I haven’t posted many product related articles trying to keep posts to photography and image related items, but I am going to be keeping an eye on images I create with the iphone4. I recently took the jump and got an iphone4 to keep on the fast moving pace of information that is becoming more and more necessary in running any type of business. The smart phone has come in handy for keeping all things related to photography and my photography business in one easy to access spot which can be as close as my pocket at any given time.
I wanted to touch quickly on the recent ios update for the iphone, going from 4.0 to 4.1 seemed like no big deal software updates are common place in the computer world. Not knowing exactly what the update would provide other than a better working phone (I hoped) I was quite surprised to find a hdr function added to the camera. In camera hdr you say on an phone? Yep that’s what is now available. A quick search of the feature told me when turned on will automatically have the camera take 2 quick shots at plus & minus exposures for hdr inspired images
The function as I have seen so far in just a few test shots is subtle but does provide different exposures of the same shot. Obviously this doesn’t work on moving targets as with any image needing blending of multiple exposures but for stationary subjects it’s looks to be a feature that will be fun to experiment with. I will be posting shots from the iphone4 in the future along with more of my real world tests, results and opinions.
Sorry for the non-nature subject but I was out as the sun was going down and thought it would be a good time to make test shot using the new hdr function. Not the best place for a photo but I happened to be in an industrial park area at just the time I needed to take a shot so I looked for something in the foreground as I faced the sunset. Here is my first test with the hdr turned on. One press of the shutter release created the first 2 images, the third is a simple manual blend in photoshop for a final result.
©Brad Mangas - iphone4 hdr on
©Brad Mangas - iphone4 hdr on
©Brad Mangas - iphone4 hdr blend
As you can see in this test there is a good deal of exposure range from the first to second shot, I would guess near 2 stops of difference. The final image blend captures the exposure from both fairly nicely. My focus and exposure point was in the darker foreground area and produced a f2.8 @ 1/60th of a second image.
My first impression is the new hdr function on the iphone4 works. Now more real world testing out in nature and probably closeup shots will tell just how well. I am adding an “iphone photography” subcategory to the “daily photography” section of the blog to keep all the related information easily accessible. I will be exploring some of the photography apps available and see if I can settle on 1 or 2 that suit my needs maybe to be able to process shots in camera or to that effect. As I test them out I will share my results here. If you have experience with some photography apps for the iphone feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you think.
