Suggested Settings
Shooting Mode: Single
Size: 2560 X 1920
SCN: None
ISO: 50
White Balance: Auto
Effect: None
Extended View: On
Focus: On
Metering: Center
Contrast: +1
Saturation: +1
Sharpness: +1
WDR: On
GPS: Off
AntiShake: On
The Bad
I must admit that the image quality of the photo taken from the 5 Megapixels Samsung Omnia i900 is not really good. The colours are not vibrant and often dull. Indoor shots are usually not very good while photos taken with flash are too bright. I have tried using the settings above and found virtually no difference compared to the original settings.
Wide Dynamic Range (WDR)
As explained in my previous post Samsung Omnia - First Impression Part 2, WDR stands for Wide Dynamic Range. It works by taking two scans of the same image and then combines them together to provide one balanced image. One scan is taken using high speed CCD while the other is taken using low speed CCD. Most probably, Samsung Omnia i900 has only one CCD and the WDR function is software-controlled.
The WDR setting works pretty well in low light and proves to improve the photos a little bit.
Vivid Colours
I used to have a Nikon camera and there is a setting for taking photos with vivid colours. Photos with and without vivid colours do make a significant difference. Unfortunately, I have to sell it because it uses AA batteries and flash recharge time takes a long time.
In Samsung Omnia i900, there is a SCN setting called Fall and the description of it is ‘to take a picture of vivid colours associated with the season’. With this setting, the photos taken are closed to the photos taken with the Nikon camera. During my recent trip to Rome, Italy, I took over 100 photos using Samsung Omnia i900 and the quality was great. I could hardly differentiate the photos taken with Samsung Omnia i900 against photos taken with Canon IXUS 65.
Saving Camera Settings
The worst thing with Samsung Omnia i900 camera is the inability to save the settings. I wonder if there are other camera applications that can utilise Samsung Omnia i900 camera. Hence, I find it very troublesome to use Samsung Omnia i900 camera settings as suggested by most Samsung Omnia i900 users. By the way, the difference with the original setting is almost non-existent.
The only workable solution for me is to change the SCN to Fall and it does not take longer than five seconds to do that.
The Difference
As you can see, the first photo was taken without any changes to the camera settings. It looks dull. On the other hand, the second photo was taken with SCN – Fall setting and the colours are livelier. It reflects the true colours of the birthday cards even the window blinds are a bit too bright.
