Develop Bugs

Alternative/Best Camera app for op3?

Are Camera apps other than stock that offer same or better quality/focus for crisper images? Just wondering.
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A camera with a much better auto focus is what I am looking for also
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What's the problem with your AF?
Mine works better than on any other phone I've had..

ptoner said:
A camera with a much better auto focus is what I am looking for also
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree, is there one? I saw someone who used Open Camera for "pro" Pictures but i havent tested it out yet.
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Apart from specific features and camera2api compatibility,
I did not find a single app yet which can compete with the stock camera app
in terms of general processing quality.
Sure, sometimes the stock app tends to overprocess images, but I guess they can further tweak this with future updates.
( check this video on this matter: http://www108.zippyshare.com/v/KidtanPE/file.html )
I often noticed that faces tend to be overly processed and thus result smoothed-out. This without using HQ or HDR which is bad!
Judging by this issue, it might be better to enable raw or use another app in specific situations.
In terms of white balance abd focus accuracy, they are all more or less the same.

AcmE85 said:
Sure, sometimes the stock app tends to overprocess images, but I guess they can further tweak this with future updates.
( check this video on this matter: http://www108.zippyshare.com/v/KidtanPE/file.html )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That link is virus as ****.
General balances can be edited but Focus cant. Would be great with an app that locks on a Little better when tapping the screen for Focus.
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markusviktorius said:
That link is virus as ****.
...
Would be great with an app that locks on a Little better when tapping the screen for Focus.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for any inconvenience produced by this link. I am using an adblocker on my OP3 and my PC so I don't have any issues with zippyshare.
Regarding focus, when using the stock camera app you can lock focus by long pressing on a subject.
Personally I don't have focus issues. My only issue is the processing you can see in my video.
It might actually be the reason why some think that pictures are not correctly focused.
They appear sharp at first, but get blurry after processing has been applied.
I can upload somewhere else if you want. Just tell me a hoster.

AcmE85 said:
Sorry for any inconvenience produced by this link. I am using an adblocker on my OP3 and my PC so I don't have any issues with zippyshare.
Regarding focus, when using the stock camera app you can lock focus by long pressing on a subject.
Personally I don't have focus issues. My only issue is the processing you can see in my video.
It might actually be the reason why some think that pictures are not correctly focused.
They appear sharp at first, but get blurry after processing has been applied.
I can upload somewhere else if you want. Just tell me a hoster.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, didnt think you did that on purpose. How about uploading to Youtube? Or any other Place, does not really matter. Oh, i honestly did not know.
I just know that i am too lazy for using the manual tweaks to get perfection?
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markusviktorius said:
How about uploading to Youtube? Or any other Place, does not really matter. Oh, i honestly did not know.
I just know that i am too lazy for using the manual tweaks to get perfection��
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There you go
This is a serious issue OnePlus needs to address and probably the reason many think they have focus issues.

AcmE85 said:
There you go
This is a serious issue OnePlus needs to address and probably the reason many think they have focus issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! Mine does that too but it flickers 3 Times instead of your 1 time.
Yours get blurry the first time and so does mine, but mine moves back and forth one more time before settling with a pic that is as Good or almost as Good as the first pic shown.
Edit: actually now when i look at it it doesnt flicker in Good lighting, just in semi-poor to poor lighting for some reason..
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Yes, it differs with the lighting. It may sound strange but I was actually happier with the OPO in some situations
because it offered more consistency compared to the OP3 (in daylight).
Off course, the overall quality is much better on the OP3, especially in lowlight, but sometimes you won't know what the postprocessing will actually do with the final image,
mostly with slightly moving subjects (I am not talking about motion blur due to slow shutter-speed!).
I already did some pictures from people which appeared great at first inside the gallery, but then got destroyed by postprocessing!

AcmE85 said:
Yes, it differs with the lighting. It may sound strange but I was actually happier with the OPO in some situations
because it offered more consistency compared to the OP3 (in daylight).
Off course, the overall quality is much better on the OP3, especially in lowlight, but sometimes you won't know what the postprocessing will actually do with the final image,
mostly with slightly moving subjects (I am not talking about motion blur due to slow shutter-speed!).
I already did some pictures from people which appeared great at first inside the gallery, but then got destroyed by postprocessing!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have obviously tested other apps such as Open camera and confirmed that the problem stays the same regardless of the app used?
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markusviktorius said:
You have obviously tested other apps such as Open camera and confirmed that the problem stays the same regardless of the app used?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, the OOS Camera App is the only app with this issue because it uses proprietary postprocessing to filter out noise, which is not available for other camera apps.
Other apps use the same "basic" postprocessing which is nearly identical in good lighting, or much worse in bad lighting compared to the OOS Camera.
Google Camera https://abload.de/img/img_20160723_001912tkqmo.jpg
Stock Camera https://abload.de/img/img_20160723_001920t9q4y.jpg
Google Camera https://abload.de/img/img_20160723_002156l7rpb.jpg
Stock Camera https://abload.de/img/img_20160723_002205h1q8y.jpg
In lowlight, no apps beats the OOS camera.
In daylight and depending on the subject you will often get more details with third-party apps, but more noise.
But I need to do more testing, especially when taking pictures of people to really see the differences.
In terms of focusing I did not see a difference. I might test Open Camera later.

