Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I've seen several people mentioning this, and it seems to be a common problem.. N900's camera quality is poor, and so far it's by biggest disappointment,
because my N73 gave me a much better result..

I work with documents alot, and N73 was good enough to give me a pic with readable text, but N900 gives me a blurry image and obviously unreadable text...
Some people suggested removing the back, but i don't see any difference in the result
Did they really put a 5MP camera?

Here are the pics comparison :

N900 - normal

http://i44.tinypic.com/2afcsvb.jpg

N900- without back

http://i44.tinypic.com/xtvrm.jpg

Now compare it with the result from my N73

http://i44.tinypic.com/2q9kkxs.jpg

As you can see removing the back didn't make any difference for me..
Is this a software issue or hardware?
I really hope it's software though..

So is there any fix for this ?

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

i dont remember so bad document pictures with my n900.

attach the document (check no personal information here please) so we can print it and take a picture, for comparison.

also, install the lux widget (i dont remember the name) so you can tell us how much ambient light are you using with the pictures

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Forgive me if this sounds too obvious, but I was very disappointed with the camera at first too -- until I figured out you need to just very lightly hold down the shutter button until the focus lines go green. Bam, focused, good pictures.

Seems simple, but I really tried for like 30 minutes in heavy frustration before figuring it out. I guess there is a point to reading manuals.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

@deny_winarto
I took two pics of an A4 sheet in zero light conditions, using the flash. Back cover on in case you are wondering.

Results:

Normal Mode
http://i40.tinypic.com/erijo0.jpg

Macro Mode
http://i44.tinypic.com/9uaqko.jpg

Conclusion: Try using Macro mode, it seems to help out quite a bit :)

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I find that the camera needs time to focus first. I usually press the shutter button half way for about 1 to 2 sec before making the shot. Once it has focus and the image is sharp on screen, the resulting picture is always sharp. I've taken many pictures of documents with my N900 this way without any problem.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Wow thanks alot,
i guess you're right, but i don't see it in my user manual :p
And i don't think N73 used it either right? I always got good resukt with N73 even without autofocus
Another thing, the focus line doesn't always go to green, sometimes it goes red, especially when i point it down..
Does this mean the autofocus failed or something?

Thanks, i'll keep that in mind

Well overall i've been getting better result with autofocus..
I'm relieved because i thought it was hardware issue :p
Still i don't understand why the quality is so poor without auto focus?

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I agree its a bit counterintuitive, not like most digicams or cameraphones Ive used; but once I got used to it, I like it; it focuses much faster than some dedicated cameras Ive used.

And definitely try macro; I always use macro mode for photographing documents; I've done about 100 pages worth in the week Ive had the phone, all turned out great, even OCR readable (via Adobe Reader on my PC).

If the lines are red, the light might be too low, or it could just be thinking; try again, or try to get more light on it.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Got it, so it's Autofocus + Macro Mode..

Still i'm a bit dissapointed because my N73 would still give better result even without autofocus, and i took multiple pictures faster with it..
This time i have to wait 3 sec before taking a pic or else i'll get crappy, blurry pic

Hope they fix this in the next update

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

You didn't first use macro mode when taking picture that close?

What do you have to wait for 3 seconds? Autofocus?

They will only fix things that has been reported and confirmed (by couple of people only one is not enough) and chosen to be bug that can be fixed.
https://bugs.maemo.org/

.edit
Found one report
https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=7224
But as you can see there is not enough instructions how to reproduce it.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I read some people with Nseries phones claim that their camera quality was better after software update.. So i hope we can expect the same with N900
I think there's already enough people complaining about this
http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=36675&page=16
I hope Nokia really fix this :)

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

It's a feature, not a bug ;) If you press the camera button fully in one go, the camera assumes you want a picture as fast as possible, and it skips focus. Can be quite useful actually. I think it uses a preset of about 1 meter, but I could be wrong.

In my experience it is not necessary to use the macro mode for taking pictures of an A4/Letter size document, or even a part of it. It is much more important not to move the device.

Also, if you want manual focus, install Ifocus. (Quite unique for a phone!). For taking real close-up macro shots it beats the macro mode.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Whoah..
That's is totally different thing what you are having here. Focus Problem...not hazy. And if you read through that thread you will notice that people are getting really different results. I asked many times to people reproduce it and make instructions without no luck. And also i tried to make instructions to reproduce it but with no luck. So basically we got nothing :|

Also bear in mind that in that topic there is THREE issues people are having.
- First is greenish pictures once in a while
- Second is hazy pictures because silver bezel on sitsuations that are really hard to reproduce
- Thirdly blueish pictures because of lens covers edge.

You can't just say that "hopefully they fix it". Fix what? All things above. I too hope that, but if we are not able to reproduce them then it´s impossible to fix them and also i think that camera might actually be victim of bad design to point that it's not possible to fix all things by software.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

WoW....Holly Crap!

Did NOT KNOW that.....10 times better....:D

Check this out: Can you tell which one is taken with your recommendation!

Thanks

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Whoa easy there :),
I'm not here for a debate or something, i bought it for 600$ and i was just dissapointed because my 200$ phone could give me better camera result.
You sound like you are the one who made this phone :D

I'm beginning to think i got a defect or broken product,

take a look at this pic

[IMG[http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/1258/n9001.jpg[/IMG]

it's a photo by Shady 91 from this thread http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=38660&page=34

Now i'm trying to replicate the quality by trying out the best options
(5 MP, macro mode, trying various EV, etc)

And this is what i got :

http://i41.tinypic.com/s24l0m.jpg

You can see that the quality is lower, and also the size is smaller,
the first one is 700KB and mine is only 400KB...

