The day out turned out to be cloudy and light levels were relatively low outside, making for even more challenging conditions in which to shoot photos, arguably. The Lumia 1020 was the world champion imaging smartphone until the end of last year, when I'd argue that the Lumia 950 took over, though only by a whisker and even then depending on what exactly was being photographed.
For this set of tests, I did my best with each phone camera (in some cases trying with flash turned on or exposure adjusted slightly - I really was trying to get the best shot with each, though my only rule was that I only had one 'go' with each subject for each phone. After all, in the real world with a family following close behind, they're not going to stand around while you have five tries at each subject. (In my case, the family had gone on ahead!!)
In each case, I've downsampled the results from each phone camera to 900 pixels wide - ostensibly to provide a typical 'social' resolution, but mainly so that we can use our fancy interactive comparator below(!)
I'll mark the phone results as I go and we'll have a count up at the end, just for fun!
Test 1: Outdoors, against overcast sky
I wanted to test dynamic range - I let the Lumia run with HDR set to 'auto', but HDR wasn't used. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
There's not much to say here - they're outdoor snaps in indifferent light - the Lumia 950 version does have greater contrast and sharpening, in light with its usual processing, but the 1020 shot looks very natural. So honours pretty even.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 10 pts
Test 2: Indoors, drawing room
Another good test of dynamic range, with a range of focal points and light levels. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
The crispness and dynamic range of the Lumia 950 camera is astonishing. And no, I've gone back and checked - HDR wasn't used - this was all in a single exposure. There's little to choose in terms of overall detail, especially at this 'social' resolution, but the 950 takes the win thanks to the way it handled the brightest spots.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 9 pts
Test 3: Indoors, portrait in shadow
A nice, large portrait, in shadow but with good reflected light. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
The Lumia 1020 arguably messed up here, having a go (in auto-mode) at fill-in flash, when it was probably unnecessary. The result is an artificial 'yellowing' of the scene - something which will be familiar to anyone else who's shot a lot of photos on the 1020 with Xenon flash. It may freeze the moment, but the image processing leaves something to be desired in terms of white balance. The Lumia 950 here was also in 'auto' mode but didn't fire its triple-LED flash.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 8 pts
Test 4: Indoors, well lit bedroom
I loved the yellow colour scheme here. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Here it's all about the much wider aperture and more sensitive sensor on the Lumia 950, together with more advanced image processing, giving a lighter and clearer result. Sure I could have zoomed in on the 1020, perhaps snapping a detail, but I was more interested in the whole scene here.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 8 pts
Test 5: Subject against bright background
Here we had an ornamental box against a bright window. I couldn't get closer because of a rope, so had to shoot as is - I forced flash on for both phones to try and light up the box's insides. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Despite the wider angle of capture, the Lumia 1020 still managed to get more detail from the subject, thanks to the Xenon flash vs triple LED, etc. So a win, though there's obviously blowout from the window again.
Lumia 950: 7 pts, Lumia 1020: 9 pts
Test 6: Tricky light errr.. lighting!
The ornamental light cluster in the dining room was begging out to be snapped. I had a go with each phone. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Although I'd give the win to the Lumia 1020 here, the detail on the lamps themselves has been lost. While the 950's result has detail on the lights but the overall snap is darker than I'd have liked. Neither were really what I was going for - if I went back then I'd experiment with HDR on the 950 and see if I could get it to cope with the range of light.
Lumia 950: 7 pts, Lumia 1020: 8 pts
Test 7: Statue time!
This was a statue in the grounds, shot at about 2m against a bright overcast sky. In each case the statue's detail was being lost in shadow, so I forced on HDR mode on the Lumia 950 and (lacking HDR mode) used an extra exposure stop and fill in Xenon flash on the Lumia 1020. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
The 1020 image is probably truer to life and how my eyes saw the statue, though the sky was totally blown out of course - the extra contrast on the Lumia 950 snap is dramatic and most people would instantly pick it as the 'better' photo.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 9 pts
Test 8: Cloudy landscape
A typical touristy shot of the main house - shame about the lack of sun, though. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Very undemanding, of course, and little to choose between the two shots, especially at this resolution. Honours even and a good job all round, as you might expect.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 10 pts
Test 9: Woody plane
This caught my eye on the way back to the car - plenty of natural detail, usually the Achilles heel of most image processing. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
I'm going to give the 1020 the win simply because it does a cracking job of making greenery look 100% natural, but the sharpened Lumia 950 image is also top notch, without overdoing it, Samsung-style.
Lumia 950: 9 pts, Lumia 1020: 10 pts
Test 10: Night time
At the end of a long day, calling in for supplies at Tescos. Flash disabled and relying on OIS and sensor performance. Just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
You'd have thought the 1020, with its vast sensor and better oversampling, would triumph here. The 1020 does well, but the Lumia 950 camera still manages to pull out more detail and with less blow-out in the brighter spots. Really impressive.
Lumia 950: 10 pts, Lumia 1020: 9 pts
Verdict
This was a bit of fun really, in that few of the snaps really stretched the two top Lumia smartphone cameras. But, for the record, the scores were:
- Lumia 950: 93 pts (/100)
- Lumia 1020: 90 pts (/100)
In other words, not a lot in it, but also showing that yet again here on AAWP, the Lumia 950 camera manages to 'best' the champion 1020. If only by a hair. You could argue that the 1020 would pull ahead if there were lots of zoomed shots or people indoors, needing Xenon, and you'd be right, but you could also argue that the vastly faster camera experience, the dynamic flash and dynamic exposure modes, the HDR, and so on, plus the 4K video facility, all swing things in the newer device's favour!
Comments welcome anyway. You couldn't really complain, on a day out, with results from either device!
PS. In this case, I don't have original JPGs available for the curious, thanks to a hole in the space time continuum (no, not that Continuum)... [Oh alright, it was because I vaped my 1020 back to 8.1 shortly after this photo trip and forgot to suck out the 5MP oversampled originals! Mea culpa...]