For flawless quality, just enable DNG RAW file save and process images yourself. DNG files offer vastly superior dynamic range because the 31 MB files contain all red, green and blue subpixel data, unprocessed.
For wider range of manual controls, I recommend AZ Camera, it has full manual controls for video as well. I also like A Better Camera, I use it's HDR mode which has far superior (albeit grainy) multi-shot processing. Manual Camera is always an option, I just prefer AZ Camera because of video settings and I like AZ Screen recorder.
At the end of the day, stock app image quality is not that bad, though HDR is more denoised since oxygen OS 3.2.2.

It's clear that you can get the most out of a raw file, especially when using additional denoising algorithms on a PC.
This doesn't mean that this is a solution for everyone and we can't discuss this any further.
Some people just want to take their devices and snap the best possible photos without too much of an effort.
I took my fair share of raw photos, but often just don't want to.
In comparison with the OPO for example, the gap between the processed jpeg and the developed dng is not too far away on the OP3.
The OP3's processing still has much room for improvement in auto-mode though, as you can see in my YouTube video.
After some testing I can say that the perfect app highly depends on the lighting conditions.
... I will add more to this post later.

AcmE85 said:
Sorry for any inconvenience produced by this link. I am using an adblocker on my OP3 and my PC so I don't have any issues with zippyshare.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What Ad-Blocker are you using? I have ADP on Chrome but I still got a new window pop-up from that link (AV blocked link). And ADP on my OP3 frickin blocks all internet traffic sometimes, welp most of the times. So on OP3 i only have Ad-Away .. but it's pretty useless.

Adaway on OP3 and uBlock Origin on my PC running Chrome Beta 52.
ABP is slowing down Chrome compared to uBlock.
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/wiki/uBlock-vs.-ABP:-efficiency-compared
/off-topic
Camera comparison
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w3q0it8lgu6hsvl/AABAuFOsk6MKGs7Nn6uMpFXOa?dl=0
For best quality, download the whole package and watch on your PC.
Keep in mind that the Windows 10 standard photos app is a blurry mess and they still did not fix this issue!!!!
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...fea-889b-48e4-8368-1a2d2922dd0c?page=1&auth=1
Use the old picture viewer for example
OxygenOS Camera vs. Google Camera vs. Open Camera (camera2api enabled)
Running on OxygenOS 3.2.2
All pictures were taken handheld on auto-mode, no HQ or HDR or any additional modes enabled.
All with autofocus. All pictures were the first and only shots I did in this situations. I did not have to correct focal points or anything, just aim, snap & done.
What I can say so far is that in daylight (Photos 1, 2 and 5) there is almost no difference when comparing them on the OP3 screen.
Only noticeably difference are plain colored objects. There is still some minimal noise left with Open Camera and Google Camera.
The OOS Camera filters most of it without losing any details.
I have included one photo taken with Open Camera with camera2api disabled and it looks like there is no denoise filter enabled at all.
The exception to the rule is the photo showing Yoda (Photo 3).
At first glance there is no difference. When comparing at 100% crop you can see that the OOS Camera loses some slight details due to postprocessing.
On photo 4 I tried to darken the room. There is one photo which shows the proper lighting in that scene, by manually decreasing the exposure with OOS camera.
The improved postprocessing by the OOS Camera clearly wins here hands down. What can be observed is that all apps increase the exposure.
Weirdly, all have the same shutter-speed (1/17s), but although having the by far least amount of noise, the OOS camera uses a 6400 ISO, the other two a 3200 ISO!
I am pretty sure there is something wrong with exif data on the OOS Camera.
Photo 6 shows the Dark Tower^^
OOS Camera wins again. Once again 6400 vs 3200 ISO.
Photo 7 shows the same results as the first daylight shots.
Photo 8 was taken with artificial lighting. The results are equal to photo 4.
Basically the pictures and processing are identical on the Google Camera and Open Camera.
I had more apps installed, but earlier shots were showing the same results, so I did not include them into this comparison.
The OOS Camera basically wins every time in lowlight.
Daylight pictures are hard to judge as it tends to make them quite clean with its denoising (see Yoda!)
Google and Open Camera show a slightly more noise, but one could argue that they are preserving more detail.
As I already mentioned earlier, the OOS Camera sometimes goes way too far when there is slight movement involved in the scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbn9Lj6F6EM
that includes peoples faces in perfect lighting. I will continue shooting with Google Camera in these occasions to compare
the behaviour to the OOS Camera.
In terms of focus speed and accuracy, all apps performed the same.
I was using CM13 for a day, the day before it got official nightlies, and can say that camera quality
is identical to what you get with Google Camera on Oxygen OS.
Unfortunately this means that when you are going to do lowlight shots, you will get worse results.
I really hope we will get a fully working OOS camera port in the future.
Until then I am forced to stay on OxygenOS.
edit: Before I get any of these posts to just use manual mode or raw, or... this is not the goal of this comparison ok

AcmE85 said:
Yes, it differs with the lighting. It may sound strange but I was actually happier with the OPO in some situations
because it offered more consistency compared to the OP3 (in daylight).
Off course, the overall quality is much better on the OP3, especially in lowlight, but sometimes you won't know what the postprocessing will actually do with the final image,
mostly with slightly moving subjects (I am not talking about motion blur due to slow shutter-speed!).
I already did some pictures from people which appeared great at first inside the gallery, but then got destroyed by postprocessing!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This solved my issue:
https://forums.oneplus.net/threads/...-post-processing.470510/page-14#post-16614706

camera FV-5

Google camera with hdr

RAW Support and long exposures

Hi
Does anyone know if there is a way to save images as RAW in the Moto Z Play?
Also, the manual (pro) mode allows you to change the exposure duration but this seems to be maxed to 1/6 - any way to get to longer exposure times?
Thank you.

