Single lens Google Pixel 3 XL camera measurement, night shooting, night vision, portrait shooting and digital zoom experience.

The original mobile phone "Google Pixel 3 XL" developed by Google this time is the ultimate embodiment of "calculus photography" in taking pictures. A few days ago, Google Pixel 3 also had two updates, one aimed at improving the storage speed, and the other was that the camera startup time became faster. What is the post-experience evaluation of taking photos with Google Pixel 3? I really became interested in this series of mobile phones of Google Pixel from Pixel 2. At that time, I felt that Google could use the subtle two-pixel focusing and distance information on the photosensitive element to calculate the simulation of depth of field with a single mirror, which was really powerful. At that time, the HDR+ technology of Pixel series was also very mature, and the finished products of actual photos were quite good. Because of this relationship, later in the XDA community, the version of transplanting Pixel's native camera application to other mobile phones began to appear. However, can Pixel 3 XL only simulate the depth of field effect and mature HDR+ with a single mirror? Of course not. There are also "night vision" composed of multiple images, "excellent lens" to capture the best picture, and "high resolution zoom" without loss of digital zoom. Such things are all developed with a very large database, which makes it more ideal for mobile phones to take pictures. After actually using Google Pixel 3 XL, you can really feel the power of the algorithm, and this is indeed the unique charm of Pixel 3 XL in this era. Before starting today's article, as usual, I want to share with you some photos that I personally like. Let's start with the basics: experience, automatic white balance and image quality. The mobile phone Pixel 3 bought at the beginning of this year was later changed to Pixel 3 XL. My first impression of Pixel 3 is that it is very light, which is different from the current mainstream design. The weight of Pixel 3 is only148g, and it is very small, which is a great design for me who like small mobile phones. Pixel 3 XL is a bit heavy, but it is also within a fairly acceptable range. However, whether it is Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL, their screen ratio is far lower than the mainstream in flagship machine, and there are quite thick black edges (or clear seas) on both sides. Before officially watching the photo performance of Pixel 3 XL, let me mention the feeling of using Pixel 3 XL. Why didn't other articles in Photographer's Mobile Phone Notes mention this? Because Pixel 3 is really different, except for the latest Android 9, there is no customized interface of other mobile phone manufacturers, and it is a very pure and clean Android system. There will be a direct security update from Google's original factory around the 5th of every month. After a few months of release, some problems have been solved in the camera and video recording. You can directly get the maintenance of Google's original factory, which can be said to be an excellent niche point brought to me by Pixel 3. I think the endurance of Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL is average, although I can still go out all day, going home or hotel is still about 20%. The native system is smooth, but it takes about 2-3 seconds to calculate if you want to look at the photos immediately after taking pictures. If you keep taking pictures for a short time, the back shell can also feel the temperature. But why does Pixel 3/Pixel 3 XL have such power consumption performance and fever? This is because in addition to the main processor Qualcomm S845, there is also a Google Pixel visual core with half the power of S845. To put it simply, all the calculus about taking pictures in this phone, except S845, depends on Google Pixel Visual Core. If it weren't for Google Pixel Visual Core, calculus would take longer, about the same as Nokia 9 Pureview. As a photographer, what color do I expect the mobile phone to be? Is it as bright as Samsung S 10 and Huawei Mate 20 Pro, and can you share it directly? Or is it a color with considerable space like the iPhone Xs? I hope it is a form of both, and Google Pixel 3 XL is such a trend. The color tendency of Google Pixel 3 XL itself is not too bright, and the color performance is also very accurate. This tendency can be clearly seen in the decoration of the following rooms. In the green and red parts, you can still see the hue brought by the light, and various light-colored items can also show the corresponding texture and tonality. The reason why I like the color of Pixel 3 XL photos myself is probably that the color is comfortable and still retains some brightness. Both direct sharing and subsequent adjustment are feasible. ▲ The right side of this photo is blurred and has dark corners, because there is an external wide-angle lens. Please refer to the color. Personally, I think the automatic white balance of Pixle 3 XL itself is quite accurate, but it is a little cold, which may not be obvious outdoors, but it is not easy to show the atmosphere of artificial lighting indoors. Many high-end smartphones have built-in full manual mode in the built-in camera APP, while Pixel 3 XL does not. Fortunately, in general camera mode, we can change some preset white balance parameters. Second, the simulation of the depth of field calculated by a single mirror As mentioned above, pixel 2 uses the dual-pixel characteristics on the photosensitive element to obtain the distance information, and then simulates the effect of the depth of field. When I knew this, I really admired it. Dual Pixel is a photosensitive element, which divides each pixel into two parts. In addition to the original photosensitive function, it can also be used as the focus. In essence, it is similar to the buried relative