phones-apps Cell Phone Cam Alternatives to DSLR?

Hi. What cell phone is best for achieving cinematic or rich texture-look quality? I presently have a Panasonic Lumix GH3 DSLR camera from 2015 and it still works fine. But I dislike how heavy it is. I'd rather have a phone I can easily carry on me instead of dealing with a DSLR which I have to lock up for theft prevention. I'm amateur level with phones and vid cameras. I can't keep up with how fast tech changes. Since 2015 it seems the cams are now filming to look like movies - maybe even without attachments.

If it's not too much trouble I'm open to attachments too. But all my iphones are also from 2015. Of course I've read things like " Best smartphone cameras for video — 2021" at Videomaker but I'm hoping to get firsthand insights form the wisdom of the crowd. Thank you.
 
I can't keep up with how fast tech changes.
The tech changes, but the underlying principles of good photography haven't changed in over 100 years. For video, there are only three parameters that the camera needs to be able to handle: frame rate, aperture and focal distance. Everything else that makes a great shot (lighting, camera angle, set decoration, choice of subject ... ) is down to the person holding the camera.

For the most part, the only significant changes in the technical capabilities of newer generation smartphones are better image sensors (what we old folks once knew as "film" ) and better low-light performance (essentially the same as sensor improvement). Everything else is some kind of electronic trickery applied to the images to make them look a certain way. Or what we old folks call "post production".

What camera would be best for you depends on what you mean by "cinematic or rich texture-look quality" and how/when/where/what you're trying to film ... and how many post-production short-cuts you're trying to take. :bag:
 
Well, I've never shot a movie on a phone before, but it I have to choose one, I'd definitely choose mine: Samsung Galaxy S10

The camera quality is fine (for a phone), it has "DSLR" options, you can shoot underwater, has fish-eye, the focus works pretty nicely too...

Can't say much else about the theme!
 
To be honest, that was an idea like years ago and I don't think I'll make a short out of it, but hey probably will recycle this for a flashback-joke scene kinda like Family Guy, now that you reminded me that I actually wanted to do this...

Do you want "El Director" to be displayed as your name in the credits? 🤪
 
What are you filming exactly? You said

so does this mean you are filming spontaneous events? Or are you doing planned productions?

Hi @indietalk --
Example of what I'm trying to do is at https://indietalk.com/threads/cell-phone-cam-alternatives-to-dslr.65187/#post-454868 - out and about shots. It's just 2 of us doing it out of pocket doing our best.

Also, RE: "The iPhone 11 Pro shot some good stuff... Here's something from the 12 Pro Max" Do you think those were just filmed with the cam built in as is or any special lenses affixed?
 
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The iPhone 12 will be super discounted very soon, the 13 will be out in Oct/Nov. You can always get a good deal before a release. Some carriers will even offer it free (if switching to them). Keep an eye out.
 
By cinematic or rich texture-look quality, I mean like this video I was involved with:
:hmm: Still not sure what you're aiming for. I don't see anything "cinematic" in that footage - no real depth of field, lighting's very flat, camera angles are not very imaginative. The "rich texture" (such as it is) comes from the inherently messy/detailed nature of the background/environment. From a cinematography point of view, everything about that video screams "shot on a phone" so I wouldn't be in a rush to replicate the effect.
 
How does the new iPhone14PRO stack up these days? Woud it be good enough mounted on a gimbal for shooting a 2K 'slow' running scene on a sunny midday through mediocre density woods, in folow mode (ie. following behind the actor), and also shooting sideways (ie. running along side the actor), with fill lighting from the top of the gimbal aimed at the subject, and some LED flood lights hidden behind trees on the other side of the subject, such that the actor runs along a path that is lined with trees, and every so often we have ground level and some high level LED clear-white lights.
Thoughts?
 
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