No idea about the RAW support but if you want to take long exposure shots there are a few camera apps on the Play Store which should do the trick (Camera FV-5 Lite for example) but I never tried any so you may have to try a few in order to find something you're happy with.

DadOudidOuda said:
No idea about the RAW support but if you want to take long exposure shots there are a few camera apps on the Play Store which should do the trick (Camera FV-5 Lite for example) but I never tried any so you may have to try a few in order to find something you're happy with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cheers! I've got Camera FV-5 installed and it does present longer exposure times, but I cant tell the difference between them and the stock camera photos. For example, photos taken in stock camera at 1/6 look the same as FV5 at 5 second exp. I don't have my phone to hand but will post some examples later.

A331709 said:
Cheers! I've got Camera FV-5 installed and it does present longer exposure times, but I cant tell the difference between them and the stock camera photos. For example, photos taken in stock camera at 1/6 look the same as FV5 at 5 second exp. I don't have my phone to hand but will post some examples later.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not surprised if there's no differences between the 2 but I thought you could make 30 seconds exposure shots with Camera FV-5 (which would surely make a difference with the stock camera)
About RAW support, from what I've read the Z Play doesn't support it unfortunately. You'd need the TrueZoom mod to get RAW support, which is quite an expensive buy.

A331709 said:
Hi
Does anyone know if there is a way to save images as RAW in the Moto Z Play?
Also, the manual (pro) mode allows you to change the exposure duration but this seems to be maxed to 1/6 - any way to get to longer exposure times?
Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Edit: Tried to save RAW with Snap but although it gives me the option I was not able to find a RAW image on my card...
I use the Snap Camera app from Playstore. It's extremely versatile and gives you tons of options and it has RAW support with our Z Play.
It needs some time to try out all options and find out the best for the phone and it also costs a few bucks (although there is a free version too). But I think it's worth it. For example it's also the only app I've found which let's you tourn of the denoise filter which is sometimes very helpfull when making pictures of landscapes which lots of details.
The interface is a little annoying at first but you can turn off everything and build your own interface with the free customizable shortcut buttons (settings - advanced - on screen settings).
It has also a good support on XDA.

Thanks for this. It's odd, camera fv 5 says the phone does not support RAW. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What really bugs me though is the exposure times. I'll give it a try to see what sort of image I get with a 30 sec exposure now.

A331709 said:
Thanks for this. It's odd, camera fv 5 says the phone does not support RAW. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What really bugs me though is the exposure times. I'll give it a try to see what sort of image I get with a 30 sec exposure now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMG image - Stock camera with everything auto and exposure at 1/6s. Looks like garbage.
DSC image - Camera FV 5, everything auto and exposure at 20s. Looks like dark garbage.

If im not mistaken, Camera2API supports raw format. Whenever Lenovo finally enables it (Nougat?) we should be able to export to raw format.

A331709 said:
IMG image - Stock camera with everything auto and exposure at 1/6s. Looks like garbage.
DSC image - Camera FV 5, everything auto and exposure at 20s. Looks like dark garbage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found that long exposure shots have a very limited use :-\

True it's not something you'd use everyday, but it would've been good to have this work as it should. The only other thing I can think of is that they've nerfed it on purpose so the camera mod sells.

noisyriver said:
Edit: Tried to save RAW with Snap but although it gives me the option I was not able to find a RAW image on my card...
I use the Snap Camera app from Playstore. It's extremely versatile and gives you tons of options and it has RAW support with our Z Play.
It needs some time to try out all options and find out the best for the phone and it also costs a few bucks (although there is a free version too). But I think it's worth it. For example it's also the only app I've found which let's you tourn of the denoise filter which is sometimes very helpfull when making pictures of landscapes which lots of details.
The interface is a little annoying at first but you can turn off everything and build your own interface with the free customizable shortcut buttons (settings - advanced - on screen settings).
It has also a good support on XDA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Raw does work if you enable camera 2 api or modify hal lib it works even in camera 1 mode
Sent from my NX503A using XDA Free mobile app

Comparison between stock photos with LineageOS photos?

Since we're not getting the update for Nougat I'm thinking of finally unlocking the phone. The main issue for me is the camera quality. I searched the whole forum but I couldn't find any post comparing the quality of the photos of both ROMs. I was wondering if someone could make a comparison post since it would help a lot of people decide whether to unlock or keep the phone locked.

up! I'm also interested

Stock cam quality is far better than other custom roms btw i am on RR-N-v5.8.2 due to battery and performance i moved from stock to RR.

If you want good photos you must stay to stock rom.
Forget the custom roms for photo quality.

first pic is aosp DU 7.1.1 stock camera
second its imperium stock based 6.0 v10 cam.

raptorddd said:
first pic is aosp DU 7.1.1 stock camera
second its imperium stock based 6.0 v10 cam.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well Stock seems clearly better. Maybe results can be change with different apps. BTW shooting raw is another option. what s ur raw shooting app?

ndhakara said:
Well Stock seems clearly better. Maybe results can be change with different apps. BTW shooting raw is another option. what s ur raw shooting app?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes i zoomed both pics on the cup i could read better on stock clear image.
i use v10 camera stock app.. its here in theme section i beleive.. and freedcam google it for g+ or in playstore has alot of parameters for manual. for raw. for editing snapseed and photoshop express.

