The trials and tribulations of the CameraBerry

Posted

on April 2, 2007, at 8:17 AM

So, one of my little things that I do from time to time is check Flickr, search “BlackBerry”, and see if there’s anything newsworthy to post. Over the last six months, I’ve seen the best and worst in pictures posted from the Pearl, and I must say, I can’t wait to see some improvement. That’s not to say that the 8100′s camera is trash-worthy, but it could be better.

My question, though, is how often do you use it? Whenever a photo op presents itself, do you immediately think to whip out your device and take a shot (…how rude)? And have you ever had to scrap the idea completely because of lighting conditions? Because that’s usually the issue with most cameraphone shots – lousy lighting equates for lousy shots (actually, that’s most camera’s).

So please. Fill me in on your camera escapades. Tell me if you use it, why you use it, and improvements you’re looking for in upcoming devices. I’m intrigued, is all.

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tprime

I think the key is understanding what you have. I don’t have great expectations for a camera included in my blackberry. But it is nice to have.
tprime

I think the key is understanding what you have. I don’t have great expectations for a camera included in my blackberry. But it is nice to have.
http://cwhisonant.blogspot.com/ Chris Whisonant

Funny you ask because I was JUST about to upload some pics to Flickr from a concert I went to this weekend. They wouldn’t let me take in my old 2.0 MP camera (photos are much better than pearl even in darker rooms…), but I guess they didn’t mind the tons of people with camera phones! So I had my Pearl. I took about 90 photos and uploaded the 23 best. Most were REALLY bad in the lighting and the better ones were when the white lights were on.

Here’s the set if you want to see how they turned out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/69828619@N00/443603393/in/set-72157600042851551/
http://zachhale.com/ Zach Hale

I do use my Pearl’s camera quite often but, like you said, there is a lot to be improved. The camera is really not very good unless you have perfect lighting. I also have trouble with lots of dust getting on the lens that I can’t reach through it’s little crevace. It’s too bad the camera isn’t better, but oh well, it’s what’s there.
http://cwhisonant.blogspot.com Chris Whisonant

Funny you ask because I was JUST about to upload some pics to Flickr from a concert I went to this weekend. They wouldn’t let me take in my old 2.0 MP camera (photos are much better than pearl even in darker rooms…), but I guess they didn’t mind the tons of people with camera phones! So I had my Pearl. I took about 90 photos and uploaded the 23 best. Most were REALLY bad in the lighting and the better ones were when the white lights were on.

Here’s the set if you want to see how they turned out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/69828619@N00/443603393/in/set-72157600042851551/
http://zachhale.com/ Zach Hale

I do use my Pearl’s camera quite often but, like you said, there is a lot to be improved. The camera is really not very good unless you have perfect lighting. I also have trouble with lots of dust getting on the lens that I can’t reach through it’s little crevace. It’s too bad the camera isn’t better, but oh well, it’s what’s there.
Oriol

There’s much to do with the Blackberry Pearl camera. You don’t have always the opportunity to make the best pictures, but it’s convenient and practical to have the camera ready so easy.
As others have said, the lighting problems are considerable, but on daylight you can get very nice pictures, and even in the night. Just have a look to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/omiralbell/
Oriol

There’s much to do with the Blackberry Pearl camera. You don’t have always the opportunity to make the best pictures, but it’s convenient and practical to have the camera ready so easy.
As others have said, the lighting problems are considerable, but on daylight you can get very nice pictures, and even in the night. Just have a look to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/omiralbell/
Todd

I really like having the camera in my blackberry. I use it quite often and I have captured some priceless moments with my young children. I would however like to see improvements for darkness, motion shots and zoom that doesn’t blur. But overall it has been very handy.
Todd

I really like having the camera in my blackberry. I use it quite often and I have captured some priceless moments with my young children. I would however like to see improvements for darkness, motion shots and zoom that doesn’t blur. But overall it has been very handy.
Jacky C.

