New for the holiday season, Apple is offering some bundles for the photographer and videographer. The iPhones have a great camera, as demonstrated by the Shot on iPhone 6 campaign and Apple is certainly looking to capitalize on these capabilities. With these bundles, they are making it easier for a hobbyist or a professional to get started with accessories.
The Flickr iOS app has been update with support for 3D Touch on the latest iPhones. You can now upload a photo, view your feed, check notifications or carry out a Spotlight search right from the Home screen. Spotlight lets you search for albums, groups or recently-viewed photos.
The app also has a handy new 3D Touch feature within the app for deciding which photo to share from a selection …
Expand
Expanding
Close
DxOMark recently published its review of the iPhone 6s, and it confirms what we already sort-of new: it’s not a huge step up from the last generation iPhones. In fact, the camera performs ever-so-slightly worse than last year’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, which both entered the DxOMark rankings in 1st place when they were reviewed last year.
Fresh from showing how an iPhone 6s and a few cheap accessories can enable you to do a great photoshoot, Fstoppers’ Lee Morris has now put the iPhone 6s video capabilities up against a semi-pro Nikon D750 DSLR. The results are actually quite shocking, the iPhone 6s delivering much sharper results, as seen in the 200% zoom above and video below.
There are a few riders, of course …
Expand
Expanding
Close
With the launch of Apple’s iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, users now have the option to shoot up 12-megapixel photos and 4K video at 30 fps. This is four times the video resolution found on the iPhone 6, but how does it perform? We’ve put together a new video test to find out exactly what it looks like…
There has been a lot of opinions floating around about the new iPhone 6s camera, its upgraded 12 megapixel sensor, 4K video capability, and the other software side improvements with iOS 9. Our own photographer Ben Lovejoy put the device to the test in his ongoing diary series. But this latest photo gallery from the people behind the Camera+ app gives us a look at how the camera has improved not just over last generation, but also over all other previous generations of iPhones in a side by side comparison.
Expand
Expanding
Close
The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus have new cameras on the front and rear as well as featuring the new Live Photos mode, a combination of photo and short 3 second video, which is enabled by default. The quality of both cameras has been considerably improved, beyond the raw increase to 12-megapixel back camera and 5 megapixel front camera.
However, there have been some reports of customers getting grainy, bad photos on the new iPhone 6s in low-light scenarios, despite Apple touting the new cameras’ improved low-light performance. Whilst its true that you will always get better-looking shots in well-lit environments, it turns out that having Live Photos enabled significantly impacts the photo quality in dark shots. Why?
Ahead of the launch of the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus tomorrow, National Geographic today published a set of photos shot on the new device. Apple’s SVP of Marketing Phil Schiller pointed us to the article, which follows photographer Mark Leong reflecting on his history of shooting with various devices in China over the last 25 years. Head below for a look at the photos shot on Apple’s new flagship iPhone…
Expand
Expanding
Close
How does the upgraded camera on the iPhone 6s Plus perform under real-world conditions? Today we get our best look yet thanks to a photo gallery of a recent MLB game shot by photographer Brad Mangin for Sports Illustrated.
Expand
Expanding
Close
Makers of the popular Camera+ app, a $3 third-party photography app for iPhone with around 14 million users, today launched its first free version in an attempt to attract even more users to the platform.
Dubbed simply “Camera+ Free,” the app’s creator gave us the rundown on the free experience, noting that it offers the same experience as the paid app minus some of the more advanced features like manual shooting controls and the app’s “The Lab” editing suite. Instead, the free app offers up focus, exposure and macro shooting settings, scene modes including clarity, and 3 free filter packs. Beyond that, users will be able to add-on some of the more advanced features to the free version using in-app purchases, allowing them to essentially unlock the full experience of the paid app.
We want to get the app out to as many people as possible. We currently have 14 million users, but we’d love to see more people using and falling in love with our app. We think by offering people a free version, more people who typically don’t pay for apps will give it a try. If they like it then they may buy some in-apps or just spread the word about our app. – Camera+ cofounder Lisa Bettany
The free version of the Camera+ app is available on the App Store now.
![Speck_DFI_Ad_CS-Stacked-Cube_728x90_v1[2]](https://9to5mac.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2015/09/speck_dfi_ad_cs-clear_rev_728x90_v1.jpg)
One of the marquee upgrades to the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will be a major revamp to the camera system. For the first time since the iPhone 4S launch in 2011, the iPhone camera’s megapixel count will be upgraded: Apple will be moving from the 8-megapixel sensor on the iPhone 6 to a custom imager billed as 12-megapixels in both of the new iPhones, according to sources. The 12-megapixel camera will mean that the new iPhones will be able to take larger, higher-resolution photos than before. Because of an upgraded image signal processor that comes as part of the new A9 system-on-a-chip, the new sensor will not wash out or otherwise decrease the quality of photos, according to sources.
