[G4 General] vincent2167:
Thanks for posting this. Complementary to the information you provided, here is below a previous post I wrote in the G4 pictures thread with some shooting tips as well. It was at the same time a mini review of the ProShot app (which allows more shooting controls), but the concepts described are relevant to any other application.

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Here are my thoughts on the ProShot camera app followed by tips to maximize your image quality.

This is a paid app and you can dowload it here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.riseupgames.proshot2

This is a great app for photo enthusiasts and it currently offers some unique shooting modes with the LG G4.

I am not talking about scene modes like beach, snow, food, etc... - this app doesn't have that - but about the shooting functionalities you usually get on an advanced camera or SLR. The closest photo app offering a lot of manual features is Camera FV-5 that I also like.

Before going into the details, let's go through some photography basics.

The image exposure you are getting depends on the following parameters:

- Aperture: It is fixed on the LG G4 at F1.8

- Shutter speed: A slow shutter speed will allow more light to be captured but increase the risk of blur (sometimes a slow shutter speed is wanted to get light trails or water blur and the phone must be very steady for such cases). A fast shutter speed will freeze the motion.

- ISO: The image quality is maximized at ISO 50 (I have made tests and can confirm that). For a same exposure, choosing a higher ISO allows you to select a faster shutter speed (to counter shake / motion blur) but you will get more noise in the picture.

The following picture illustrates how these parameters work:

As the aperture is fixed to F1.8 on the G4, going forward I will only cover the 2 following values: Shutter speed and ISO.

LG's camera, FV-5 and ProShot offer the following modes:

- Auto: Shutter speed and ISO are chosen automatically. You can play with the exposure compensation to undexpose / overexpose the pciture (the camera will adjust one of the 2 values, sometimes both).

- Full manual: You have to manuall select the Shutter speed AND ISO values. The exposure compensation is not available in this mode (it becomes irrelevant).

So what if I want to shoot at a specific ISO but don't want to adjust the Shutter speed everytime the light changes (or vice-versa) ?

This is where ProShot comes into the game with 2 unique functionalities (not offered on LG's camera or FV-5):

- You can select an ISO value and the camera will automatically select a Shutter speed. You can still use exposure compensation if you want.

- You can select a shutter speed value and the camera will automatically select the ISO. You can also still use exposure compensation if you want.

Ok that's good but what do I make with that ? Here are shooting recommandations to maximize your image quality all the time using the ProShot app:

1. With good light and static subject(s), use P mode and set the ISO value to 50. You will get the best image quality possible on the phone with that setup. If you want to undexpose / overexpose the picture, you can still use exposure compensation (which will affect the shutter speed, but automatically). If you start getting shake / motion blur (low light or fast moving subject, go to point 2.

2. Determine the minimum shutter you can use without getting shake / motion blur (let's say for example 1/8 sec with steady hands and a static subject). Use M mode and set up this shutter speed value. Leave ISO in "Auto". ISO will then be automatically be adjusted depending on the light. (EDIT: You can also use C1 or C2 mode if you want to apply exposure compensation.)

If you have multiple chances to shoot the scenes, you can use burst mode - even in RAW + JPEG, something not possible with the defaut G4 app - and lower the shutter speed a bit under your comfort level (1/4 sec for example). Then review your series and only keep the sharpest picture.

Because of the above shooting flexibility available in ProShot, it is currently my favorite photo app with the LG G4.

Please note that the slowest shutter speed currently available is 0.7 sec in manual mode (the stock camera allows to go up to 30 sec).