Ipad 2 camera grainy

Admittedly, low light results in grainy (and lousy) photos. But with bright light, I find the photos turn out pretty darn well. I didn't buy my iPad to be used as a camera; it does so much more, and quite fantastically, that the camera is irrelevant to me.

Definitely stick to your iphone4 or digital camera for high quality images. The iPad2 is convenient for pics, but not the best.

Same prob; grainy image; but now test your front facing cam through the regual iPad camera app; and it will be very clear and brightly lit....

So what gives; ? Why does its quality denigrate when making an actual FaceTime but still using the same front facing cam?

I just bought the iPad 2 and as an avid hobbyist in photography I really must say that the cameras on the iPad will not really satisfy anyone who has used a decent digital camera before. I use a Nikon DSLR and the images produced by the iPad's camera are just awful. Videos are ok but the stills aren't really that good. In good light I managed to get some decent ones.

BUT ... since I was a late adopter of this tech, I read a lot of feedback regarding the cameras and quite frankly I'm not too bothered by it. I chose the iPad because of its form factor and gorgeous display which I use to view my photos (taken by the DSLR) and too watch videos and surf the net.

I really don't think that this device was meant to take photos in the first place but to serve as webcams as someone already pointed out in an earlier reply. For video chatting both cameras are really adequate.

My opinion is that if a customer really wants this device for taking photos then why not try it at the store first? There are demo units available right? And there is a return policy anyway, so why not make the most of it?

Sorry for the long post guys... this is my first post and I really want to make it count. Lol! 😀

Welcome tom the Forums! Nice first post.

Have almost zero experience with this, but the primary problem with the camera does not appear to be a "resolution" problem, but, rather a "capture" problem.

When taking a picture, the viewfinder resolution is far sharper than the resulting captured image.

What it looks like to me is that the "picture quality" or jpeg compression level is set so low that the stored image is "terrible" ... the number of colors stored in the image are minimal and clump together giving the grainy appearance.

I have looked for a setting but found none.

In my opinion, the captured image should be equivalent or better than image viewed when taking the picture but on the ipad2 it is far worse.

Beverly Howard

When is the last time you saw an ad that wasn't deceptive .

It's a matter of degree. For ads specifically about camera and video images the company should either use actual images or state that they are not actual images.

Consumers shouldn't become complacent about deception.

doug

There is a problem. I no longer have access to the ipad2 that exhibited the problem, but here is a 180x320 clip taken directly out of one of the snaps that I took that looked sharp with full detail on the screen when I was framing and taking the picture.

To my eye, this looks like a "color count" jpeg compression issue rather than a lens focus problem.

Beverly Howard

Here's a photo I took with my iPad. It's all about good lighting.

I want to add that I love having the camera. Example: I needed a professional opinion on how to treat some knots in pine siding installed on the exterior of my home. I took a couple of photos of the wall, took my iPad to the paint store, and showed the staff the photos so they could see exactly what I was talking about. It is so much better than the small screen on a cell phone.

I don't have unreasonable expectations about the quality expected from the camera feature. Under bright lighting conditions I can take outdoor photos like that too. I can't barely see them until I come inside though because of glare. 🙂

But what about FaceTime? Have you ever seen FaceTime on the iPad 2 with quality anywhere near approaching that of the Apple ads, no matter how good the lighting?

doug

My issue isn't with glare, but with the rapid fire camera button. I usually wind up taking five more photos than intended because it's so fast (or my reflexes are so slow)! 😉

As to FaceTime, I have to admit that I haven't had any occasion to use it yet, so I've no opinion or experience with the FT photo quality.

Even if you haven't had a chance to use FaceTime yet, try turning on the app and compare the view of yourself with the view of yourself using the camera app. You'll see the obvious difference right away.

If you want to try FaceTime you can ring me at doug(at)lerner(dot)net. But be forewarned. I haven't shaved today. 🙂

doug

>> It's all about good lighting <<

No... it's not. The image displayed on the iPad2 screen before taking the image containg the clip I posted was high quality with full detail and vivid colors. It's the stored image that has a problem... same lighting, same display different result written to the file.

In addition, the iTouch has no problems with the same lighting and same image in rendering an excellent available light picture. Why defend something that is obviously broken?

Strong light always helps, but it is not the cure for a defective process. Glad your iPad2 is meeting your expectations... this one shouldn't have been allowed out of the factory.

Beverly Howard

>> My issue isn't with glare, but with the rapid fire camera button. <<

Fortunately, it is dirt simple to address this problem.

All of the iOS screen inputs have nothing to do with "pressing a button"

Nothing happens when you touch the screen, but rather it happens when you remove your finger from the screen.

Solution? Place your finger on the shutter button and compose your picture. When you are ready to take the picture, remove your finger from the screen. No shake, no multiple pictures.

Understanding this design point helps in a multitude of screen tap situations.

Hope that this information is of value.

Beverly Howard