With no imaging articles for a good two weeks, you might have thought I'd shut up shop for the winter. However, a late afternoon Christmas walk with fellow geek (and my nephew) Laurie turned into a bit of a photo taking contest. I wanted to pitch the Lumia 830, with the new style non-oversampling camera and next-gen algorithms, against the existing camera champion, the Lumia 1020. I gave Laurie the pick of the devices and he went for the 830, so it was me and old faithful as we headed out into the wintry weather. With no brief for each of us, except to get the best shot of each subject that was called out. With our famed comparator, which device's snaps do you prefer?

I'd already shot a formal head to head, under much more controlled conditions, between the 830 and the 1020, you can read that here. I'll quote from it at the end of this piece too, just in case. 

In the meantime, though, take this fun little test as just another data point in the ongoing saga of Nokia/Microsoft imaging. The crops here aren't at 1:1 level a) because of the mismatch and complications to do with resolutions and oversampling, and b) because I was looking here for overall accuracy to the scene, as such a photo might be viewed on a laptop screen, for example.

Note that the interactive comparator below uses javascript and does need to load each pair of images. Please be patient while this page loads, if you see a pair of images above each other than you've either not waited long enough or your browser isn't capable enough!

Note that although the framing is identical here in most of the test shots between the two phones (because Laurie and I were standing right next to each other), it's sometimes different, as we each tried out a slightly different angle. Your only job is to note which ones you like best....(!) Is the likes of the Lumia 830 camera now good enough for the majority of smartphone users?

Test 1: A tree silhouette

Just a striking tree in the middle of a field. Here are the photos (scaled down for web use), using our famed interactive comparator, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

There's really very little between the two photos, with just subtle differences in exposure and sharpness. Without going right down to pixel level, I'd give the nod to the Lumia 830, even.

Test 2: Sunny landscape

Yes, another flippin' tree in the middle of another flippin' field... But this time the late afternoon sun is behind and off to the side and providing direct illumination - plenty of detail in the wintry landscape. Or maybe I just like trees in fields....(!) Here are the photos (scaled down for web use), using our famed interactive comparator, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

Again there's little to choose, though this time I'd give the Lumia 1020 the edge because of the slightly less exagerated sunny cast on the scene and the 'purer' image. But again you could argue either way, for a general user.

Test 3: Sunny landscape with err... water!

In an attempt to a) make use of the sun in its last few minutes in the sky and to b) avoid another 'tree in field' shot(!), here's a far more interesting landscape scene. Here are the photos (scaled down for web use), using our famed interactive comparator, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

The two photos are still crazily close - there's a very slight difference in terms of colour and saturation, but it's a toss up as to which is more accurate (remember this was 'golden hour' in terms of lighting). Your comments?

Test 4: Getting closer

Staying with the water theme, here's a Rafe-style shot of running water, shot at about a metre.... Here are the photos (scaled down for web use), using our famed interactive comparator, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

The 830 perhaps just edges ahead with its natural sharpening - the human eye naturally responds to edges and detail - even if it's slightly artificial. Again, you could argue either way, though....

Test 5: Arty macro

With the sun directly ahead, Laurie and I tried to get an arty macro shot through some long grass into the light. Definitely not the 1020's comfort zone, but hey... Here are the photos (scaled down for web use), using our famed interactive comparator, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

Try as I might (I had five attempts), I couldn't get the 1020 close to the default shot produced on the 830, with its much smaller lens and focal length. The Nokia 808 before it (the 1020) was the same, you had to jump through hoops to get a decent macro. Ah well.... In my and the 1020's defence, Laurie and I were shooting only an inch above the ground and it was very hard to see what we were doing/achieving given the extremes of light. But still a definite win the Lumia 830 in my opinion.

Verdict

It's a fair cop, these were just ad-hoc data points gathered by Laurie and I on a winter walk, but the results bear out what I've been saying for a while: for the casual smartphone owner, the smaller camera in the Lumia 830 can produce just as good results as the much bigger (but older) Lumia 1020. The exceptions would be when extreme zoom or moving subjects in low light are required to be snapped, of course. But still, I remain impressed by the next gen OIS and image processing in the 830 - and certainly bearing in mind the price, well below £300 now SIM-free.

From my earlier, more formal test:

Reviewing the Lumia 830 camera before the Lumia Camera application is released is a bit like reviewing a sports car before the turbocharger has been fitted. But still, there's enough here to be very optimistic. While the LED flash means that certain subjects and use cases are tricky, the same is true for 99% of other smartphones. If my flash tests ring a bell with you, then the 1020 (or Android-powered Galaxy K Zoom) are just about your only options on the market right now.

Away from fast moving kids indoors(!), for general photos in most light conditions, the Lumia 830 surprised me with its detail. Nokia has mastered getting the most from a smaller sensor, the OIS is working really well, the 830's display is super clear and colourful and makes a good viewfinder, digital zoom isn't as bad as one would expect.... all we need now is the new Lumia Camera 5 application to realise the functions that were shown off at the 830's launch.

Has the Lumia 830 impressed you above? Is it all enough, for you, to forgive the lack of Xenon flash from the older camera champion? Have you had enough of imaging tests here on AAWP?* Comments welcome across the board!

* Hard luck, I have more planned for 2015(!)