Camera: Is That Actually You, LG?

Like with a range of the top Android smartphones, LG has gone for a Sony sensor in the G2's camera module. The sensor is a 13-megapixel Sony Exmor RS IMX135 1/3.06" backside illuminated CMOS unit with ane.12 μm pixels, and it'southward paired with an f/2.iv lens with a 4.0 mm focal length (29mm at 35mm conversion). The entire module is optically stabilized through a arrangement that counteracts movements with data provided past a gyroscope.

Video recording capabilities include 1080p/60 video at xxx Mbps, 1080p/thirty at 20 Mbps, and some interesting software implementations such as tracking zoom and audio zoom. In that location's as well a 2.i megapixel forepart-facing camera capable of 1080p/30 video.

In strong lighting, the G2 is capable of some spectacular images. The processing software and firmware aboard the device manage to become color reproduction and white residuum very accurate, with the selected exposure and ISO often existence perfect. The sensor also exhibits decent dynamic range, which brings the details of shadows to life; if you demand more dynamic range, a fantastic HDR mode volition make high-dissimilarity images look even ameliorate.

The f/2.4 lens is fairly decent as far as smartphone glass goes: images look sharp and there'southward a reasonable corporeality of item when looking at a 100% crop (especially at 13 megapixels). Bokeh is weak and there'due south not much room for creative utilise of depth of field, as you would expect, but you are able to focus reasonably close when needed. The 29mm-effective focal length is perfect for most applications, allowing y'all to capture subjects without needing to be too far away.

Moving indoors, or shooting in more cloudy situations, and the G2's camera implementation struggles a footling more than I saw with the Galaxy S4 (which uses an identical sensor). Photos appear slightly washed out and less vibrant than you would wait, which is probable an upshot of the automatic selection of the wrong white balance and exposure. However, information technology's still possible to get decent photos in these sorts of weather condition, specially if you brand some slight manual adjustments to the settings.

Under artificial lighting at night, the G2's camera again performs passably, but not amazingly. More often than not, photos are sharp and bright enough that they're usable, although in some situations grain and heavy post processing tin impact the terminal quality. With optical image stabilization compensating for a small pixel size, y'all can use the G2's camera without a flash in quite dark situations, but the darker it gets, the less quality you lot'll experience.

Night photography – oftentimes a big talking betoken for smartphone cameras these days – is the best I've seen from an Exmor RS-packing device, thanks once more to OIS. However, the 1.12 μm pixel size and f/two.4 lens isn't the perfect combination for low-low-cal photography, with significantly less calorie-free being allow in compared to the ii.0 μm pixels and f/ii.0 lens on the HTC One, for example. Despite the inclusion of OIS significantly enhancing the G2's night imaging capabilities, it falls behind the amend optics of the HTC I and Lumia 925.

LG's chosen ii.1-megapixel front facing camera is surprisingly decent if you take the correct lighting, capturing images that are sharper than I've seen from other front-facing units. All the same, it'southward still only suitable for the occasional selfie and video call, with the rear camera being significantly ameliorate.

In trying to compete with the Milky way S4 showtime and foremost, the LG G2 comes with a strong suite of camera features, from the usual HDR, panorama and burst shot modes, to some interesting additions. Like with many other flagship devices, the camera's ability to take quick burst shots comes in useful for a range of shooting modes: 'Shot & Clear' allows yous to remove unwanted groundwork objects, while 'Time Catch Shot' takes a burst of photos before and subsequently you press the shutter so you don't miss that crucial shot.

Alongside a standard panorama style, LG has also kept in Android 4.2's Photo Sphere mode, renaming it to 'VR Panorama'. By continually panning around a scene, VR panorama constructs a virtual, Google Street View-similar array of images, which you lot can re-enter later and pan effectually. Other photo modes include 'Beauty Shot' (a high luminance filter), 'Sports' (forced quick shutter speed) and 'Night' (forced long shutter speed).

The G2 also features both a photograph and video manner that allows yous to capture from both the front and rear cameras simultaneously. I couldn't actually find a serious use for this feature, because I never found it necessary to include my face aslope whatever I was photographing, but information technology could come in handy for some people (mayhap).

Although one of my favorite smartphone video modes, slow motion, is missing from the LG G2'southward video recording features, the device is capable of recording 1080p at both 30 and 60 frames per 2nd. While the latter takes upward a bit more space when recording, it gives significantly more clarity and realism, making videos look very much like existent life. Quality is likewise very good from the Exmor RS sensor, and although optical stabilization doesn't compensate as much every bit the system found in Nokia's Lumia phones, it yet helps smooth out pans and shakes. I had some slight issues with automated focusing, but this was only when moving towards and away from close objects reasonably quickly.

Like with the still photograph modes, there's a few video modes to play with. You lot can alter faces as yous're recording with the 'Live Effects' style, and 'Tracking Zoom' allows you to, as y'all're recording, select a minor surface area of the screen to magnify. Unfortunately the Tracking Zoom mode only records video at 720p, and information technology doesn't automatically track objects equally they motility across the screen, making it not every bit useful equally I had hoped.

This is actually the first LG-produced smartphone that I've used that packs a decent camera. Like usual, Sony's Exmor RS sensor is very capable of producing awesome daylight shots, and the inclusion of OIS assists with depression-light photography. It may not be the best all-circular photographic camera that'southward available on a smartphone, but a stiff feature set and decent image quality complements other solid areas of this device.