Pixelated!
Having just picked up the new Google Pixel 6 Pro, specifically for some of its photo capabilities, it's time for me to share my first look at the Pixel's camera features and performance.
My previous two cellphones were the HTC One 11 and the HTC One M8, both of which received high marks for their cameras. But in 2017 Google bought most of HTC's R&D team and integrated them into their efforts to improve the Pixel lineup. So I've been closely following the Pixel line, and between the need to upgrade to 5G and the Pixel 6 Pro's new 4x optical zoom camera, its October release convinced me to finally replace my beloved HTC.
So on the first sunny day after getting my new unit all set up, I took a little photo walkabout in Pittsburgh's Southside, capturing the images that follow. All images were uploaded to Flickr exactly as they came out of the camera, unaltered in any way, although you have to click through to the full-sized versions to see the actual, untouched originals and their full level of detail.
Let's begin with a couple basic snaps that I took just because they caught my eye. These were taken at various levels of zoom (more on that in a bit). Under conditions of harsh afternoon light, the Pixel's HDR processing did a good job pulling detail out of the shadows, even if in some cases that was desired, and in some cases it wasn't.
Aside from the fairly subtle HDR, Google's next image processing trick is "portrait mode", which identifies a human subject in your shot, and then applies a not very subtle blur to everything else. Here's a couple portrait-treated shots, and a normal shot for comparison.
A couple shots to test the Pixel's color handling. Nothing too special here.
The number one reason why I got the Pixel 6 Pro variant is that it has a 4x optical zoom. Unlike a digital zoom, which just makes each pixel larger, an optical zoom can capture a much greater level of detail.
Here are three images shot from the same location, about 230 meters (760 feet) away from the north pier and tower on the opposite side of the river. The only difference in the images is the zoom level: 1x, 2x, and 4x.
The fact that these aren't just cropped and enlarged is clear if you click though to the full-size images and compare the clarity of the lettering on the road signs at the far end of the bridge, and on the buildings atop the bluff. You can even count the individual rivets on the bridge tower!
The extra detail and image quality provided by an optical zoom is an immense differentiator, putting this cell phone ahead of its competitors and much closer to a possible SLR camera replacement.
Next we have two panoramic images, as created by the Camera app's image processor. The stitching is pretty good, and produces very usable results.
Like any panoramic photo, the wider the scene, the more lens distortion occurs at the edges. While it's not noticeable in the first image, it's far more noticeable in the second, which spans a nearly 180° arc.
Google has included beta versions of two tools that try to capture motion. The first motion capture mode is "long exposure". The idea is to simulate taking a long exposure, where static elements appear clear, but moving elements are blurred.
Sometimes this works well (the moving cyclist below left), and sometimes it doesn't (the ghost bicycle at right). Sadly, Google's camera app doesn't offer the kind of "clear image plus light trail" effect you'd normally get on an SLR with a flash synced to the front or rear curtain.
Note that in these cases where the Pixel is post-processing images, it saves both the altered image as well as the original.
The other motion capture tool is called "action pan", which does the exact opposite: bringing moving objects into focus, while blurring the unmoving background. This is supposed to simulate a standard camera panning to follow a moving object, like I did in this shot. But the Pixel does all of that in software; the user doesn't actually pan the camera himself.
Sometimes it works surprisingly well, like the first couple pictures at left. But it can be hit and miss. If you click through to the full-sized image of the second cyclist, you'll see what looks like a lot of pixelation surrounding him.
That's not actually pixelation or loss of data, but an artifact of the Pixel's software not being entirely sure where the dividing line is between the moving object and the static background. So what you're seeing is just a bit of in-focus background that the Pixel chose not to blur.
This is blatantly obvious in the final image in this series, where the autumn leaves to the left and right of the cyclist are motion-blurred, but the leaves you can see through the wheels are in perfect focus, yielding a ridiculous and completely unusable image.
The final feature I wanted to test was the Pixel's "magic eraser" function, which allows you to selectively remove unwanted objects in your photo, kind of like an intelligent version of Photoshop's healing brush.
The left photo below is another action pan shot I took, this time with two cyclists in the frame. The lead cyclist is in focus, but the trailing rider is a little blurry, so I chose to remove her.
She definitely was erased from the image, although I might not go so far as to call it "magic". The Pixel did a good job figuring out what I wanted to remove, and how to back-fill the area, and matched up the berm and railroad tracks well. But I did have to go back and run the tool a second time, in order to also remove the rider's shadow, an oversight that many users might easily make.
The overall result isn't bad, especially given how little user input it required. Good enough for casual use, but for better quality I'd still do the work in a desktop photo editor.
Overall, I'd say I'm very happy with the results. Big plusses are graduating from my old phone's 12MP main camera to the Pixel's 50MP, and the amazing 4x optical zoom. I'm happy with the panorama mode, and am more than willing to play with the good but imperfect magic eraser and motion blur modes. I'm also looking forward to testing out the Pixel's improved low-light and video capabilities.
From a photographic point of view, there's very little to complain about. The Pixel 6's noticeable "camera bar" design hasn't been an issue for me so far. The only serious shortcoming I've noticed is that the front-facing selfie shooter is a meager 11MP, which is 31% smaller than the 16MP on my 5 year-old HTC.
That's all for today, but watch this space -- and my cycling blog -- for more images from the new Pixel 6 Pro!