Best camera phone for a photographer, and why?

November 8, 2005 10:59 AM

Phone photographers. Lend me your ears, and your answers. Who/what is the best?

My (old, old, god how old) phone is dying. I'm looking to get a cameraphone, which I'm looking to use in a photo documentary project I'm working on (very large dSLR/smaller portables are not practical (or permitted) for what/where I want to be, so it has to be a cameraphone, unfortunately).

I know all the basics, but what cameraphones, if any, do you love, and why? In terms of noise, warmth/coolness, sharpness, speed, versatility, price, etc. I've poked around, but I wanted to hear the opinions of a community I trust. What questions do I need to make sure to ask when I go to get a new phone? Do they all automatically email them somewhere, for example?

Two considerations: I have Veriz*n wireless in NYC and not a ton of cash.

posted by nevercalm to Technology (15 answers total)

This question immediately made me think of: professional photographer Robert Clark is travelling around America with his Sony Ericsson S710a. A gimmicky promotion thing, but the photos look unbelievably good given that it's a camera-phone.

Unless you are under contract with Verizon, you might consider transfer your number to another carrier to get a good phone. I am Verizon, and all my phone choices routinely suck.
posted by misterbrandt at 11:24 AM on November 8, 2005

Verizon is the worst carrier for photos, as they don;t allow you to remove your pictures from the phone directly - you have to go through their crappy photo service and pay $$$. Verizon has the best nationwide network, but the most restrictive policies and the worst selection of phones. If youre going to be taking a lot of pictures, consider switching carriers. I used to have a Motorola v710 with Verizon, and while the phone was great, the camera in it was the worst ever.

I currently have an Audiovox SMT 5600 from Cingular - The picture quality is pretty decent, and the video it takes is excellent for a cameraphone - plus I have a 1 gig SD card in it.

For more info on cameraphones try CNET.
posted by gregariousrecluse at 11:26 AM on November 8, 2005

I would say opt for the most megapixels you can (about 2 is cutting edge right now and you probably have to buy an unlocked european model to get it). Keep in mind these are like digital cameras from 1999, so the quality isn't very high due to the tiny camera components (only Sony offers a real CCD if I remember correctly, and it's still tiny). Expect to pay about $400 for a kickass cameraphone.

As for uploading, I just email mine out to flickr, using t-mobile's multimedia messaging that is built into my phone plan.

The best thing to do once you get a cameraphone is to experiment with it. Even if it takes crappy photos, always having a camera around is great and you'll find you get a lot out of looking at old shots, even if they're blurry. lack detail, or have exposure problems.
posted by mathowie at 11:28 AM on November 8, 2005

As gregariousrecluse notes, Verizon has lots of charges for accessing your photos through their service. The only other options are to buy a ridiculously over-priced phone>usb cable ($20+) or simply send them as 'pix messages' to flickr. I've got unlimited pix/txt so I just punt them all off to flickr and edit/tag them after the fact.

From what I've seen, all the Verizon phones do indeed suck. My girlfriend and I have those horrible LG 6100's and the pictures are just ridiculous shit. They're OK as little thumbnails and for the spontaneous factor alone - but you couldn't seriously hinge a project of any scale on them.
posted by prostyle at 11:55 AM on November 8, 2005

I've got an LG VX8100 with 1.3 megapixel camera. The camera is about average, it also plays MP3s, and has a miniSD card slot. I'm really happy with it. You really do need to get a storage card though, otherwise you're tied to Verizons silly photo services. Oh, and I second the Flickr plug.
posted by blue_beetle at 12:30 PM on November 8, 2005

if you get a cable (about $10) for your Verizon phone (I have a Samsung a670) you can get pictures off it for free. As well as put ringtones/etc on for free. No charges what so ever.
posted by devilsbrigade at 12:33 PM on November 8, 2005

If smaller portables are not practical (or permitted), how do you know your cameraphone will be allowed? For example, I know of certain countries where your phone would be confiscated for the duration of your trip.

A friend had an experience where, although he was allowed to bring a small digital camera into the country, each and every of his pictures was reviewed before he was allowed to leave the country.

But back to your question -- I'd agree with everyone else that your main concern is megapixels... the more the better the quality. I was actually impressed with misterbrandt's link to the Robert Clark photographs -- the quality was pretty good, but note that when you download them to your desktop, they only are acceptable quality in smaller sizes (not full screen).