New images have surfaced today giving us a closer look at the alleged next-generation iPhone display panel first revealed in earlier leaks (via MacRumors). The images don’t reveal any new information, but do give us a closer look at the part that appears to include new components thought to be related to the addition of Apple’s Force Touch display technology.
Expand
Expanding
Close
Apple has discovered that a limited number of iPhone 6 Plus devices sold between September and January are affected by a manufacturing defect with the back camera. This defect causes photos taken with the back iSight camera to come out blurry. Apple will replace the camera in your affected device for free, if eligible. You can find out if you are eligible for a replacement by typing your serial number into this website, which will lookup if your phone is part of the batch with the manufacturing problem.
Misfit, makers of the popular Flash and Shine wearables for fitness and sleep tracking, today launched a new iOS app that turns its Flash hardware into a remote control for a connected iPhone’s camera, music functions, and more.
Expand
Expanding
Close
Eventually, pocket-sized cameras will compare in low-light performance to today’s large and expensive DSLRs. Although pro photographers will have moved on by then to even more powerful large cameras, the vast majority of people will see no need to carry big, heavy lenses and camera bodies around. The iPhone’s ascendance demonstrates that “eventually” is at least foreseeable, even though it’s not happening in the near term.
Serious photographers won’t be giving up their DSLRs any time soon, and in fact will be toting plenty of camera hardware — many times, along with a laptop — to any event or destination important enough to photograph properly. Over the years, I’ve learned that the “ideal bag” for my personal needs is one that can hold my camera, several lenses, and whichever MacBook I’m using. Having hunted for the ultimate carrying solution for both computer and photo gear, the best solutions I’ve found are made by Incase.
The bag I’ve used actively for the last three years is Incase’s DSLR Sling Pack ($90, above left), and incredibly, it looks virtually identical today to when I first started using it. The DSLR Sling Pack is perfect for 11″ MacBook Airs and 12″ MacBooks, plus a big camera body with three lenses. But since my 13″ MacBook Pro barely fits inside its zippered compartment, I’ve been struggling with whether to replace the bag. That’s why I’m checking out two larger models today: the DSLR Pro Sling Pack ($170, middle), and traditional DSLR Pro Pack ($150, right). They’re large enough for up to 15″ MacBook Pros and have more room for DSLR gear, as well. Which is right for you?…
Glide, the app that lets users send live video messages, today becomes the first to bring the feature to Apple Watch. With an update to Glide’s iOS app, users of Apple Watch will be able to receive live videos messages right on their wrist, although it’s a one-way experience for Apple Watch as the device doesn’t yet include a camera; your responses will be limited to text.
Expand
Expanding
Close
If you were wondering why Apple has ignored the megapixel race and stuck to a modest 8MP camera in its latest iPhones when almost every other manufacturer is cramming in as many pixels as physically possible, it’s all about image quality. While more pixels allow you to blow up photos to larger sizes, that comes at a cost. Squeezing more pixels into a tiny sensor means more noise, reducing quality, especially in low-light situations like bars and parties.
A clever patent granted today could allow future iPhones to have the best of both worlds, allowing higher-resolution photos without squeezing more pixels into the sensor …
Expand
Expanding
Close
As I noted in Part 1 of How-To: Decode Apple’s Tech Specs pages before buying a new Mac, Apple has designed the Mac purchasing process to be easy: pick a model, pick the good, better, or best configuration, hand over your cash, and enjoy your computer. Since most people get confused by tech specs — bullet points filled with numbers and acronyms — Apple downplays them in its marketing materials, leaving customers to sort through the details and figure out what most of them mean.
But these specs are really important when you’re shopping for the right Mac for your current and future needs. So I’ve created this How-To guide to walk you through each of Apple’s Tech Specs pages using clear explanations, hopefully enabling you to properly understand what you’re about to buy. Part 1 focused on the “big 5″ Mac specs you really need to know about, and this Part 2 looks at the rest — generally things that remain the same in a given model, regardless of the configuration you choose…
As a photographer, I’ve been thrilled to see iPhones become compelling replacements for standalone point-and-shoot cameras. Our world has improved in both measurable and immeasurable ways from widespread, immediate access to quality photography; the images documenting our lives are more compelling and numerous than ever before.
But professional photographers toting DSLRs now struggle to stand out from amateurs with iPhones. The Chicago Sun-Times infamously fired its entire photography department in favor of using images from iPhones and wire services, a move mocked by other newspapers but embraced by some broadcast journalists. Fixed-lens, small-sensor iPhones can’t match standalone cameras in image quality, particularly in dark settings, but they’re hard to beat in speed and convenience.
