Dropping the weights: Can the little smartphone ever replace a professional camera?

One of the best things about technology, besides the fact that it brings wonderful and impossible concepts to life, is that it can open up the world to pretty much everyone. Think of this, once upon a time when televisions came into existence (around 1927), only the rich had access to it. Now, some 95 years later, almost every household across the world possesses one.

The same happened with pretty much every consumer gadget you can think of. The popularity and the success of both, a technological concept as well as a connected gadget, depends on how functional it is and how many people are using it. For people to easily access it, it needs to be affordable.

Cameras, particularly professional cameras, are still quite expensive. While some dedicated photography enthusiasts can afford to make that investment, most cannot. However, this does not have to mean that those who cannot afford to buy a camera and multiple lenses need to sit out. Enter smartphones.

From the time cameras were mounted on phones, the tech has evolved by leaps and bounds. From larger sensors to multiple lenses, like wide-angle, macro, telephoto, etc., to built-in gimbals, optical image stabilisation (OIS) support, portrait mode, software support for photo and beauty filters -- the list of what smartphone cameras can do now is pretty much endless.

While this is all well and good, are smartphone cameras good enough to replace professional equipment? Well, a recent exhibition held at Museo Camera in Gurgaon showed that today's smartphones can shoot great photos, and they might be just that much closer to replacing professional equipment for good.

"Photography in the early 19th century was a preserve of the privileged and rich but the one dollar Kodak Brownie launched in the early 20th century changed the scenario and photography became available to the masses, though still quite expensive. Today, thanks to smartphone camera technology, photography has become one of the most democratic forms of expression," the concept note for the exhibition, titled 'The Art of Storytelling', said.

"No longer constrained by the technological parameters of analogue photography, the camera-phone continues to evolve and challenge traditional photography practices, thus giving rise to new image-making processes, new ways of seeing and allowing people to communicate and share what is important to them," it added.

Curated in collaboration with the Saksham Bal Vikas Sanstha and the Shiksha Education Centre, the exhibition saw the works of underprivileged children put on display.

These children, from the villages of Gurugram, Chakkarpur, Jharsa, Wazirabad, Nathupur, etc., were chosen for the project based on their interest in story-telling and art. They were provided with an iPhone 12 to put their skills to test. Besides, they were also given theory and practical lessons on mobile photography before they started off.

The main idea behind the workshop was not just to learn to use a smartphone camera but also to use it well, frame the shots right, and most importantly, learn how to tell a story through images.

"Smartphone cameras have democratised photography. Now anyone, irrespective of who you are and where you come from, can use the smartphone to tell their stories with images and videos," Aditya Arya, photographer and founder of Museo Camera, told BusinessToday.In.

"I felt the journey of the democratisation of the medium was complete. A mobile camera that strips off all the technical barriers to express a thought, a slice of life from the life bubbles of every individual photographer was displayed in the room. The images followed the grammar and traditions of documentary photography combined with the cutting edge technology of an iPhone. The budding photographers could concentrate on the core of any good photograph -- the story, the expression -- and freeze a slice of life," said photographer Prashanth Vishwanathan while talking about the photos on display.

Arya said he was amazed by the kind of results he saw the kids deliver, but what mattered most was how much the children managed to learn over the workshops and the kind of opportunities and hopes it has nudged them towards.

Speaking about the prowess of smartphone cameras and how they match up to professional cameras, Arya said while he does think that smartphone camera tech is pretty exquisite now, there are certain fields where professional cameras remain necessary, like advertising shoots.

Alongside the exhibition, some of Arya's photos, taken during his recent expedition to Leh, were also on display at Museo Camera. The Leh expedition was shot on iPhone 13 series cameras by Arya and some other photographers, particularly on iPhone 13 Pro Max.

"The iPhone 13 Pro Max's ultra-wide camera lens, which captures more details in low-light conditions, gave me an added edge while shooting the picturesque moonscapes of Ladakh," Arya pointed out.

However, the best part was not iPhone's camera chops, but the fact that a light, portable device has managed to replace bulky professional equipment. "After carrying dozens of lenses and heavy equipment during my travels, I feel liberated, thanks to the new avatar of technology," said Arya.

Museo Camera plans to have similar exhibitions every year to give more underprivileged children a chance to learn something new and develop new skills, and this speaks volumes about what smartphones can help achieve. Most of these children may never end up buying a camera to shoot, but they will still be able to tell stories using what they have, even if it is the most basic smartphone.

 
"The art challenges the technology, and the technology inspires the art," said American movie director John Lassetar. The quote rings true for camera technology. Life, as we know, is the art that photography captures, and since it only must get better, technology must advance too.

Smartphone cameras are getting better and better and companies are focusing heavily on this because it is one of the most important features of a device, one that makes or breaks a user's decision to buy it. This just means one thing for the users -- When it comes to telling stories, the scope is infinite and there is so much that the device in your hand can do.