On Saturday, I met up with my good friend David Ifaola who’s a Photographer and YouTuber and we got talking about the latest iPhone 13 and the leaps mobile photography has made since the first phone – camera combo came out, and then he asked me; Do You think Smartphone cameras will ever replace the professional camera? And I immediately said No! and here’s why:
Smartphone cameras have come a long way since the Sharp J-SH04 that came out in the year 2000, As at this time, people were uneasily making the transition from shooting with films to shooting on digital sensors and no one thought that the strides we now so comfortably enjoy would even be possible. The biggest flex professional cameras hold over smartphone cameras is the sensor size. In the grand scheme of things, the ability to have a larger sensor means your camera can capture more light which immediately transcribes to more detail/data that the camera is able to capture, For comparison, below is the difference between an average full-frame camera sensor and that of a smartphone;
The sensor determines how much light information the camera (smartphone or professional) reads and the bigger the sensor, the more light it can read and translate to detail or what we call picture. Over the years, the sensors on smartphones have gotten better and computational photography has also improved which we see evident in smartphones like the iPhone 12/13, Samsung Galaxy S series, and recently, the Vivo V series of smartphones, These brands push the limit of what is possible and make our phones capable of recording on the go footage but when it comes to high proficiency and ability to deliver consistently in the long run, smartphones would never replace cameras (unless someone figures out how to miniaturize a 35mm sensor to fit inside a phone compartment). Cameras are built to deliver consistent work over a long period of time while smartphones even wear and break down after a while.
If you’re looking at getting photos and videos on the go, the smartphone in your pocket is an amazing option but if you’re hoping to create for the big screen, shoot work for billboards, and create company portfolios, then for the foreseeable future; Professional Cameras are the way to go… but who knows what the next five years would bring to our front door?
I asked some of my photographer friends to share their opinions and this is what they had to say:
Replace…I think not! I however feel, they will become the photographer’s next best tool. I mean the angles smartphone cameras can capture and the quality at which they are been produce now are a major plus.
But there is only so much it can do because its first a smartphone before a camera. For professional shooting and storytelling, the DSLR/Mirrorless camera will still rule because it’s also innovating and mind you,pro cameras are also getting smaller.
I feel like no matter how good they get, smartphone cameras will always be smartphone cameras.
They could be as good as they want to be but professional cameras will always be better. As smartphone cameras are improving, so are professional cameras hence there’d never be a real chance for smartphones to meet up.