focus of the photosensitive element, except that the number of buried relative focuses in the photosensitive element is limited, which will inevitably affect the image quality (it will block light when buried), but the dual pixel itself can focus and be sensitive, and it also has advantages in the number of focusing points, so it can obtain better focusing effect. So how does Pixel 3 XL use dual pixels to simulate the depth of field? Simply put, pixels that are split in two still have slight parallax (just like eyes), and they can record this small distance difference at the same time. With these distance information, theoretically, there is no need for a second lens to supplement the distance information of depth of field simulation. Of course, after you get the information, you need a lot of interpretation and calculation to make these data become effective information. From Pixel 2 to Pixel 3/Pixel 3 XL, in fact, Google has also updated the corresponding algorithm to make edge capture more ideal and natural. In Pixel 3/Pixel 3 XL, to get the simulation effect of depth of field, the mode should be "Portrait". As far as the simulation of depth of field is concerned, I think Pixel 3 XL itself has achieved quite good results in grabbing the edges of objects, with few mistakes. I also compared the iPhone Xr, which is also a single mirror. It can be seen that the iPhone Xr itself is yellow, and its depth of field simulation product is also very close to Xs, which has the optical characteristics of simulating a monocular lens. Pixel 3, the light spot of the scattering scene is more like the result of Gaussian blur. If you pay attention, you should find that the viewing angle of Pixel 3 XL itself is relatively narrow, because when Pixel 3 XL switches to portrait mode, the viewing angle will change to the equivalent of about 40 mm. ▲ Google Pixel 3 shooting ▲ Apple iPhone Xr shooting Pixel 3 XL's front lens also has depth of field simulation, and the simulation effect is quite good. ▲ Google Pixel 3 shooting ▲ Apple iPhone Xr shooting In addition, Pixel 3 has two front lenses, and the second front lens is a super wide-angle lens, which allows more people to enter the screen when it is convenient. Similarly, this lens can also simulate the depth of field. ▲ Google Pixel 3 super wide-angle front lens, taking pictures in portrait mode. We can adjust the depth of field or refocus in the Google Photos APP. In addition, Pixel 3 XL will also store a photo that has not been simulated by depth of field. However, this archiving logic is a bit strange. Every time you take a photo in portrait mode, Pixel 3 XL will open another folder to save it. I think the value of Pixel 3 XL single lens simulation depth of field lies in its great application flexibility. Generally, the depth of field of multi-mirror simulation is often limited by the focal length of the second lens, and subjects who are too close cannot be enabled. And like the iPhone Xr, although a single mirror can also simulate the depth of field, it is limited to detecting faces. Google Pixel 3 XL can be enabled as long as it can reach the focal length, and it is not limited to people as the main body. It can be used for animals, still life and food. However, occasionally such a simulation of depth of field will still kick the iron plate. There are some mistakes in the middle of the empty signboard below because it needs to be calculated. Third, every Android user wants HDR+ After using Pixel 3, you can really feel the charm of HDR+ technology. In the photo below, you won't see too obvious treatment marks in the details of clouds and buildings, which is a very suitable contrast. Maybe you will ask, since the XDA forum gods can transfer the camera APP of Pixel 3 to other models, what is the niche of Pixel 3/Pixel 3 XL? Because those turned apps are turned over after all, and the writing method of calculus is not completely compatible with the hardware, it may improve the result of that mobile phone, but it will not be better than Pixel 3 XL. After all, Pixel 3 XL is optimized from hardware (lens, sensor, Google Pixel visual core) to software (algorithm, HDR+). Since the HDR+ of Google Pixel 3 XL is not a blind reduction of contrast or a strong visual impact, what is its value? The photos taken by Pixel 3 XL with HDR+ are actually quite close to the visual experience of human eyes, but there are only two words, "natural". Generally, we can have three kinds of HDR+ adjustments under Pixel 3 XL, namely: off, general HDR+ and HDR+ enhancement. I usually shoot with general HDR+, and the effect of "HDR+ enhancement" will be more remarkable, but you will also find that sometimes the color temperature of photos will change, so generally I also suggest that HDR+ is actually on. ▲HDR+ off ▲HDR+▲HDR+ enhanced four. Night vision is unscientific. Traditionally, if you want to take fine and clean night photos, you usually need to use low sensitivity and tripod assistance, and the exposure time is slightly longer. If there is a full manual mode on the mobile phone, this can also be achieved, but there is no full manual mode on Pixel 3 XL, so how to take a clean night view photo? Google uses a more intuitive way for mobile phone users: using calculus, regardless of any photography knowledge, using the "night vision" mode that can be done by hand. The "Night Vision" mode is in the more options on the far right of the camera interface. You need to select it before you can start it. If you are too dark in normal photo mode, the camera interface will remind you to switch to the past "night vision" to try. The "night vision" mode is actually a way of superimposing multiple photos. For example, Huawei's super night scene is a similar form, and OPPO and Xiaomi also have similar shooting modes. The night scene shot in "night vision" mode will automatically decide the shooting time according to the light environment, but in