The BlackBerry camera really ain’t that bad. I was in a car the other day and while driving past I saw the sun and the trees and decided to take a couple pictures. I think they turned out pretty nice. Have a look:

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/9972/clouds2wt2.jpg
http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/3730/clouds3ri6.jpg

The only bad thing about this camera is the crappy ass flash. It’s the worst!
Jacky C.

The BlackBerry camera really ain’t that bad. I was in a car the other day and while driving past I saw the sun and the trees and decided to take a couple pictures. I think they turned out pretty nice. Have a look:

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/9972/clouds2wt2.jpg
http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/3730/clouds3ri6.jpg

The only bad thing about this camera is the crappy ass flash. It’s the worst!
Martin

I do allot of market research in the retail environment. This means I need to take lots of pictures of product and price tags.

the Pearl lacks a macro mode.
I just cant figure out the best way to focus on objects closeup or even 12 inches away.
Martin

I do allot of market research in the retail environment. This means I need to take lots of pictures of product and price tags.

the Pearl lacks a macro mode.
I just cant figure out the best way to focus on objects closeup or even 12 inches away.
http://www.footballhuddle.net/ John

I use my peral often to take pictures. I have a 2GB card in it to handle music and pictures. However I just recently had to buy a new digital camera mainly to take “serious” pictures. I never expected the peral to take a “real” camera’s place but I was hoping for something in the 2 mega pixel range and the ability to take some low light shots.

With the peral I’ve found that it’s 1.3 mp is very good in high exposure, well lit places. So outdoors the camera is very effective and I have some very good picutres this way. However, it’s even a dark store I can forget trying to take a picture. It’s not that the picture is just dark but it apears pixelated and fuzzy. I’m not sure why that happens but it does. If the picture was just consistantly dark in low light I could try some image editing tricks to bring the image in a little more light…but there really is no hope. Then the flash is just hopeless and I’m sure that is all about battery life.
http://www.footballhuddle.net John

I use my peral often to take pictures. I have a 2GB card in it to handle music and pictures. However I just recently had to buy a new digital camera mainly to take “serious” pictures. I never expected the peral to take a “real” camera’s place but I was hoping for something in the 2 mega pixel range and the ability to take some low light shots.

With the peral I’ve found that it’s 1.3 mp is very good in high exposure, well lit places. So outdoors the camera is very effective and I have some very good picutres this way. However, it’s even a dark store I can forget trying to take a picture. It’s not that the picture is just dark but it apears pixelated and fuzzy. I’m not sure why that happens but it does. If the picture was just consistantly dark in low light I could try some image editing tricks to bring the image in a little more light…but there really is no hope. Then the flash is just hopeless and I’m sure that is all about battery life.
b.N

my confusion is why this 1.3 camera lacks so much compared to the LG series of 1.3 cameras?

has anyone seen the pictures the VX9800 produces? comeon, RIM, you can step it up!
b.N

my confusion is why this 1.3 camera lacks so much compared to the LG series of 1.3 cameras?

has anyone seen the pictures the VX9800 produces? comeon, RIM, you can step it up!
http://www.stevedavis.com.au/ stevedavis

My BB Pearl recently got serviced because the trackball stopped working. I notice the firmware was upgraded and since then the camera has gone from ordinary to next-to-useless. It has exposure settings that send the screen totally white in normal, outdoor sunlight and shots all have a blue cast as if the white balance is set for incandescent lighting. Is there any way to hack these settings? Or is there a way to load a different camera application to give me more control. i know it is just a silly (whoops, “smart”) phone but the camera app really lets down the whole unit, especially considering that it is theoretically a simple way to send snaps to facebook, etc.
http://www.stevedavis.com.au stevedavis

My BB Pearl recently got serviced because the trackball stopped working. I notice the firmware was upgraded and since then the camera has gone from ordinary to next-to-useless. It has exposure settings that send the screen totally white in normal, outdoor sunlight and shots all have a blue cast as if the white balance is set for incandescent lighting. Is there any way to hack these settings? Or is there a way to load a different camera application to give me more control. i know it is just a silly (whoops, “smart”) phone but the camera app really lets down the whole unit, especially considering that it is theoretically a simple way to send snaps to facebook, etc.

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