[Q] Magic focus problem - G3 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I have a LG G3 on hand now, and after fiddling with the magic focus camera function, I realised that it hardly works. Every photo i take of the object has to be very close (less than 3 cm) and even than, during refocus selection mode, the slider bar is often set to Infiniti or one bar below infiniti no matter how close i get to the object. This means its impossible to blur out the background. Moving the bar downwards would just result in the entire photo being blurred out, include the object.
I've tested this on another G3 with the same object and distance, and it seems to work fine. There's more range in the slider bar to choose different depths of focus, and the pic quality is far superior to my set. On auto mode, both perform the same though. Both sets are also running the same firmware.
I've tried clearing cache and even doing a factory reset, but the problem persists (only on the magic focus mode). Its really annoying as my G3 works great in every other aspect, but this function appears to be impaired.
Is anyone experiencing the same issue? I wonder if it is a hardware problem and if i should get it fixed.

plsdunbiteme said:
I have a LG G3 on hand now, and after fiddling with the magic focus camera function, I realised that it hardly works. Every photo i take of the object has to be very close (less than 3 cm) and even than, during refocus selection mode, the slider bar is often set to Infiniti or one bar below infiniti no matter how close i get to the object. This means its impossible to blur out the background. Moving the bar downwards would just result in the entire photo being blurred out, include the object.
I've tested this on another G3 with the same object and distance, and it seems to work fine. There's more range in the slider bar to choose different depths of focus, and the pic quality is far superior to my set. On auto mode, both perform the same though. Both sets are also running the same firmware.
I've tried clearing cache and even doing a factory reset, but the problem persists (only on the magic focus mode). Its really annoying as my G3 works great in every other aspect, but this function appears to be impaired.
Is anyone experiencing the same issue? I wonder if it is a hardware problem and if i should get it fixed.
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Click to collapse
Magic Focus mode is meant to focus on something close by, that is pretty much the entire point of it. It is designed so you can vary the blur effect of objects in the background, or of the object itself to make the background look a bit clearer.
That is why it only seems to focus on objects fairly close up.

Lennyuk said:
Magic Focus mode is meant to focus on something close by, that is pretty much the entire point of it. It is designed so you can vary the blur effect of objects in the background, or of the object itself to make the background look a bit clearer.
That is why it only seems to focus on objects fairly close up.
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I understand, but when I'm comparing both G3s side by side taking the same shot at the same distance, one offers greater depth of focus than the other. Hence i'm wondering why there is such a marked difference in performance between 2 supposedly identical sets.

plsdunbiteme said:
I understand, but when I'm comparing both G3s side by side taking the same shot at the same distance, one offers greater depth of focus than the other. Hence i'm wondering why there is such a marked difference in performance between 2 supposedly identical sets.
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Click to collapse
Google camera works better at the blur effect
Sent from my LG-D850 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

I have LG G3 but in mode option there is no magic focus option found, and also gridline option is missing

Related

Anyone experienced with the camera?

What are the best settings to make a photo of a close object?
For example I want to make a picture of my eye close-up but it always turns out blurry, what should I set the settings like?
Hello, i also tested some "macro" photos.
First make sure you are on "macro" mode.
You should have a flower on the left bottom of the screen.
Then, don't put your "target" too near of the phone lense.
There is a limit distance.
I think almost 5 or 6 centimeters ( 2 inches i think ) is the best you can achieve.
Nearer, the phone just won't make the focus and the image will stay blurry ...
Make sure you get the higher resolution, use 4:3 size, and crop the image after.
And do not use the zoom function or the flash !!! Use external light ...
The only "big" problem is to get the focus at short distance ...
And the fact there are no physical button to shoot is another problem
if you want to take your own eye ... other apps can make it simplier ( ShotControl for example ... ).
DanRZ said:
Hello, i also tested some "macro" photos.
First make sure you are on "macro" mode.
You should have a flower on the left bottom of the screen.
Then, don't put your "target" too near of the phone lense.
There is a limit distance.
I think almost 5 or 6 centimeters ( 2 inches i think ) is the best you can achieve.
Nearer, the phone just won't make the focus and the image will stay blurry ...
Make sure you get the higher resolution, use 4:3 size, and crop the image after.
And do not use the zoom function or the flash !!! Use external light ...
The only "big" problem is to get the focus at short distance ...
And the fact there are no physical button to shoot is another problem
if you want to take your own eye ... other apps can make it simplier ( ShotControl for example ... ).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have found this Macro feature on Vignette but I am absolutely lost on the stock Camera application on Sense.
D3VICE said:
I have found this Macro feature on Vignette but I am absolutely lost on the stock Camera application on Sense.
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Click to collapse
Macro shooting can be found pressing the 'A' on the top left corner of the camera interface (portrait mode).
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
It's bottom left on mine ... ( Edit : Sorry it's in landscape mode ... ).
By default it's on A (Auto).

