Xperia 5 II cam & pro cam vs OP6 cam & gcam, no tinkering

[KiraV]

Sony Xperia 5 II:

* standard camera, no tinkering
* pro camera, auto mode
* pro camera, P mode with HDR, no other tinkering

Oneplus 6:

* standard camera
* Marco's GCam 6.1 MJL v3.7 Miniflex, day mode, AWB off, no other tinkering

(Sorry for the un-professionality of the shots and the general mess.)

I'm finding the Xperia 5II camera and pro camera... underwhelming to say the least. I'm sure that pro camera, used by people who are used to more complex non-smartphone cameras can give great photos, but to less camera-savvy people like me the results are... terrible. Coming from a great gcam port that basically performed perfectly right out of the box (big kudos to Marco's amazing work), I find it pretty disappointing to see this.

I can only hope that a good gcam port comes out fast.

(The Xperia otherwise is a pretty darn good phone imho, aside from some minor annoying things that hopefully will be improved/fixed in next updates.)


(x-posted from my thread on r/SonyXperia)

 

[palamosteliaro]

I don't understand why everyone is praising the xperia cameras. They are just not as good as many other phones. I come from an s10 plus and pictures were just better on the s10, especially in low light. My real issue is that there is NO way to take 16:9 video with manual focus (or even tap to focus) on either the simple camera app or the pro: The simple camera doesn't have manual focus and the pro is locked at 21:9 for some reason... This is simple functionality, yet Sony in their all "camera wisdom" couldn't provide it on any of their apps....
I agree that a good (or at least functional) gcam port is our only hope (as is for any xperia device). Sony is full of marketing BS on every xperia release about their cameras and somehow they always manage to be underwhelming and a few generations behind.

 

[yekollu]

I don't understand why everyone is praising the xperia cameras. They are just not as good as many other phones. I come from an s10 plus and pictures were just better on the s10, especially in low light. My real issue is that there is NO way to take 16:9 video with manual focus (or even tap to focus) on either the simple camera app or the pro: The simple camera doesn't have manual focus and the pro is locked at 21:9 for some reason... This is simple functionality, yet Sony in their all "camera wisdom" couldn't provide it on any of their apps....
I agree that a good (or at least functional) gcam port is our only hope (as is for any xperia device). Sony is full of marketing BS on every xperia release about their cameras and somehow they always manage to be underwhelming and a few generations behind.

I like them because the colors are almost accurate and not blown up....
But everyone to their own i guess

 

[palamosteliaro]

I like them because the colors are almost accurate and not blown up....
But everyone to their own i guess

I wasn't talking about colors, colors are subjective and everyone has different taste. Noise however, isn't. You can zoom on both pictures and see that the 5 ii has more noise and "blurriness" compared to the oneplus. And this has been a tradition with xperia phones as long as I remember. Always a few generations behind on image clarity. I don't think anyone likes noise on their pictures... Professional reviews are misleading, since they are usually done in good (or even professional) lighting on a stand, so they are not representative of real life. If you are not a ...tourist, most of your pictures will be indoors and/or in random lighting scenarios with auto settings, on your hand, for a fast and easy picture. Xperia phones produce the worst results in those real life scenarios every time. If you want to take pictures on a stand, after tinkering with settings for the best results, you should be using a DSLR not a phone imo.

 

[zwirek75]

Sony Xperia 5 II:
* standard camera, no tinkering
* pro camera, auto mode
* pro camera, P mode with HDR, no other tinkering

Oneplus 6:
* standard camera
* Marco's GCam 6.1 MJL v3.7 Miniflex, day mode, AWB off, no other tinkering

(Sorry for the un-professionality of the shots and the general mess.)
I'm finding the Xperia 5II camera and pro camera... underwhelming to say the least. I'm sure that pro camera, used by people who are used to more complex non-smartphone cameras can give great photos, but to less camera-savvy people like me the results are... terrible. Coming from a great gcam port that basically performed perfectly right out of the box (big kudos to Marco's amazing work), I find it pretty disappointing to see this.
I can only hope that a good gcam port comes out fast.
(The Xperia otherwise is a pretty darn good phone imho, aside from some minor annoying things that hopefully will be improved/fixed in next updates.)
(x-posted from my thread on r/SonyXperia)

