Camera test: The phone with the best Portrait mode

30 December 2018
We've lined up the industry's cameraphone heavyweights - iPhone XS Max, Galaxy Note9, Huawei Mate 20 Pro, LG V40 ThinQ, OnePlus 6T, Galaxy S9, Google Pixel 3 to see how good phones have become in capturing portrait photos with defocused backgrounds. We'll also be taking some shots with a full-frame DSLR - the Nikon D750 - just to put things into perspective.

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  • A
  • Adeww
  • LiZ
  • 31 Dec 2018

It's subjective, but I like Mate 20 Pros' photos the most. Pixels' are great too.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • Js{
    • 31 Dec 2018

    Wait , you guys used a 50mm on the camera?

    Are you aware that a proper bokeh needs more than 120mm and f below 2.2?

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • Js{
      • 31 Dec 2018

      You should mean LESS AWFUL...

      Because the portrait done by phones are riduculous. Many spots without blur, mainly on sides and around the head..

      If you want a not that poor shot, never use phone in landscape position..

        do not know why but d750 and xs max had best overall image processing..others especially pixel 3 has too much contrast

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • NgE
          • 30 Dec 2018

          Anonymous, 30 Dec 2018I hope they make a camera test for midrange and low end pho... moreYes i agree i hope that they make more comparaisons between phones

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            • Anonymous
            • Kg%
            • 30 Dec 2018

            Nah. Most users will find theirselves using the Pixel more if they ever get the chance to use all of these.

              • F
              • Fsi22
              • 7t2
              • 30 Dec 2018

              Pixel 3 looks the most impressive to me from a neutral point. The iphone and Samsung look a bit too beautified and the V40 seems all over the place with its white balance.

              Hate that faux-keh look.

                12 points go to Nikon 🍻

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • JEe
                  • 30 Dec 2018

                  One day it may look good enough with all that machine learning. At the moment it's cancer.

                    Couldn't care much less about fake depth of field so i was only comparing the general quality of the cameras. I found it odd that despite the S9 being very flat, lacking in contrast and overly warm it still captured far more sharpness and detail than the Note 9 could manage. For me the Mate 20 was the biggest standout here and in some cases it even produced sharper shots than the DSLR but i'm assuming that's just focusing differences. The S9 wasn't far behind the Mate 20 but it's flat images counted against it, though that can be adjusted in post whereas you can't add detail. The XS and Note 9 just couldn't compare. The Pixel was fairly detailed and clear, certainly better than the XS and Note9, but it still had that soft, slightly frosted bathroom glass look to them that i see in all the Pixel shots on GSM.

                      Whackcar, 30 Dec 2018Am i the only one who don't like/use portrait mode? I like ... moreI take a normal image and blur the background with Afterfocus imo that is better (and my phone is single camera with no portrait mode)

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • n1D
                        • 30 Dec 2018

                        LG Superfan, 30 Dec 2018Pixel is the best from blur to colors and exposure all seem... moreWell, about the colors. That's quite subjective too. I do think pixel 3 pictures are always a bit too dark. I'm not saying they should be punchy, but I think when it comes to colors, there are other phones that produces nicer and probably more accurate colors. I like the colors from the iPhones for example. And also, when it comes to HDR, their dynamic range is a bit better, because Pixel cameras are sort of hiding the very dark spots - you don't clearly see the details, because the camera just blacks them out.

                          And Huawei better fix its vignetting its destroying great images and AFAIK Mates Aperture Mode does not has that problem so you shoul have tried that too

                            Pixel is the best from blur to colors and exposure all seems great though bokeh lights could have been better but still its great and instead of S9 you guys should have used XR

                              • M
                              • MrBonga
                              • n1K
                              • 30 Dec 2018

                              The Pixel has an awesome sharpness!!!!

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • JFj
                                • 30 Dec 2018

                                Anyone noticed that all phones failed to capture girl's face, on Nikon it looks a way wider. Looks like you switched person in front the camera

                                  Am i the only one who don't like/use portrait mode? I like to capture as much detail as possible at all times, thus a blurred background seems completely pointless to me...

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • NjC
                                    • 30 Dec 2018

                                    I hope they make a camera test for midrange and low end phones and i want it to be a blind test like the one of mkhd to make it easier for us to know the best midrange cameras and comparindg them with flagships because all flagships cameras are very good but for budget phones it is another story
                                    Please gsmarena make a camera test for budget phones

                                      I generally like the 6T's output, having the 6 myself, the edge detection is surprisingly good,but what I hate about it is the fact that it loses a good chunk of the texture detail while doing so.
                                      Maybe, OnePlus would fix that in an update. Maybe not.