markhalonen (u/markhalonen)

markhalonen commented on Apple Debuts iPhone 17 apple.com/newsroom/2025/0... · Posted by u/excerionsforte

kjkjadksj · 3 months ago

The issue with the camera in newer iphones is that it uses an Ai engine to smooth things and add details that aren’t there.

If you want reference tier photos for documenting family history, modern mirrorless is better. DSLR from 10-15 years ago is also still great in all but the most challenging light conditions, where you could simply use a flash.

markhalonen · 3 months ago

big discussion was had around this a month ago https://candid9.com/phone-camera/

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

neomantra · 5 months ago

Thanks for replying and congrats on releasing your idea to the world. I just signed up to check it out and will use it in parallel with my project. I like your idea of session-based versus photo-based and also the approach of pre-printing QR codes. That is a simple workflow quite accessible to the less technical on both sides.

I don't think I have specific questions now, but I'm excited for the kinds of interactions it can spark. I mostly imagine getting lost in a sea of QR codes if it is not managed well. I was going to try to composite an extra copy for photographer reference.

markhalonen · 5 months ago

Awesome! It's a very simple workflow, here's another video that I don't have on the website for reference https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OctwOpaNoJQ

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

throwanem · 5 months ago

Right, at which point I cease to understand why the "For independent photographers" tab reads as if trying to pitch me a gig-economy style addon to an existing practice. I can't speak for the market you are trying to target, but I would wonder whether you miss people like them by hitting people like me.

I guess maybe it could be worth clarifying your copy, but who'd care? I do street work when I do it because I like meeting people and because it makes people smile. If I wanted money also out of it, I'd more likely just drop my hat on the sidewalk or something.

I still don't see why the comparison page (the one originally linked here, the iPhone 16/mirrorless shootout) treats variations in pose and composition as equivalent with those caused by camera physics, which was what originally caught my interest in any case.

markhalonen · 5 months ago

Yes one use-case is a gig-economy street photography practice, which does already exist in places like the Brooklyn Bridge, Candid9 makes that easier.

Another use-case perhaps in your case is to do it for free and do higher volume and market your money-making services? I agree that it is fun and mood-lifting to take portraits, but also it would be cool to make it sustainable.

but yeah overall Candid9 is a hammer looking for a nail right now.

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

bonoboTP · 5 months ago

> But it wasn't on purpose to tip the scales, I was just taking an iPhone photo as I've done many times.

It tipped the scales and the post became overwhelmingly misleading, attributing the "distortion" to the camera, instead of the distance and zoom.

markhalonen · 5 months ago

Right but at the same time, Average Joe will take better photos with a digicam because they'll behave exactly like I did and make the same mistakes, so arguably it's very naive but also an accurate depiction of the average idiot who clicks a shutter

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

throwanem · 5 months ago

There's no depth limit, it's just that the reply link takes a few minutes to show up at depth. You can always reply from the comment view (click the timestamp) until the reply window (iirc 14 days) has closed. I don't care about Candid9; as I said, there's no place for it in anything I do. If it matters to you to pitch effectively to street photographers, I assume you would want to find out what we care about. If not, why pitch us at all? Unfortunately for me, it's too goddamned hot right now to go outside and live, and I'm bored of doing house chores. Good luck.

markhalonen · 5 months ago

I don't really understand the current street photographers as I don't know how they would ever make money. Basically if you're already a street photographer, then you aren't motivated by money, which the pitch of Candid9 is that you'll make money. So pre-existing street photographers paradoxically are not the target market.

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

markhalonen · 5 months ago

> What kind of volume are you doing?

Most I've done is 60 group photos in an hour at a trade show.

> Really, what it looks like to me is just that you have a product that costs ~nothing to operate

Correct

> and seems like it sort of makes sense for smallish wedding-and-anniversary party venues

I would say the intended use case is destination venues like a upscale golf course or hotel.

> the ask to add a Wal Mart style belt mounted printer to my kit

Not how it works. If you looked at the website, you'd see that you print and cut the tickets at home before hand on a normal printer.

> It's bizarre to me in what world you live where this constitutes "easier," but I also don't care

Handing someone a ticket is easier than collecting their email.

> You want to intermediate and transactionalize a relationship so ephemeral it can already be nearly overlooked even to exist, and where your presence is unneeded and unwelcome - and mine is the most HN comment ever?

I have unlimited confidence and patience. Hit me with the snarkiest rebuttal you can muster!

markhalonen · 5 months ago

@throwanem I think I hit the depth limit so replying here. I would be happy to chat about how a street photographer could use Candid9, but do know that I've made plenty of money in other businesses and this is a fun passion project for me, so I'm not begging on my knees for someone to use my side project.

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

snowwrestler · 5 months ago

This is post fails to disclose an important detail, which is that the photographer was not standing in the same spot for all photos.

For iPhone golf player shot, they were standing closer to the players and using a wide-angle lens. For the “beginner photographer” shot they were standing farther away and using a longer focal length lens. You can tell by the size of the trees in the background. This difference in positioning, not “because iPhone,” is why the player’s faces are distorted on the left.

These details might not matter to random folks grabbing snapshots. But I expect something posted to HN to actually contain useable detailed information, rather than vague “looks worse” comparisons with an obvious thumb on the scale.

markhalonen · 5 months ago

It is true that I was standing closer and using a wide-angle lens with the iPhone. But it wasn't on purpose to tip the scales, I was just taking an iPhone photo as I've done many times.

So it would be a fairer comparison to use a longer focal length, but it's also true that I am the Average Joe, and Average Joe took a better photo with the camera, because it guided me in that direction more than the iPhone did.

markhalonen commented on iPhone 16 cameras vs. traditional digital cameras candid9.com/phone-camera/... · Posted by u/sergiotapia

throwanem · 5 months ago

What kind of volume are you doing? I see three examples. Hell, I get more people than that stopping me to ask for pictures or try to hire me for event work when they see how I use a camera, most days when I'm just out for a walk.

Really, what it looks like to me is just that you have a product that costs ~nothing to operate and seems like it sort of makes sense for smallish wedding-and-anniversary party venues - but you've discovered too late what a nightmare that market is and that the fit's not actually that great, so you're pitching to people like me to try to salvage with a pivot, not realizing that the ask to add a Wal Mart style belt mounted printer to my kit in order to produce these QR code tickets is really just never going to happen.

It's bizarre to me in what world you live where this constitutes "easier," but I also don't care. You want to intermediate and transactionalize a relationship so ephemeral it can already be nearly overlooked even to exist, and where your presence is unneeded and unwelcome - and mine is the most HN comment ever? But it does explain why no one in your sample shots is smiling.