general, the night scene shot in "night vision" mode is still sharp and vivid, and the success rate is relatively high. I think it is a very practical function. Just like portrait mode, there will be a special icon of "night vision" in Google Photos APP, which I think can effectively distinguish photos taken in this mode. Although this method has been popularized, the calculus of different families is still different. For example, Huawei and Xiaomi will suppress the highlights in the later period when calculating these overlays. But Google Pixel 3 XL is not like this. The basic logic of Pixel 3 XL in Night Vision, like HDR+, is to brighten the dark places. So when you use night vision mode, you can make very dark places bright, but the originally bright areas in the picture will be overexposed. This tendency can be clearly seen in the following photos taken at the Akashi Shrine in Shenle Sakamoto. ▲Pixel 3 XL Universal Mode Shooting ▲Pixel 3 XL Night Vision Mode Shooting Another value of "Night Vision" mode is that we can shoot with lower sensitivity as much as possible and have a better picture. The following group can see the difference between high ISO sensitivity direct shooting and night vision mode. ▲Pixel 3 XL general mode shooting ▲Pixel 3 XL night vision mode shooting V. Assembly black technology: "high resolution zoom" and "excellent lens" In this era of multi-lens popularization, Google Pixel 3 XL still maintains a single lens, which makes it somewhat limited. For example, it is difficult for a single lens to have focal length changes and visual angle differences. In order to solve this problem, Google Pixel 3 XL chose "high resolution zoom". "High resolution zoom" is actually a special digital zoom. Why is it special? It is because Google has really developed a special digital zoom algorithm, which reduces the lack of information easily caused by general digital zoom. My own feeling of using this function is that the picture quality of 2-3 segments of Pixel 3 XL zoom screen is still acceptable, and the picture quality will be slightly affected if it goes up. I took a group of photos, wide-angle and the first high-resolution zoom (1.65x) and cropped photos for your reference. ▲ Pixel 3 XL 1X wide-angle lens ▲ Pixel 3xl 1.65X high-resolution zoom section 1 (about 1.65X)▲ Pixel 3 XL 1X wide-angle lens cutting ▲ Pixel 3xl 1.65x high-resolution zoom section 1 (about/. After all, I think if I use the digital zoom in the first and second paragraphs, it will be about 50mm and 75 mm ▲Pixel 3 XL high-resolution zoom ▲Pixel 3 XL high-resolution zoom. Finally, let's talk about "excellent lens". To enable this feature, you must first enable dynamic mode shooting. After enabling and shooting, when we watch a single photo in the photo album APP, we can see the photos suggested by Pixel 3 under the more detailed information column. Pixel 3 XL itself will judge the pictures taken and give appropriate suggestions. We can save the suggested photos directly or choose a more suitable time to save them. This function, I think, should avoid many cases of crooked face, crooked mouth and closed eyes, and it also belongs to the category of calculus recognition. Sixth, those words about Google Pixel 3 XL Finally, it is about the personal impression of Google Pixel 3 XL in taking pictures. After the experiment on Pixel 2, Pixel 3 XL brings more mature single-lens depth of field simulation and HDR+, and also brings more different functions such as night vision, high-resolution zoom and excellent photos. These functions all have a * * * connection point, which is the product of the algorithm. To tell you the truth, I like Pixel 3 XL, although I am a supporter of traditional optics. In this era, smart phones bring us many possibilities, but taking pictures is limited by the physical factor of volume, and there are often many restrictions. For example, zoom can't change the focal length with one lens, and it needs several lenses to cooperate. The missing part is calculated by digital zoom. The same is true of blurred depth of field. It is necessary to use multiple lenses to collect distance information in order to calculate fuzzy lenses. But at the same time, you will find that no matter how you use calculus, you still need hardware to cooperate. Pixel 3 XL is the only mobile phone that completely uses digital methods and ideas and uses algorithms to solve these physical limitations. I tried these camera phones myself and began to write a series of "Photographers' Notes on Camera Phones". Slowly, I can see and understand the trend of many brands on camera phones. These directions are often confused with "simulating the appearance of traditional optics", "integrating modern technology with hardware" and "making available hardware better". These different ways, the proportion of hardware is still there, but also close to the traditional "photography." But "photography" depends on hardware. Do you need to know various parameters such as aperture shutter? Not exactly. As long as the completed photos are good, it will also be a direction that "modern photography" can work hard. This direction also includes using technology to understand the needs of the public, so that everyone can easily take good photos. Google Pixel 3 XL did it. It uses algorithms to bring better and simpler ways to take pictures for the public. Even though multi-lens has become a trend, Google Pixel 3 XL still uses algorithms to make infinite possibilities on a single mirror. At the same time, it also makes it the best single-lens camera phone today. Then finally, the real photos taken by Google Pixel 3 XL, which I will share with you. Photographer's mobile phone notes Photographer's mobile phone notes (1) Apple iPhone Xs Max Photographer's mobile phone notes (2) Huawei Mate 20 Pro Photographer's mobile phone notes (3) Samsung Galaxy S 10 Photographer's mobile phone notes (4) Google Pixel 3 XL