Thank's for this thread. Thousands of posts in the thread but no clear statement on this important fact.

Also, the stock camera seems to be able to focus on closer objects than third party cameras using camera API 2. At least with the (excellent) Footej camera app I wasn't able to focus as close in a controlled test.

On cm or lineage use lightroom camera shoot in raw quality problem solved

Thoughts on how (not) to compare image quality especially with third party apps
Preambel:
in this context "stock camera" means whatever LG packaged into the official LG G4 stock roms, in my case Marshmallow. So no V10 backport/sideport or likewise
"third party camera app" refers mostly to me using "ProShot", but in some cases also "FreeDCam"; but is not limited to
third party is simplified an app not from LG; it is mostly available through Play store or via apk sideload. The point is that for comparison it must be available to - and run on - any custom/AOSP based ROM.
honestly I did not yet go to any custom ROM, neither Stock nor AOSP. My 2016 built G4 (H815) didn't boot loop yet and my 2 years warranty is void in a few months. Therefor and because I might have time in late summer I will go from theoretical to practical.
if and when you use automatic modes and respective filter settings of a camera app, you might not be interested in the detail that I am going into. Honestly, that's nothing wrong and maybe a healthy decision!
as I work very often in manual mode and I constantly adjust these settings to get specific results, it is very important to judge in detail, also doing pixel peeping :cyclops:
These are more hypothetical methods for comparison the stock ROM and custom ROM camera performance. It is a subject that bothers me for quite some time. As I stumbled upon this thread I decided to dump methods on how I would - or better will - do the comparison. Please don't be offended because of me ripping apart the previously mentioned methods.
I believe that the methods presented in this thread - to determine quality difference between Stock and Custom/AOSP based ROM - are quite flawed.
Just to analyze the quality it needs most complete EXIF data. Which isn't available in the posted images. (Again, you might be fine by "just looking" at the automatic mode results .) As I use the stock camera app now and then and mainly ProShot I know that these apps differently set Shutterspeed and ISO under same conditions. I guess, which is done by the expectation and goals of the respective developers. So a good comparison would require to set the values manually. Also focus, as far as it can be done precisely (eg. macro and infinite; as I know only "FreeDCam" provides setting it by values in %)
Yes, the basis for comparison should be a raw image. Example: ProShot has an option for noise reduction. It can be set to "NR HQ/LQ/Off". When taking pictures with these settings you (most of the time) can easily distinguished each from the other. Therefor ProShot either uses different and own algorithms, or it can say to Camera2 API (wild guess...) to do more/less noise reduction. Just by this fact, a comparison between the stock camera JPGs and ProShots JPGs isn't enlightening.
Therefor raw/dng files should be better for comparison. BUT there is the next thing: The stock camera saves DNGs with a different bit depth than ProShot. (I just now cannot name a tool to read the bit depth, but you'll find one). Stock camera creates 10bit files where ProShot creates 16bit files (btw, size is about 20MB vs 30MB). I do not know if ProShot just converts the 10bit data and puts it into a 16bit file. But therefor even a comparison between stock and third party RAW/DNG might not be valid, too!!! FreeDCam offers in its "complex" user interface different RAW bitdepths but I never gave it a try.
Btw, I read once (TL;DR) that modern professional cameras "nowadays output 14bit or even 16bit depth" raws. Therefor another wild guess(!) is that the LG G4 truely outputs only 10bit raws - even for ProShot. I got not the slightest idea on how to determine. Do you? Help appreciated!
Not to compare apples and oranges I would rule out in-depth comparison between stock and third party camera apps as the stock app won't be available. As I am already almost only using third party apps even on stock ROM this makes it in the future much easier for me to determine if and how much custom ROMs influence the LG G4 camera and photo quality.
Until now it's theoretical and addresses the methods that I will use myself in the near future. Sorry for making such a fuzz about it. That's all I can offer for now.

HOW TO: FIX the G5 Plus Camera (mods, tools, guides)

