[phlsa]

In the “just point at something and press the shutter” scenario, phones have been just as good (and in some cases better) than dedicated cameras for a while.

For me, the main reasons for using a dedicated camera are ergonomics and creative control. I rarely hold the device at eye level when taking a photo, since it makes for more interesting compositions. Somehow my fingers are always in the wrong position when I want to press the shutter button. And once you try to adjust some settings manually in a dedicated app like Halide, it gets extra fumbly and (to me) just takes all the fun out of it.

The big benefit of the phone is that it’s always with me of course. I’m contemplating the purchase of a Ricoh GR, which is a great camera that is just as pocketable as a phone but with much better ergonomics.

[bradknowles]

In contrast, I recently tried Halide on my older iPhone 13 Pro Max. Just taking some simple pictures here around the house of our cats, our furniture, my own feet, etc... and comparing those to pictures taken with the built-in iPhone camera app. Halide repeatedly gave me worse quality pictures with more noise, and also larger in size.

I'm really struggling to find the benefit of something like Halide. Can anyone recommend tutorials on how to make the best of a program like this, and actually demonstrate value over the built-in iPhone app? I've tried the company tutorials, and they didn't cover anything I didn't already know about photography.

[bayindirh]

iPhone has an impressive camera (set) for its size, and puts out nice images, yet it still fails to capture the dynamic range of an old DSLR in many cases.

The difference will be much more noticeable when compared to a latest generation full-frame sensors (Sony A7, Nikon Z, Canon R families), both in dynamic range, and color accuracy.

While I'll not be carrying a full frame mirrorless everywhere, it's evident that both devices will have its place.

To close, I'll be probably carrying a iPhone 15 or 16 in my pocket next. Knowing what I'm going to get is a nice plus.

[vlovich123]

Aren’t there small wireless accessories to trigger the shutter?

[lostlogin]

Apple would say ‘Apple Watch’, with a real camera it gets called a ‘remote shutter release’ or similar based on a quick search.

[phlsa]

Yes, there's stuff like this: https://shop.fjorden.co No idea how well it works in practice, but it looks like it could alleviate some of the ergonomics issues.

[lloeki]

I use wired earbuds and press the volume button.

[lostlogin]

This sounds like something from Get Smart.