I use Sprint and have the option of using the Sprint online photo site, or I can email them to a flickr or textamerica site.
I'm assuming you'll get some service plan with unlimited online access, so cost won't be much of an issue. However, beware that, at least on Sprint and on the phone I had, it was a tedious process that involved sending each picture individually and took at least a minute per picture.

I guess my best suggestion might be to browse around a phone photo blogging site like TextAmerica and if you find someone's photos that you like as far as quality goes, maybe just drop them an email to see which phone they are using.
posted by jerryg99 at 12:39 PM on November 8, 2005

Haven't used it, but the Samsung SCH-a970 from Verizon Wireless has a 2 megapixel camera with optical zoom. A bit pricey though at $299 (online) with a 2 year contract. If you've been with verizon for a while thought, you could probably get their "New Every Two" deal and get an extra $100 off.
posted by gregchttm at 12:48 PM on November 8, 2005

I've got access to pretty much every phone on the (European) market and the Sony Ericsson's consistently have the best cameras. The K750i, for example, is currently sporting 2 megapixels and is actually not bad for a cameraphone - probably equivalent to a £50/£60 digital camera.

But really, no cameraphone is designed for serious documentary work: you'll have to take an awful lot of snaps to get anything worth publishing. They're also frustratingly slow to save files to the memory so there's a 2/3 second gap between shots and shutter lag is terrible on most. I'm confused as to why you can take a cameraphone but not a miniature digital camera; some of the Canon IXUS range are actually smaller (and cheaper!) than a lot of cameraphones.
posted by blag at 1:57 PM on November 8, 2005

Response by poster: Keep the answers coming, please...I've gotten a lot of great info here already...CNET, especially. I'd been there for news, but had never really delved into all the product evaluations. (Yeah yeah, I know, wow, gee, teh internets). So thanks.

I'm looking to use this phone as only a part of a larger project. I'm often in "project related" situations where I'd love to snap a quick picture or two, but would be regarded with suspicion (and likely fired) if I hauled out my Canon 20D and a $1k lens. I know from experience that cameraphones (and little point/shoots) in this situation are generally disregarded whereas SLRs are regarded with high interest by both staff and security.

Blag: in my copious ignorance about cameraphones (and in my eagerness to get a new phone which would actually take a charge and not shut off spontaneously multiple times a day), I'm embarassed to admit that I just presumed they were in the 4-5 megapixel range. After reading the first few answers, I started poking around for a smaller digital camera, and was surprised at how good they've become since the last time I bought one - 5+ yrs? - I was amazed that I could put 7 megapixels in my pocket. I'm very satisfied with my dSLRs, and haven't really paid attention to the point/shoot market. I am now, though....
posted by nevercalm at 3:39 PM on November 8, 2005

I've not seen a better camera on a phone than the Sony Ericsson K750i/W800. They're the same hardware, but if you get one, get the W800, because it comes with a 512mb memory card.
posted by armoured-ant at 4:18 PM on November 8, 2005

Phone cameras may be regarded with less suspicion (sometimes, a camera is still a camera), but they're awful clumsy as far as I've seen. They usually aren't very wide, right? And if a long exposure is required, and the phone will obey and do a 1/15 shot, bracing them is difficult because of how they're shaped.

What about a Coolpix 880 (eBaying at abou $120), with the corded remote attachment? Total will be around $200, but it's 3.3 MP, better image handling, custom settings.. 38mm-115mm, and you can operate the zoom with the remote, and set it up for interval shots (have the camera clicking away inside a backpack, set it down, pick it up). More $ than a phone, but just a thought.
posted by Jack Karaoke at 4:30 PM on November 8, 2005

SE K750/W800 and Nokia N90 are generally considered to be the top cameraphones, although they are GSM and I don't think will work on Verizon's CDMA network. Mobile Burn did a shoot-out between the two phones and gave the K750 the nod.
posted by kaefer at 6:01 PM on November 8, 2005

No one has addressed the quietness issue but I can say that my Nokia 6600 is completely silent if the phone is in silent mode. Otherwise, it makes a noise like a shutter.
posted by mmascolino at 7:18 PM on November 8, 2005

If you decide to go down the P&S route, this thread has a ton of recommendations.
posted by blag at 3:47 AM on November 9, 2005