I've just compared both standard photos.
IMHO
* Xperia colors are more natural (more red/blue, OnePlus has more green)
* I can see more noise on OnePlus and more sharp edges, seems a bit artificial
* Xperia photo is less sharp/more soft, especially in the background. Not sure but it may be related with bigger sensor and lower DoF

Are both photos were taken on the same day/the same time ? The posters in background are different

 

[mhsbrian]

I have both the 7pro and the 5ii and the 5ii is way more satisfying with photos for me, my experience is completely the opposite. I will say the biggest downside is consistency with the sony camera, but when it takes a great shot it is significantly more satisfying than a lucky 7pro shot and it should be since the sensor is better.

 

[CazeW]

I wasn't talking about colors, colors are subjective and everyone has different taste. Noise however, isn't. You can zoom on both pictures and see that the 5 ii has more noise and "blurriness" compared to the oneplus. And this has been a tradition with xperia phones as long as I remember. Always a few generations behind on image clarity. I don't think anyone likes noise on their pictures... Professional reviews are misleading, since they are usually done in good (or even professional) lighting on a stand, so they are not representative of real life. If you are not a ...tourist, most of your pictures will be indoors and/or in random lighting scenarios with auto settings, on your hand, for a fast and easy picture. Xperia phones produce the worst results in those real life scenarios every time. If you want to take pictures on a stand, after tinkering with settings for the best results, you should be using a DSLR not a phone imo.

I'm not sure what photos you've been looking at but the Xperia is completely smooth compared to the OnePlus. Yes, the Xperia is also a bit softer because of the shallower DoF and because of less aggressive sharpening which Sony is known to do. But based on those photos I'd take the Sony any day.

 

[luis.manuel.cb]

I have to say that coming from OnePlus 6 into Sony Xperia 5 II I totally agree that the camera in standard mode the OnePlus performs better.. but the manual mode in the Sony Xperia if you know about photography it definitely out performs the OnePlus 6.. I'll recommend reducing the brightness in the standard mode and you will see a better quality pic in the Sony Xperia.

 

[KiraV]

I've just compared both standard photos.
IMHO
* Xperia colors are more natural (more red/blue, OnePlus has more green)
* I can see more noise on OnePlus and more sharp edges, seems a bit artificial
* Xperia photo is less sharp/more soft, especially in the background. Not sure but it may be related with bigger sensor and lower DoF

Are both photos were taken on the same day/the same time ? The posters in background are different

Same day, same time, around 10 minutes difference I think? What's the difference you're seeing? The Xperia makes everything much more pink-ish, if that's what you're referring to. Imho from how the light was irl the gcam got the most accurate colours, my room does have a kinda "washed out" light when it's cloudy and the lights are off.

Also why would I lie? I got accused of lying and about the irl colors on the Xperia reddit thread ("do you have green light? " when these were made without turning the light on...), now you're saying the background looks different... What would I even gain by lying, I'm not a pro, I don't get money, I'm not even a reviewer, just a rando posting a simple comparison of what I saw and instead I got insulted and accused of lying... for simply stating my opinion? Wtf. I just wanted to make a comparison before selling my old OP6, that's all. I did the comparison, I sold the op6, I'm happy with the Xperia, I'm just disappointed by the camera. Simple camera app is too simple, the Pro one is too complex and even after days of watching tutorials I can manage to get decent pictures only outdoors with a good light... which might be great for a photographer - but if I was a photographer I would use an actual camera tbh -, but for normal real life situations in which you don't have time to configure everything (especially if you want to take pictures of animals - i.e. my cats) and the light 90% of the times is not perfect... the Xperia performed worse imho.

EDIT: btw here's your proof. Luckily I sent the pics via Bluetooth to the new phone before selling the old one.