UPDATE: Used hide tags to organize this post better and make information easier to find.
Alright, so you've got a shiny new Moto G5 plus, which supposedly has a similar Sony imx sensor as the one found on flagships like the Galaxy S7 and Pixel2. Yet, you are somehow disappointed by the camera's quality.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Turns out the camera sensor on this thing is actually pretty darned good, and the f/1.7 lens is no slouch, however it is being held back by poorly designed software from Moto/Lenovo.
Before I got into the solutions, let me specifically point out the problems I found with the camera so we're on the same page (click to reveal content, or just skip the fixes below):
1) Overzealous Sharpening and aggressive Noise Reduction are the biggest culprits. It almost looks like a bad filter is being applied to your images, turning fine details into mush and contrasty lines like text into something bizarre and artificial looking. The camera is doing this as part of the internal capture process, so this happens no matter what application it is taken in.
2) Highlights clipping earlier than it should. I'd say this might be a function of the camera's sensor more than the hardware, but analyzing RAW data from the sensor (more on that later) in my admittedly unscientific half-hazard naked eye, I'd go out on a limb and say it seems like we're not being shown all the DR the camera is able to see. To the layman: this means brights turn completely white effectively overexposing parts of the image that should otherwise still look OK.
3) The preview/viewfinder mode is even worse at #1 than the captured image is. That is, the preview mode (the video feed you see before you capture the full resolution image) is still applying the sharpening and NR at the same level as the captured image, however since the resolution is lower for the preview, it looks more exaggerated and ugly. This means two things: A) Its hard to tell what the image you take will look like, as the preview is ugly (and you have to hope the final will look better), and B) some apps use the preview feed as their capture method. For example, snapchat and augmented reality apps like Pokemon Go. It just looks terrible.
The good news is that there is a lot that can be done to improve and fix the camera.
The bad news is that almost all of it requires modifying system files. That means those with locked bootloaders (Amazon ad users or those who are afraid of voiding their warranties) might be out of luck.
You don't necessarily need root access, although some of this can be more easily performed with root. I needed to unlock my bootloader and performed most of this within TWRP, but chose to keep my phone otherwise unrooted. I'm going to split this into sections, fixing and improving.
A) FIXING THE IMAGE PROCESSING ISSUES
If you want to remove/circumvent the aggressive sharpening and NR issues (so that apps like snapchat or other camera applications don't look over-processed, including the stock Moto cam), try the following:
1) Chromatix mod. Shout out to @defcomg for finding and adjusting the values that control sharpening and NR in the system libs. See thread here:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/g5-plus/themes/modcamera-aggressive-sharpening-noise-t3604458
There are two sets of files to replace in your system. Chromatix and LIBMM. NOTE: I don't recommend the LIBMM / binning part. Binning is combining pixels together into an averaged single pixel value, effectively reducing resolution to combat noise on the sensor. In other words, instead of having a large possibly noisy image, you get a smaller less noisy picture. But you can always choose to resize the image in post after you take it with the same resulting effect, so I don't see why this would be desirable to do. I recommend just applying the chromatix mod to remove the sharpening and NR. If you're comfortable using TWRP, there's actually a flashable zip in post #9, which is what I personally did (again, remember I'm not rooted, so I needed to flash/overwrite/etc within TWRP).
After applying this mod, even the stock camera app looks better, and apps that use the live preview (Snapchat, Pokemons AR view, etc) don't have the shadow ghosting from excessive sharpening anymore either. You might want to apply some sharpening and NR in post yourself if the image requires it, but thats always something you can choose but at least you have control over it and even without doing that it looks far better and more natural than stock to me.
2) Enable camera2 API. This doesn't have a direct effect on quality, but will allow other apps to have more direct access to the camera. If you want to improve beyond the results of #1 above, you'll need this.
The stock rom, surprisingly, has Camera2 API included, however it is disabled by the build.prop file. Again, no idea why Moto/Lenovo chose to do this, but the good news is you can enable it again easily. To do this, you need to add the following line to the build.prop
persist.camera.HAL3.enabled=1
Or if rooted, via terminal / shell:
su persist.camera.HAL3.enabled 1
Once this is enabled, you can use apps such as the modified freedcam to shoot RAW, as found here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/g5-plus/how-to/how-to-enable-camera2-shoot-raw-root-t3582392
I found RAW from this app particularly difficult to work with, so I'm keeping it for experimentation purposes but for practical real-world usage, I'd recommend the next item below.
B) IMPROVING YOUR PHOTOS (or, how to install Google Camera!)
Section A was all about how to avoid the crummy filters that get automatically applied to the camera. But your device is capable of even BETTER photos by using Google's magic HDR+ algorithm (the special sauce that makes the Pixel phones so awesome). Here's how to do that:
1) If you haven't already enabled the Camera2 API, you need to do that first (info in section A above).
2) Get a working version of Google Camera with HDR+ for your phone. The last available 32-bit version with HDR+ is Gcam 4.2, so if you're on the stock ROM like I am, you're stuck with only the 32-bit versions (all the new versions with the bells and whistles are 64-bit only). The image quality is remarkably better, both in sharpness and dynamic range in almost any light. I have to admit, I'm in love with the images from this, and have even printed some for my wall.
You can get the APK ported from the Nexus 5x version here:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=74081041&postcount=3
UPDATE: New version from Savitar on post #44!
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=75483974&postcount=44
Problem is, our cameras use a different focus system than phones like the Nexus and Pixel. So, in photo mode, it doesn't really work correctly. Switching over to video mode, however, DOES work (likely using contrast detection focus, which is slower but more universal, especially for video focus). So the workaround is to swipe over to video mode, focus, swipe back to photos and press-and-hold to lock focus. It's annoying, but HDR+ is that good that I still try to work with it much of the time.
For times that it would be frustrating or not necessary, I'll just resort to the stock camera app or Footej camera, since the chromatix mod makes them mostly usable now. Just not ZOMG AMAZING like the Google HDR+ does.
OPTIONAL #3) Install a 64-bit custom Rom and use the latest Google Camera HDR+ app floating around (v4.4). The recent versions B-S-G released based on the Pixel camera has options to change camera modes in settings, some combination of which supposedly focus properly. You will likely get a more stable camera app experience with this as it requires less modification to work, but you'll have to be committed enough to go off stock.
Check out the app and suggested settings to try here:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=74999182&postcount=19
Thanks @shanks125 for the info!
Update 1/3/18: I just heard there is a port of the new portrait mode feature from the Pixel2 that is sort of working on 64-bit roms, but I think some modifications will need to be made to avoid focus drift like previous modded gcam versions.
There is also a 32-bit version of the new v4.4 that @Aby lad came up with in this thread:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/google-camera-4-4-arm-device-t3666090
In order to make it more compatible with other devices, it looks like he has disabled the Hexagon DSP, which I think is what makes HDR+ work, so while we can now change settings and focus, HDR+ isn't working. The app still has some Google goodies like Sphere and Blur mode, but without HDR+ the real benefit of Google camera is lost anyway. Might as well use stock with chromatix mod at that point.
Hope some of you find this helpful/useful!
UPDATE 12/28/17: New GCam with 6P features on post #14.

