a review of the Sony Experia 1 V. I use it for all my non telephoto work.
I doubt many here use it or even know about it.

Miker999

I only use my phone camera for emergencies and therefore I don't care about any of the features. However, Its the only camera my wife uses. I have to say that the phone cameras have come a long way in a short amount of time.
I also find my camera easier for me to hold than my phone.

Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

CHG, It looks like we are in a Violent Agreement on all three of your points!
Except, for your point number three, I would insert Topaz Photo AI in place of Adobe Lightroom, sigh.
But that is close enough for the UHH Forum, right?.. Right CHG!?. . .Awwww come on . . CHG
Smile,
JimmyT Sends

Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

The review does look good, but I have to put some miles on my iPhone 14 Pro Max first.
Smile,
JimmyT Sends

https://www.wired.com/review/sony-xperia-1-v/

mffox Loc: Avon, CT

I cellphone is iPhone 6, certainly not an advanced camera phone. I find myself using it more frequently, for checking out shots before shooting from my camera, doing the unusual (mirror images from puddles, etc.). I'm also getting old enough to think twice about traveling any distance for a landscape or cityscape shoot.

keywest305 Loc: Baltimore Md.

So I have the Samsung s22 ultra. 128 megapixels and a 10x zoom. Great pics for on the fly or just at a party or gathering to share on the web. I shoot the Nikon Z9 and love to do sports and wildlife. No, my phone has no chance for action. It does have all manual settings if you prefer.