Well, not sure why I start this thread and not sure why I am tempted by the iphone 12. Maybe just because my iphone 6 plus is already 5 years old and I'm tired of its 16G memory.
Just trying to see what people (especially people here take camera/photography as a hobby) feel how useful their iphone (or any phone) camera is.
I quit using my iphone 6 camera after one year mainly because my phone storage space has been full since then and I'm too lazy to clear my pictures on the phone. Also, the images taken by my phone do not look too good when viewed on my computer screen (even though I am the only one who would do so while everyone else just enjoy viewing them on their phone screen). Things are much uglier if the light is low when the picture is taken, especially if my subject is moving (which is the case most of the time). Many times the view angle of the wide lens is also a problem that I wish I could have a different perspective. It also does not feel very comfortable when use the phone as a camera for a long time and sometimes without EVF it could be hard to see your subject while composing.
So what has changed since iphone 6? I have an RX100, a retired A6000 and a newly acquired A6600 with 30f1.4, 501.8, 18-135 and 12 f2. In what situations I would need the iphone camera instead of my other equipment (other than when I choose not to bring the camera)?
A 13 mm wide angle lens. That's nice and something I always want in many occasions. No matter if I pick my RX100 to be as light as possible, or travel with A6600 and one or two lens, I usually could not get that focal length (the 12 mm f2 lens stays at home most of the time). When I need this angle of view, I'm most likely dealing with static subject so the night mode would be helpful too.
A 52 mm or 65 mm normal lens. That's nice too but maybe not as useful as if it is a 100 mm lens. And I guess my RX100 can beat it if I am willing to also take some long exposures or multiframe stacking for low light situations. The catch is do you feel the iphone provide you the level of convenience (like you do not need to do post processing, you do not need to bring tripod, you do not even need to remember to bring your camera) that you think is really worth it and could deliver some end result that you'll not regret that you did not use your dedicated camera?
Water proof. That may be really useful? I am not going to bring my phone to the pool or taking pictures when it's pouring. I also don't want to invest on a very clumsy underwater case. Will I (you) do that with the iphone? Anyone enjoyed using their phone as their main water activity camera?
Night mode. The sample images I saw from the website look very nice, at least for the size of image they post on line. I guess it is limited to static subject so I still need my camera and fast lens when dealing with moving subject. But could be handy when you need to take a snap indoors or at night etc.. Anyone feel it is really better than even a APSC camera for low light situation (without using tripod of course).
Portrait mode. Do pictures taken in this mode look realistic most of the time? DOF control is one main reason for a fast lens and large sensor and is nowadays phone camera good enough to simulate its effect in most of the cases?
A bright and contrasty screen that you would never have issue viewing under the sun?
How many of you think the phone camera is a good supplement to your photography tools and plan to use it for certain situations other than something you only think about to use when there is really no other tools available?
How many of you think it is worth it to go for the higher end camera module/feature when shopping for a phone that's originally intended as a communication tool?