There actually may be some alternate versions of the gcam apk with benefits the one originally linked above doesn't have. I will try to update when if/when I find them.

Dishe said:
There actually may be some alternate versions of the gcam apk with benefits the one originally linked above doesn't have. I will try to update when if/when I find them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would be useful!

So if I apply the chromatic mode, do I still have to enable the Camera2 API?

It's my bad. I would like to know if there is a way to disable Camera2 api. I am on Linage 14.1 and I edited my prop.build (yeah, I know). I switched back to the original line of code, but camera app still crashing. How to revert without reflashing the rom? Thanks.
edit. reflashed.

iBART said:
It's my bad. I would like to know if there is a way to disable Camera2 api. I am on Linage 14.1 and I edited my prop.build (yeah, I know). I switched back to the original line of code, but camera app still crashing. How to revert without reflashing the rom? Thanks.
edit. reflashed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try clearing data+cache for the camera app?

iamsonal said:
So if I apply the chromatic mode, do I still have to enable the Camera2 API?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, but it doesn't hurt to so why not? Some apps will have more options in camera2 if enabled.

iBART said:
It's my bad. I would like to know if there is a way to disable Camera2 api. I am on Linage 14.1 and I edited my prop.build (yeah, I know). I switched back to the original line of code, but camera app still crashing. How to revert without reflashing the rom? Thanks.
edit. reflashed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is another way to enable camera2 api if you're using a custom ROM. You need to flash a magisk module.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=74081041&postcount=3

Which Google camera works in a complete stock g5? I keep getting a praising error with every one I try.

eemgee said:
Which Google camera works in a complete stock g5? I keep getting a praising error with every one I try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Parsing error means you are probably trying to use a 64-bit or one made for a different version of Android (7.1 instead of 7.0). The one linked above will work.
However, all recent versions of Google's Camera require the camera2 api to work. That's one of the primary reasons to enable the Camera2 api in my opinion. It comes in the stock rom, but it is disabled for some inexplicable reason (G5S model has it enabled, so some people are hoping that we'll get it enabled with an update or at least when Oreo rolls around). The good news is that it only takes one line of text in the build.prop file to enable it on the G5+. However, the bad news is that build.prop is part of the protected system partition, so editing it requires root-level file access. Doesn't seem to be any way to do that without unlocking the bootloader, so either way you won't be able to do it on a 100% stock g5+ as things are right now.

Thanks i managed to get 2.7 working.
I will unlock the bootloader at some point in the next few weeks....

There is also a Magisk module in post #54 on that Chromatix thread. Really helpful!

Hi, so in search for better images from my g5+ camera I stumbled upon this place and rooted my phone to add the chromatix mods and edit the build.prop file .
I downloaded the google camera port v4.2 for the hdr+ but have been unable to install it as I get the error that package may be corrupted.
So could someone please link me to one which is good or upload it.
And BIG thanks to this community.

New gcam from savitar
UPDATE: Better gcam version from Savitar/Defcomg
http://s000.tinyupload.com/?file_id=00826724446841525700
Features:
Burst Mode (hold shutter button)
Focus doesn't drift when switching from video mode (this is a huge fix IMO- old app would drift after setting focus in video mode).
Selfie cam now has HDR as well (with caveats)
RAW image capture with each photo!
Instructions for use are largely the same as the old app, but it works better / more reliably now:
WHEN USING APP FOR THE FIRST TIME, GO INTO SETTINGS AND CHANGE VIDEO TO 4K. This will prevent FCs.
To take a picture:
1) Swipe left to switch to video mode, tap to focus
2) Once focus is achieved, swipe right to return to photo mode. (Focus should not drift in this version)
3) Tap the area again in photo mode, and hit the shutter button.
NOTES:
It appears that you no longer need to press-and-hold to lock focus in photo mode before shooting. I believe this is because the focus system doesn't adjust anymore in photo mode (I'm guessing Savitar/Defcomg removed it to combat that focus drifting problem). It is already locked at wherever you put it in video mode. You DO however need to still tap the screen as if you are focusing. I think this is because the camera needs to think it is focusing, but it is anyway helpful to tap somewhere for metering / exposure reading purposes. Skipping the press-and-hold to lock focus makes it a lot more manageable.
This version of the app is setup to shoot RAW+Jpeg, so you will find your camera roll will have both a jpeg and DNG file of the shot. Be aware that the RAW DNG files are multiple times larger than the jpeg, so you may want to keep an eye on storage if you shoot a lot of them. They're really useful if you want to adjust WB and exposure afterwards, quality is astoundingly good.
Selfie Mode was broken in HDR+ on earlier builds because for some reason the front camera on our phone doesn't return an ISO value to the app (says iso is zero). The HDR+ algorithm would fail. Savitar/defcomg fixed it by setting it always return a value (he picked 100, otherwise it would overexpose in daylight). The catch is that in lower lighting, the selfie HDR+ comes out darker than expected. Thankfully you can take the RAW file and adjust the exposure in post if needed (snapseed, Lightroom mobile, etc). But there might be times it is just too dark to be useful. The difference when it works is big enough that I recommend it trying it at least once to compare.
ENJOY!
Big shout out to @defcomg for this and all his awesome mods!

