iOS 4.1 HDR disappoints

I upgraded my iPhone 4 to the latest iOS version 4.1.  Apple promised some new features and a bug fix.  One of the bug fixes was a cause for much celebration in my home.  My wife is happy that her cheek no longer hangs up her calls.  Hopefully her family will stop teasing us about AT&Ts network.

Two of the new features I looked forward to was High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography and uploading of 720p video to YouTube.  I was disappointed by both.

I took a short video which I uploaded in app to YouTube.  Camera app prompted me for my Google username and password and a few seconds later I was viewing my uploaded content.  Maybe I’m just being critical but the video quality looked no different from that I see when I uploaded with the iOS 4.0 320p limit.

HDR photography is a technique that involves taking a photo of the same subject at different exposure levels and combining the multiple exposure to create an image with a greater dynamic range luminance between the lightest and darkest areas of an image than standard photographic methods.  It can produce excellent results when used correctly.

Standard photo taken with iPhone 4 camera app

HDR photo taken with iPhone 4 camera app

HDR photo processed with the Photomatix Pro plug-in for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3

There is only a slight difference between the two photos processed on the iPhone 4 and I’m not sure I like the HDR results.  The photo processed in Photomatix Pro has more depth of colour.

Author: Khürt Williams

A human who works in information security and enjoys photography, Formula 1 and craft ale. #nobridge