What settings do i have use to get that quality level?
Also my biggest concern is that i have to use auto focus every time i take a pic of a document, else the pic will be unreadable..

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

If it's not included / listed there it is a bug worth to file in bugs.maemo.org > User Guide & Help content.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Either is a user error or your phone is faulty....If I focus properly on an A4 paper I get crystal clear pictures.....also, you need more light to take good pictures ( your 1st pictures seem to be taken in a cave of something!)....try it during the day with plenty of light and see if you get the same results.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Shoot in sunlight :) But seriously, you will never-ever be able to compare an outdoors shot with an indoors one (no, light from windows and doors do NOT make up for the difference).

As for paper focusing - there is a case where when the flash is enabled and the focus assist light gets too much reflection on the paper, occasionally blinding the focus software. Tilt the N900 slightly less perpendicular to the paper and focus, then realign (without releasing the focus button !) to take the actual shot (or simply disable flash if you have enough light).

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I really hope it's not faulty.. for a $600 phone it's quite ashame
the first pic was taken inside my room, but even without good lighting, N73 still gave me better result (third pic)

Problem is, i've tried to take the shot so many times but the result is the same, blurry text... So i think that's not the case...
And yes, with Autofocus i get better result, but it's still worse than my N73.
I think the design is causing the camera to be in unstable position and therefore blurred the pic..

Can i ask you guys a favor?
Could you take a pic of an image with text with your N900, WITHOUT Autofocus.. then tell me if whether the text is readable or not...
And also please check your box and see where your phone was made.. mine is Made in Korea

thanks

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Here are a couple of pictures I don't know how to disable autofocus so I just took some text from a magazine in 5mp mode and in 3.5 mp mode. No flash and indoors under fluorescent lighting.


5mp

http://media.share.ovi.com/m1/s/1993...3689eef4db.jpg

3.5 mp widescreen

http://media.share.ovi.com/m1/s/1993...6d9d2570d1.jpg

I find the pq on the N900 to be better than my N78 which had much better optics than the N73. I wish it could focus a little faster and had better night capabilities (supposedly improved with pr 1.2).

edit : Designed in Finland made in Korea

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Thanks,
Wow, my N900 can never get to that quality..made in Korea as well? i guess it's not manufacturing problem

At first I thought the lense was scracthed or something, so i went to the store where i bought this, tried 3 different N900, and surprisingly,
ALL of them gave similar result, blurry and unreadable text image

So I think there are some possibilities :
1. All the phones shipped to my city (Yogyakarta, Indonesia) are faulty or in "second grade" condition..
2. Latest Firmware causing this problem..Or basically just a software not a hardware problem

I really hope it's the second one though...
I;m going to the repair center tommorow and see if they can help me...

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

here's another pic that i took without Autofocus :

http://i40.tinypic.com/azdr8y.jpg

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

What do you have against autofocus?

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Nothing, it's just that i saw alot of people getting excellent pics WITHOUT autofocus...:(

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Deny I think that all pictures will be terrible apart from infinite focus (ie far away buildings etc) without autofocus. Try switching the image quality to 5mp, turn on Macro or Automatic mode, and turn off the flash. Half press the button till the lines turn green and the chime sounds and then slowly press the shutter button the whole way down without moving the N900.
I would agree with you if you were trying to shoot moving objects on the street but a document on a desk is as controlled circumstances as you can get.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

fix in PR1.2

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

A proper shutter button on most cell phones and every point-and-shoot camera I've used has been two-stage. Meaning you lightly hold the button until the camera focuses, then you press it the rest of the way to take the picture.

If you want a good picture after jamming the button (no autofocus), you need more light (your pics are all too dark, and the picture with the turtle was being washed out by the front-facing light coming from the door).

I do not think this is a case of defective equipment.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Also, the ever-true photographer advice. Don’t press the shutter button, SQUEEZE and wait for a second. I have seen quite a few persons taking consistently bad photos because of this - they press heavily on the top button (or start moving the camera the instant they press the button) so the whole phone/body is slightly moving while making the photo, resulting in a blurry shot.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Yeah, probably didn't hold the focus. I just took a photo of a document and it was excellent image and easy to read.http://i41.tinypic.com/35it7nr.jpg

I used Macro mode to take this image.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

As far as the chrome trim or the blue on the shutter door....has anyone ever heard of black paint???

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

This is what you get with no flash and no proper lighting, made instantly to the first sheet of paper lying on my desk.

Just remember to focus first,

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/7946/20100501002.jpg

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Back cover doesn't do anything - the back cover has no lens. It is pointless to attempt anything in that vein.

Focus is key.

I also have no issue with the chrome trim and the blue on the shutter door...

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

May be the reason is that N900 doesn't have active focussing means it no more focuses again when you fully press the shutter key. In support to this, I would say that this is the only reason why the videos taken by the device are blurred when we shift the subjects located at considerable distance.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

Learn to work with the device and be one with the device. Testing out the functions then you'll find the combination. The camera is good only if you know how to make it work. Stop the silly post about the quality when you all you do is trying to taking picture with quantity. Press Hold half way to focus, steady and ready then you press harder to capture then you'll never miss :-)

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

i only learned to use the camera properly yesterday too and i was amazed at the quality after learning about the half press focus button, took a pic of an old battered paper school photo from the 70's, i even photoshopped the tomatoe sauce stains off my shirt lol!
the result:
(go on have a laugh at the strange kid!)
http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/2963/tutty.jpg

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

I can understand why people feel confused - the distance between unpressed to half press is quite big compared to that from half press to full press. On normal P&S cameras the difference in 'distance' is smaller.

Re: Any fix for the Hazy Camera?
 

NOICE! perfect steady hand right there :) you've got talents, LEE. LOL. Nice picture by the way :)