Landscape gcam 6p
A modified version of the APK above is available which starts the camera off focused at infinity.
http://s000.tinyupload.com/?file_id=31694573387513766779
This was made for people who want to shoot landscapes and/or things far enough away that they don't want to deal with focusing (swipe to video mode, etc). See a beautiful sunset for example, open this app, tap the sky and hit the shutter. Its already focused in the right position.
Otherwise identical to previous post's apk. Can be installed side-by-side, as each app has its own ID.

can't use gcam because it crashes at first run

marcol87 said:
can't use gcam because it crashes at first run
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do u have camera2 API enabled?

Dishe said:
UPDATE: Better gcam version from Savitar/Defcomg
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for sharing this.

Add this, BSG GCam MOD with working HDR+ and Touch to Focus for 64bit roms. Settings as per attachment! https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=889964283620770378

Dishe said:
Do u have camera2 API enabled?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, I added persist.camera.HAL3.enabled=1 to build.prop and rebooted
Dishe said:
persist.camera.HAL3.enabled=1or
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ps: the string persist.camera.HAL3.enabled=1 is wrong in the OP

Question Question about photo image size

Hi guys, I have a problem regarding Pixel 6Pro photo image size. not sure if any of you might have already noticed.
Image size of my previous Pixel 4XL is generally around 3-4MB. However the image size of Pixel 6 Pro is generally around 2-3MB. Photos taken from both phones are in 4:3 with full resolutions in Google Camera settings.
One more interesting discovery is, once I make any tiny adjustment in edit mode (e.g. increase brightness by 1), the photo size is immediately boosted up to 8-10MB from a photo having original size of around 3MB. Also, I found that the image is not very detailed when I take a steady picture of flower under great weather, when compared to iPhone 13 Pro. Lots of details of the flowers are lost.
I personally expect and indeed prefer having the larger image size right after capturing, as it might theoretically include finer image details.

Hi @junocaj. You can always enable JPG+RAW saving in Advanced Settings, although from my understanding, working with RAW files really requires a lot of professional work, as by default it won't look as good as the JPG (or other image formats - not that there's a choice for other formats with the Google Camera app).
You can also try a different camera app and see if you like the results better, although the Google Camera app will likely have new features from time to time that gives it some advantages. It all depends on what you, as a user, want the most out of your camera app.

@roirraW "edor" ehT . Yeah, I understand that can enable JPG+RAW for professional photo editing.
just that I am a little confused on why the image size of a 3MB picture can be boosted up to 8-10MB right after a super minor editing. It appears to me that the picture size is originally 8-10MB, just that for some reason it is compressed down to 3MB, even I have set the resolution to be full resolution in settings.
Ain't sure if the details of the picture is erased by such compression by the AI. The reason I raised this observation was that one day I used iPhone 13Pro to take a picture at the same spot together with P6P, iPhone output a jpg of around 10MB directly, and lots of details is maintained, while the picture of P6P is around 2-3MB.

@junocaj As to the smaller size of the original file, it could be a change in the JPEG compression they use. Sometimes only lowering the JPEG compression value by a little bit results in a much smaller size while still looking good. Also, the AI possibility as you mention - i.e. maybe on the P6P the Google Camera app is able to routinely save JPEGs at the same compression setting as on previous Pixels but with AI work is still able to reduce the size.
There are several possibilities for the change in size. The new file could be including the editing steps you took - so that you can restore the original. It could also be keeping the edited file in a less compressed state for some reason.
All that above is just speculation on my part.
Sizes of image files definitely aren't the final determination in quality, either. Even a PNG file (not talking about on the phone) can be optimized and take up a lot less space while losing zero data compared to the original file.

I have noticed this too. The P6pros pictures are heavily compressed. I have pictures from my Nexus 6p and pixel 2 that are larger size with fewer artifacts.
One way was to use a Gcam mod that has jpeg picture size selection. At 100% quality the jpegs are 8-13MB. This really does help with details.

86rickard said:
I have noticed this too. The P6pros pictures are heavily compressed. I have pictures from my Nexus 6p and pixel 2 that are larger size with fewer artifacts.
One way was to use a Gcam mod that has jpeg picture size selection. At 100% quality the jpegs are 8-13MB. This really does help with details.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@86rickard would you mind sharing where could I get this gcam mod?