 

[KiraV]

I have to say that coming from OnePlus 6 into Sony Xperia 5 II I totally agree that the camera in standard mode the OnePlus performs better.. but the manual mode in the Sony Xperia if you know about photography it definitely out performs the OnePlus 6.. I'll recommend reducing the brightness in the standard mode and you will see a better quality pic in the Sony Xperia.

I didn't even noticed that I could reduce the brightness in standard mode, now I feel really dumb. Still, I would replace any day standard camera app with Marco's GCam...

 

[zwirek75]

Same day, same time, around 10 minutes difference I think? What's the difference you're seeing? The Xperia makes everything much more pink-ish, if that's what you're referring to. Imho from how the light was irl the gcam got the most accurate colours, my room does have a kinda "washed out" light when it's cloudy and the lights are off.

Apologies, I just took these background pictures as different, but its the same picture presuming different time.
My mistake.

 

[Yakkosmurf]

As an avid photographer with a nice collection of bodies and lenses, I will say that I'm pleased with the pictures from the 5 II. I picked one up a few weeks ago to replace my P30 Pro. I definitely get better pictures from the Pro app than the Standard camera app. But, since I have a Sony ILC, I like the familiar interface, and you can learn to get good pictures from it quickly.

 

[cdkg]

Sony Xperia 5 II:

* standard camera, no tinkering
* pro camera, auto mode
* pro camera, P mode with HDR, no other tinkering

Oneplus 6:

* standard camera
* Marco's GCam 6.1 MJL v3.7 Miniflex, day mode, AWB off, no other tinkering

(Sorry for the un-professionality of the shots and the general mess.)

I'm finding the Xperia 5II camera and pro camera... underwhelming to say the least. I'm sure that pro camera, used by people who are used to more complex non-smartphone cameras can give great photos, but to less camera-savvy people like me the results are... terrible. Coming from a great gcam port that basically performed perfectly right out of the box (big kudos to Marco's amazing work), I find it pretty disappointing to see this.

I can only hope that a good gcam port comes out fast.

(The Xperia otherwise is a pretty darn good phone imho, aside from some minor annoying things that hopefully will be improved/fixed in next updates.)


(x-posted from my thread on r/SonyXperia)

I'm coming from an OP6 and couldn't agree with you more. The 5ii auto focus on objects less than 6ft away is unbelievably bad. The detail in the 5ii pics are underwhelming compared to the OP6 GCAM.
I've decided to take my OP6 with me when I know I'm going to be taking pics.
Though it's off topic I totally regret getting the 5ii and could happily go back to my OP6. Gonna sell 5ii and get the next OnePlus when it comes out.

 

[tomo100brt]

I'm coming from an OP6 and couldn't agree with you more. The 5ii auto focus on objects less than 6ft away is unbelievably bad. The detail in the 5ii pics are underwhelming compared to the OP6 GCAM.
I've decided to take my OP6 with me when I know I'm going to be taking pics.
Though it's off topic I totally regret getting the 5ii and could happily go back to my OP6. Gonna sell 5ii and get the next OnePlus when it comes out.

Well, you are not pro camera user. If you had any Sony DSLR you would know. Everything is in manual mode, not auto mode. The same situation is on Sony phones. I have XPERIA 1 II and after many updates photos from Camera app auto mode is much better, but still not good as iPhone 12 Pro Max auto mode. When I use Program Auto or Manual Exposure in Photo Pro and adjust setting result is different. Photos are much better taken with XPERIA 1 II. So, why did you buy XPERIA 5 II if you are not pro camera user? Sony philosophy is if you want to take full advantage from sensor and camera, use Photo Pro app : Auto mode for social networks, Program Auto if you are begginer, Shutter Priority for fast moving objects and Manual Exposure if you are camera pro user. Memory Recall is just for most used settings values and modes.

 

[Yakkosmurf]

I've actually been pleased with low light photo quality of the standard camera app. Very close to my P30 Pro.