Galaxy Nexus Camera & Autofocus

When the object on focus in camera is near, the camera does a pretty good job blurring the background, but only if the object is very near.
Other than that it won't blur almost anything.
Is there any way or application to control the amount of blur in autofocus?
An example of what I want to achieve is attached.
I don't expect it to be as accurate as that pic but somewhat like that.
Anyone can help?
EDIT: the flower below is a pic I've taken. It is blurred correctly because it is near., while the guy is a pic showing what I want to achieve. If I were to take that pic with my Galaxy Nexus It wouldn't blur the background.
tonigal said:
When the object on focus in camera is near, the camera does a pretty good job blurring the background, but only if the object is very near.
Other than that it won't blur almost anything.
Is there any way or application to control the amount of blur in autofocus?
An example of what I want to achieve is attached.
I don't expect it to be as accurate as that pic but somewhat like that.
Anyone can help?
EDIT: the flower below is a pic I've taken. It is blurred correctly because it is near., while the guy is a pic showing what I want to achieve. If I were to take that pic with my Galaxy Nexus It wouldn't blur the background.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You won't acheive background defocus because of the lens used with the camera photosensor. It is geared for wide angle viewing because the general population takes photos that utilize this focal length. You would need a 50mm+ to get background defocus. With my 300mm set on macro I can completely blur out the background on my Alpha Nex - you will not acheive this with a 20-30mm lens.
akira02rex said:
You won't acheive background defocus because of the lens used with the camera photosensor. It is geared for wide angle viewing because the general population takes photos that utilize this focal length. You would need a 50mm+ to get background defocus. With my 300mm set on macro I can completely blur out the background on my Alpha Nex - you will not acheive this with a 20-30mm lens.
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Click to collapse
hmm alright. thanks for the info
tonigal said:
When the object on focus in camera is near, the camera does a pretty good job blurring the background, but only if the object is very near.
Other than that it won't blur almost anything.
Is there any way or application to control the amount of blur in autofocus?
An example of what I want to achieve is attached.
I don't expect it to be as accurate as that pic but somewhat like that.
Anyone can help?
EDIT: the flower below is a pic I've taken. It is blurred correctly because it is near., while the guy is a pic showing what I want to achieve. If I were to take that pic with my Galaxy Nexus It wouldn't blur the background.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This might or might not work, but it is free so worth a shot. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ar.com.moula.zoomcamera&feature=search_result
What you refer to as "you want blur" is just that you would like the focal lenght to be very small, generally that is "unwanted" and a by product of focus on a specific "distance". If you can achieve a decent quality photo with the part you want focused clear, that should generally be enough for a camera phone. Because... its a camera phone.. theres a reason you have cameras with footlong lenses that are worth 2k$.
Ps, if you really want blur, photoshop can do that.
Check this app out! It's really cool and will allow you to do what you are trying to. The results won't be as great as a real camera, but good enough for what you want.

[Q] Better video camera app?

I'm running CM9, and it's been great mostly. Last night I was trying to take some video in a reasonably lit room. Not too bright, not too dark, just a room you'd be sitting in. Well, the preview in the camera app looked good, subject was easily visible, colors looked ok. As soon as I hit record though, it seems to close the iris down or change the exposure to "normal" viewing, which caused the image to become much darker. I'd like to be able to have the camera record with an exposure set at the levels the preview uses. Can someone recommend a video camera app with better controls for that sort of thing? Or tell me how to change the exposure on the video camera mode of the built in app? I didn't see a way to do so.
Thanks!