I'm guessing Google have set the compression around 80%, mine are always 2.5MB to 4.5MB dependant on how many colours are in the image, very similar to the size they were from my Pixel 5 which given the image is all but the same size isn't a surprise.
I have never understood why all the phone makers cant just include a compression slider and let the user choose. Re-editing a compressed photo and resaving it and it being significantly bigger is par for the course, that's nothing new.
All that said i cant say my photos are absolutely terrible or full of artefacts even after Google Photos has compressed them even further.

junocaj said:
@86rickard would you mind sharing where could I get this gcam mod?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MWP GCam APKs - Google Camera Port
Modified Google Camera app by MWP.
www.celsoazevedo.com

MrBelter said:
I'm guessing Google have set the compression around 80%, mine are always 2.5MB to 4.5MB dependant on how many colours are in the image, very similar to the size they were from my Pixel 5 which given the image is all but the same size isn't a surprise.
I have never understood why all the phone makers cant just include a compression slider and let the user choose. Re-editing a compressed photo and resaving it and it being significantly bigger is par for the course, that's nothing new.
All that said i cant say my photos are absolutely terrible or full of artefacts even after Google Photos has compressed them even further.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Playing with the gcam mod above its about 30-50%. Depending on the details in the image. It looks like the camera app is choosing a compression rate based on details too.
Needless to say in low light, noise reduction and jpeg compression make for a poor image.

@86rickard Great! thanks very much!
Found that the latest version that have the JPG quality option is the Gcam_8.3.252_V2.0_MWP one. Perfect to have the uncompressed output! I will try it out more comparing this mod against the stock gcam, lovely.
86rickard said:
MWP GCam APKs - Google Camera Port
Modified Google Camera app by MWP.
www.celsoazevedo.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

junocaj said:
@86rickard Great! thanks very much!
Found that the latest version that have the JPG quality option is the Gcam_8.3.252_V2.0_MWP one. Perfect to have the uncompressed output! I will try it out more comparing this mod against the stock gcam, lovely.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the MWP Pixel gcam mod is great (use the first non-beta in the list)
You can force higher quality and HDR+ enhanced (and also change the custom libs option to MWP_xHDR in Mod Settings). this mod is a gamechanger for the 6 series.

I wonder how long it will be before they start sending cease and desist letters to distributors of these hacked versions of gcam like they did for utube?
Another option besides these that will work for a lot of people, is to use alternate camera software. GrapheneOS Camera, for example, works very well. Its not as "feature rich" as gcam maybe, but the default compression is less, and you can override the default by specifying a jpeg quality level.

my p6 pro is my first pixel. i noticed something that might answer your question. when you save a photo after editing it, the default is to save with the ability to revert to original. if you select save as a copy, the original data is not included in the file.

96carboard said:
I wonder how long it will be before they start sending cease and desist letters to distributors of these hacked versions of gcam like they did for utube?
Another option besides these that will work for a lot of people, is to use alternate camera software. GrapheneOS Camera, for example, works very well. Its not as "feature rich" as gcam maybe, but the default compression is less, and you can override the default by specifying a jpeg quality level.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I think the issue with YouTube was the lack of ads Google was losing money on. There are no ads in Gcam but stupid stuff happens and one will never know what a big tech company may do in the future

Alekos said:
the MWP Pixel gcam mod is great (use the first non-beta in the list)
You can force higher quality and HDR+ enhanced (and also change the custom libs option to MWP_xHDR in Mod Settings). this mod is a gamechanger for the 6 series.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried iso and exposure adjustments but it seems that its not working.

86rickard said:
Playing with the gcam mod above its about 30-50%. Depending on the details in the image. It looks like the camera app is choosing a compression rate based on details too.
Needless to say in low light, noise reduction and jpeg compression make for a poor image.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that's low light for you, unless you are letting the phone do its stacking magic sensor noise as the ISO increases will get worse and worse which then makes everything else a problem. Upping the ISO on a digital camera isn't like it was with film, all you are doing is pushing the exposure which then brings any noise and artefacts to in to view, you aren't making anything more sensitive and it isn't doing anything you couldn't do with the exposure slider in an editing package.
I am sure Google will tweak it in the months to come but i'd sure like the option to lower compression in the standard app or better still save night shots as a PNG so there is no banding in the image, maybe it is time to bite the bullet and introduce HEIC.

86rickard said:
MWP GCam APKs - Google Camera Port
Modified Google Camera app by MWP.
www.celsoazevedo.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is a great Camera Mod. I'm not the photographer some of you are, but the options oin this are really nice.

Mangtas_666 said:
I tried iso and exposure adjustments but it seems that its not working.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HDR+ enhanced has to be enabled. The ISO/exposure adjustment won't work on ZSL (zero shutter lag) aka HDR+. Should work in Night Sight mode as well.

jericho246 said:
HDR+ enhanced has to be enabled. The ISO/exposure adjustment won't work on ZSL (zero shutter lag) aka HDR+. Should work in Night Sight mode as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the info Jericho246 i appreciate it.

junocaj said:
Hi guys, I have a problem regarding Pixel 6Pro photo image size. not sure if any of you might have already noticed.
Image size of my previous Pixel 4XL is generally around 3-4MB. However the image size of Pixel 6 Pro is generally around 2-3MB. Photos taken from both phones are in 4:3 with full resolutions in Google Camera settings.
One more interesting discovery is, once I make any tiny adjustment in edit mode (e.g. increase brightness by 1), the photo size is immediately boosted up to 8-10MB from a photo having original size of around 3MB. Also, I found that the image is not very detailed when I take a steady picture of flower under great weather, when compared to iPhone 13 Pro. Lots of details of the flowers are lost.
I personally expect and indeed prefer having the larger image size right after capturing, as it might theoretically include finer image details.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How in the world did you get a photo from pixel 6 pro over 1 MB in size... I took a beautiful full rainbow shot, which looks nice, but when I downloaded it it was only 116 kb in size. Way to small for my tastes. 1036 x 780. Very disappointed and can't find any settings except for higher resolution which is selected.