 

[WarVic]

Unfortunately I completely agree that OP somehow delivers better photos than overhyped, much more expensive Xperia 5 II. I've got my Xperia 5 II just few days ago (didn't see the warning "For Pro Photographers only" on the box or anywhere else). Compared to my "old" Pixel 4, I'm disappointed so far. I clearly see that Pixel makes better pictures with zero efforts in all situations regardless of shakeness of my hands and photo skills. Certainly Xperia has focusing issues in some situations. I struggled to focus on objects with Xperia whereas I didn't with Pixel 4 at the same time. Xperia photos look soft / less sharp, blurry in not ideal conditions, hit or miss experience damn to often, horrible selfie camera etc. Going to spend some time with this phone (one month or so), give Xperia a chance to shine and then decide what to do. Thankfully I didn't sell my Pixel 4 yet...

 

[Unlocked_Freedom]

It's all subjective, but to me the Xperia wins here. To my eyes the exposure is better, the white balance is better, the colors are more natural and overall it has a more realistic rendition (not overly sharpened). And the subtle bokeh its larger sensor gets is just icing on the cake.

Sony goes for naturalistic processing which I appreciate. People used to Samsung's bold processing might be let down initially.

 

[oceanKnox]

u bought a phone has camera,not a camera which calls

 

[patrickt]

A. With the plethora of resources I don't know why anyone would buy a Sony Xperia and be surprised at what they get. I wasn't. I looked at a lot of YouTube videos about Sony Xperias.

B. "U bought a phone has camera, not a camera which calls." I think I understand what you're saying but I'm not sure you're qualified to say what anyone bought except yourself. I was late to phones because I'm quite deaf and don't do phone calls but I'm also old and got tired of toting cameras and lens. I had a Pixel that took great photos and then a Huawei P30 that also took great photos but I was missing taking photos. I'm sure the phone was having fun but I wasn't. Their "pro" mode sucked. For example, in pro mode, their little white icons disappeared when I was taking photos on the white sand of the beach at Huatulco or the white stone pavement in Oaxaca. Now, I enjoy taking photos again with my Xperia.

C. If you want AI to take photos for you, don't get a Sony Xperia. If you actually enjoy photography, you might enjoy having a Sony Xperia. This is a Sony Xperia forum so I don't mind posting my opinion but I am in no way denigrating those who enjoy iPhones or Pixels or Pocos. Choices are great.

 

[oceanKnox]

A. With the plethora of resources I don't know why anyone would buy a Sony Xperia and be surprised at what they get. I wasn't. I looked at a lot of YouTube videos about Sony Xperias.

B. "U bought a phone has camera, not a camera which calls." I think I understand what you're saying but I'm not sure you're qualified to say what anyone bought except yourself. I was late to phones because I'm quite deaf and don't do phone calls but I'm also old and got tired of toting cameras and lens. I had a Pixel that took great photos and then a Huawei P30 that also took great photos but I was missing taking photos. I'm sure the phone was having fun but I wasn't. Their "pro" mode sucked. For example, in pro mode, their little white icons disappeared when I was taking photos on the white sand of the beach at Huatulco or the white stone pavement in Oaxaca. Now, I enjoy taking photos again with my Xperia.

C. If you want AI to take photos for you, don't get a Sony Xperia. If you actually enjoy photography, you might enjoy having a Sony Xperia. This is a Sony Xperia forum so I don't mind posting my opinion but I am in no way denigrating those who enjoy iPhones or Pixels or Pocos. Choices are great.

i was surperised that someone really reply like i offend anyone.However, i am more pro sony than oneplus(even i had oneplus 1). Now i am holding Xperia5ii which i am satisfied the most in any android phone(sizewise Iphone12&13mini is better).
i personally buy this phone for its size which onehand controls fine.But more than that I prefer unlock the bootloader and put aosp roms instead of offical that drains the battery fast and laggy some how. So i may not buy this phone for the photos but can anyone buy this phone for other reasons?i dont think i am qualified to say the reason what anyone buys neither you are. But i think forum is a free place for any ideas and any opinions i assume. Good day with ur xperia although we love xperia for different reasons.