Rear camera too dark

Anyone else find the rear camera almost pitch black compared to front camera? I've changed various settings but it doesn't go any brighter.
Q8-V08 said:
Anyone else find the rear camera almost pitch black compared to front camera? I've changed various settings but it doesn't go any brighter.
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Click to collapse
Most units have the dark camera. Some have a brighter camera.
The best you can do is adjust the exposure setting.
I just posted in another thread that I had this issue, even adjusting all the setting makes very little difference when using the camera in video mode, picture mode is fine though, no issues with darkness etc.
Gilly10 said:
I just posted in another thread that I had this issue, even adjusting all the setting makes very little difference when using the camera in video mode, picture mode is fine though, no issues with darkness etc.
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Click to collapse
Sorry I didn't see your thread, yes I have exactly same problem in video mode being darker than camera mode with the rear camera no issue with front one though, my bad I should of stated which mode it was in.
Don't know about the dark only in video mode issue.
What I've seen is most cameras look find in bright rooms, but in dimly lit rooms, everything is very dark. I just figured this was normal for this level camera, but then I saw a unit that was able to have the same image my eye could see, rather than being so dark it was hard to make out details.
That's when I came to the concusion there are different cameras or the same camera with different variances.
I could adjust the exposure in the dark camera to the highest level and get about 75% of the brightness of the bright camera, but never as bright. By bright, I just mean you can make out the details in the scene.
It seems to be more of bug though because it's also doing it on sphere & panoramic modes too, it's like it's automatically setting the exposure to -2 when your under unnatural light. The setting shouldn't be any different to camera still mode as all it does is stitch multiple stills together.
Q8-V08 said:
It seems to be more of bug though because it's also doing it on sphere & panoramic modes too, it's like it's automatically setting the exposure to -2 when your under unnatural light. The setting shouldn't be any different to camera still mode as all it does is stitch multiple stills together.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went back and tested my camera in more depth.
When I turn on video mode, it ignores any exposure setting. Is it possible you have exposure turned up (not necessarily by your own doing) in the camera mode and when you switch to video, it doesn't honor the exposure?
Basically what I'm asking is, rather than video mode being dark, is it possible video mode is "normal", ie no adjustments to exposure, and camera mode has exposure upped up, possibly some change/fix that was made to account for an overly dark camera?
I know this makes no "effective" difference to you, but might explain why it behaves differently in camera and video/stitch/etc. mode.
Sometimes it also goes redish dark in picture / still mode too but that can be fixed by pressing home and then returning to it via recents, you can hear the shutter or lens reset.
4.4 gives a slight improvement, it's lighter now hopefully with another tweaked update it'll be fixed.

Getting the most out of my camera

Hey, I'm pretty new to my G4, and I was wondering how to get the most out of my camera.
I haven't downloaded any camera apps or anything, and just use the stock one. For pictures I take, I just leave the settings on auto, seeing as I don't know a whole lot about photography. How could I tweak the custom settings to work better under different circumstances and just get a better picture in general?
The automatic settings will give you great picture under most circumstances. Playing around with the manual settings will involve knowledge of basic photography concepts around ISO, shutter speed, etc. If you want to get into those, YouTube is the best place to start with tutorials
Sent from my VS986 using XDA Free mobile app
Depends how you define better picture. in low light the slowest shutter will be 1/9. is this the best picture at that light ? no. A slower shutter with a lower ISO will get a cleaner shot and will display more. But to use a shutter slower than 1/9 requires you to stabilise the camera some how.
a tripod is one way if you use slow shutters that run into seconds. The G4 can go up to 30 seconds. But to improve over auto's 1/9 a 2 second will improve things noticeably.
on the other side you sometimes want a faster shutter to freeze motion. A slower shutter creates blur and auto might not pick a fast enough shutter. The camera has no idea what you are taking a photo of just a rough guess. If the light isn't enough you will have to pick a higher iso to compensate. If its in daylight then only a faster shutter that might be in the thousandths of a second is required.
other times you want to fix the focus or auto focus won't manage it, this is where manual focus comes into it.
white balance determines the colour, auto white balance does a good enough job but at times can get it wrong, if it looks too cold for your liking a warmer white balance will add yellow. If it looks too warm a colder setting will add blue.
A simple tip is to tap on the screen on your subject before shooting. It will focus there, and it will also set the exposure based on that area. Making your subject sharp, and properly exposed.
But it only holds those settings for maybe 2 seconds, so take the picture quickly after you tap on the screen. Wait too long, and it goes back to assuming you want the center of the frame.
I do this even if my subject is in the middle, as I prefer to let it finish focusing before taking the picture. If it focuses wrong, I may notice it on the screen before shooting.

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