The question is how to combine the immediacy of iPhone photography with the quality offered by superior cameras. For me, the answer has been Eyefi‘s SD cards, which wirelessly transfer a standalone camera’s photos to an iPhone or iPad for rapid editing and sharing. (See my How-To on transferring, editing, and sharing DSLR/point-and-shoot photos with an iPhone or iPad for more details.)
Eyefi’s first $100 card contained 2GB of flash memory and a Wi-Fi chip; since then, every Eyefi card has improved on the same concept, so the brand-new 32GB Mobi Pro ($100) isn’t so much a surprise as the culmination of everything the company has done before. It has the highest storage capacity, broadest file support, and easiest workflow of any Eyefi card I’ve tested. Most importantly, it brings a more durable enclosure that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to any potential reader, originally introduced in Eyefi’s more affordable non-Pro Mobi cards. Read on for all the details…
A Taiwanese analyst speaking about the company which makes most of the lenses for iPhones claims that Apple will be sticking to an 8MP camera in the next-generation iPhone 6s, reports Taipei Times.
Jeff Pu said that the camera specifications of the next-generation iPhone, dubbed iPhone 6S, will stay the same as the current iPhone 6 at 8-megapixels, limiting potential catalysts to push [Apple lens supplier] Largan’s stock price higher in the second half of the year.
Pu’s reasoning–that limited supplies of higher-resolution CMOS sensors have lead Apple to make the decision–seems somewhat spurious for a company renowned for its supply chain management, but the idea isn’t an unreasonable one.
While those who know little about photography may buy on numbers, cramming more megapixels into a small sensor can actually hurt image quality. One of the key reasons the iPhone camera is so good is that Apple uses a relatively large sensor with a low pixel density, an approach which is particularly beneficial in low-light photography. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus cameras were ranked joint 1st in the highly-respected DxOMark mobile tests.
You can see a comparison of images from almost every generation of iPhone camera courtesy of the developers behind the Camera+ app, and check out our own test of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus cameras here.
Via GforGames
We’ve cautioned many times that Apple patents a huge number of inventions that will never see the light of day. Last year alone, the company was awarded 2,566 ‘utility’ patents–those covering actual technologies, rather than mere designs. The fact that Apple has patented something tells us absolutely nothing about its future product line.
But that didn’t stop traders going crazy yesterday over a patent awarded for a GoPro-like action camera: GoPro shares fell as much as 15% as panicking traders dumped the stock. The ‘thinking’ was that if Apple was entering the action camera market, GoPro was doomed. The slump was so dramatic that it even tripped a Nasdaq safeguard at one point, reports MarketWatch.
It’s even more absurd in this case: not only is the patent one of thousands of things that Apple probably won’t do, it isn’t even an Apple patent in the first place–it was, as Fortune notes in passing, just one of a number of patents acquired by Apple from Kodak.
Yep, if Apple really were moving into a new market, established players would indeed be sweating. But there is precisely zero evidence that Apple has any plans to move into GoPro’s territory.
That’s not to say competition isn’t heating up in the space however. HTC introduced the Re late last year ($99-199) as an iOS and Android connected camera and many others have been joining in starting at much lower prices.
Olloclip isn’t the only maker of lenses for iPhone cameras, but after testing options from a dozen vendors, it’s the one I’d call the best at delivering reliably good combinations of quality and practicality. Its latest accessory is the 4-in-1 Lens for iPhone 6/6 Plus ($80), an updated continuation of its longest-running and most popular series of iPhone lenses. Bundled with everything from a lanyard to a set of three colored plastic clips, this version of 4-in-1 now works with two different iPhone 6 sizes, as well as both front FaceTime and rear iSight cameras.
This cross-model, twin-camera versatility comes at the cost of some added complexity, however, and an issue from earlier Olloclip lenses — the lack of broad case compatibility — is still a factor here. But if you’ve been looking for a way to add wide angle and macro capabilities to your iPhone, the 4-in-1 is worth considering. There are plenty of details and illustrative photographs below.
Christmas and the end of Hanukkah are only a week away. You’re looking for a last-minute gift that’s guaranteed to arrive in time for the holidays. We’re here to help with a collection of top picks for Apple fans, all at great prices.
Welcome to 9to5’s Last Minute Apple Gift Guide!
Update 3/3/15: We’ve added the new Seek Thermal XR to the bottom of this review.
The evolution of Apple’s iOS cameras has been fairly linear: Apple improved their image quality, added video recording capabilities, and dropped in a small collection of filters, but otherwise hasn’t radically changed their features.
Just in time for the holidays, Seek Thermal Inc.’s new Seek Thermal Camera for iOS ($199) is offering a fundamentally different type of camera for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Using a Lightning connector, the Seek Thermal Camera adds affordable thermal photography and videography features to any late-2012 or newer iOS device – the heat-sensitive sort of vision best-known from the Predator movies. While it’s not case-compatible, this accessory is otherwise the most practical thermal camera currently available for iOS devices. (An Android version is also available.)
